A delegation of journalists from Turkmenistan visited the Los Medanos College Pittsburg campus May 2 to meet with the Experience student journalists. The Staff was granted the opportunity to converse with these professionals on production day, where the journalists were invited to watch students work on the paper.

The meeting was organized as part of an international exchange program hosted by the Rotary Club of Concord to showcase some of the best work independent journalism has to offer. 

Members of the delegation traveled to the college to learn about how journalism is practiced in the United States. As Turkmenistan is rated as having one of the worst track records for media freedom, with outlets being tightly regulated by the government, the meeting served as a valuable experience for both the journalists and students.

The journalists were given pamphlets featuring general information about the Experience staff and their roles, as well as state and federal laws pertaining to freedom of speech and the press. 

They were also greeted by LMC President Pamela Ralston, Marketing Director Juliet Casey, Journalism Professor Cindy McGrath, and Professional Expert Cassie Dickman, who is a freelance reporter, editor and educator. 

Translators were present to ensure effective communication between the delegation and staff members.

Ralston began with a welcome illustrating the significance of journalism, often regarded as “the fourth estate,” and detailed the importance of the free press at LMC specifically. An important notion emphasized was that authority does not inherently make one immune to criticism or accountability.

“My power ends where the student press begins,” said Ralston, adding that as a leader she seeks to empower students to use their voices and advocate for the free press on campus.

Ralston went on to detail LMC’s acceptance policy, in that everyone who wants to attend is accepted. She added that students who might not have been as successful in high school “will succeed here,” and could very well go on to study at UC Berkeley and “become doctors.”

Casey, a former journalist, handed out flyers containing information about LMC. Then the journalists were introduced to Editor-In-Chief Aliyah Ramirez and then were granted the opportunity to ask students questions about their work over lunch. 

Several students shared some of the most challenging things about production: writing on deadline, time management, scheduling interviews, and getting timely responses from sources. Individual students were also asked about their prior experience and plans for the future, and if they were interested in staying in the industry.

As students worked on page layouts for the print edition in Adobe InDesign, several of the journalists walked around the room to watch the process. They chatted with each other and students as they worked.