My Internship at Every Day with Rachael Ray

Working at Every Day with Rachael Ray was my first journalism internship in New York City.  I found out about the internship through a club I had joined at school, Ed2010. I went to a website that listed internships in New York City and applied for various ones I was interested in. I chose this magazine over others I was offered because I have always been a fan of cooking and food which is why the Rachael Ray magazine was such a good fit for me.

The majority of my time working at Every Day with Rachael Ray was spent researching information for articles. I would be given the topic of an article and would spend the day putting together websites, information and pulling up related articles that would correspond with the subject I was researching. Once I compiled all this information I would forward it on to the editor and save a copy of it to the server.

My favorite thing to do at work is when I would get sent out on assignment. The first time I got sent somewhere was to look at the new spring line for Home Goods. I took pictures of the new furniture, home accessories and outdoor furniture so I could show them to my editor. When I got back to the office I wrote up a short summary of all the items that I saw and included the pictures in the word document I later forwarded on to the editor. The company sent over samples of the items I liked the best so my editor could see them in person.

The second time I was sent out of the office was to cover green/recyclable items that are new for spring 2012. It was held at the Marriott in Time Square. There were multiple set ups there showcasing new products that had yet to come out in retail stores. I took pictures on my phone and took press packets of the items I thought related to our magazine. When I got back to the office I wrote up a short article on the items that I liked the best. The online editor for the magazine then published my article on the magazines Tumblr site. It was great to see my article published online with my name on it. My Tumblr Article

Many days I would spend organizing the product closet in our office. The closet is full of pots and pans used on the show, items we use for our Faves pages, and products we get sent from companies hoping to be featured in the magazine. The editor’s office gets bombarded with packages from companies sending free products for us to try out. Multiple times I went in to clear her office and put away all the items in the closet. There are racks of beauty products that I organized. I separated all the skincare, hair products, makeup and items used in the shower. It may seem like a small task but it took a few days to get the closet completely organized. Every week we would be sent more items for photo shoots and products to be used in the show so the closet was in need of constant upkeep.

When we would need products called in for our monthly Faves pages I would be in charge of getting them into the office. This required me to find PR numbers for the companies or call in the item from the vendor. I would then have to keep in contact with them and get the tracking number so I could ensure that they would get to our office by the deadline we needed them. For the items that were in the New York City area I would send over a messenger to pick up the item so we could receive it that day. When we got the item to the office I would unpack them and put them in the designated place in the closet until our product selection meeting. We would get all the items together in the conference room once a month and choose which items would make it to the Faves page. Once they decided which items they needed I would take the ones that didn’t make the cut and send them back. The other items were sent off to the studio where they would be taken for a photo shoot. A week or so later when these items were photographed I would send them back as well.

I also submitted ideas to the online editor of ideas for new boards. I suggested an Olympics themed board for the upcoming summer games in London. I thought it would be fun to list different foods from countries competing so you could have an Olympics party. I looked up ideas for decorations and games you could set up to for the festivities. I also suggested a BBQ Party board, a board for food you could eat on a road trip, a board for garlic lovers and a board for Cinco de Mayo themed foods. The Cinco de Mayo pages features different types of tacos, quesadillas, nachos and margarita recipes that I found of Rachael’s site. I put them together with a few decoration ideas I found online for Cinco de Mayo themed parties. The online editor liked this idea and said they would consider putting it on our pinterest page. She was also interested in my idea for road trip food. With our summer issues coming up and many people planning vacations she thought this idea would be helpful to our readers and their families.

I enjoyed my internship I had at Every Day with Rachael Ray. I think having internships are very important for your career. It helps figure out what specific field you are interested in and it is a good way to make professional contacts. Internships are a great way to get your foot in the door with your future career. If you are willing to put in the time to find one, and work for free, internships will be well worth your time.