Three West Virginia University P.I. Reed School of Journalism students are in Blacksburg, Va., this week reporting on the deadly shootings that occurred Monday (April 16) on the campus of Virginia Tech.
Broadcast news seniors Barclay Fuellgraf of Allison Park, Pa., Sean Tinnelly of Morgantown and Justin Van Slyke of Chadds Ford, Pa., drove to the campus to cover the tragedy from a college student’s perspective.
“They approached me Monday morning about going to the Virginia Tech campus,” said broadcast news instructor Gina Martino Dahlia. “They wanted to tell the stories both as college students and as reporters.”
The team, believed to be the only out-of-state news crew on site made up entirely of students, is interviewing students, faculty and community members and attending press conferences and media events.
Since their arrival on the Virginia campus, the students have been providing daily, live, continuous radio broadcasts throughout West Virginia. Fuellgraf has also been featured on Fox News to share her viewpoint as both a college student and a news reporter.
Additional reports will be aired on the School of Journalism’s student-produced news show, “WVU News” and provided to KDKA-TV News (Pittsburgh) through an ongoing partnership.
“The Virginia Tech incident is a terrible tragedy,” said Maryanne Reed, dean of the School of Journalism. “Our hearts go out to the students, parents and the entire community. Our journalism students wanted to document this unfolding story from the students’ perspective and to share those stories with others. Our students have demonstrated their professionalism and their compassion covering what could be the news story of a lifetime.”
Fuellgraf, Tinnelly and VanSlyke plan to stay in Blacksburg through the end of the week.