This week, our "Meet a Gawker.TV Intern" series focuses on Nicole Keller, one of the many Gawker Video Department alumni. So, what's she up to these days? Click to find out.


Photo by Henry Baker.

How did you learn about the Gawker.TV internship program?
 I was an avid Gawker reader and spotted the post about it on the website. I wrote my favorite cover letter, so far, highlighting my superior sitting skills and quoted Greta Van Susteren.

What was your favorite post while you were an intern at Gawker?
 Definitely my video of Shepard Smith narrating a tractor trailer chase. I really pushed to get it on one of the sites and Jalopnik posted it. The best part (besides it getting almost 14,000 views to date!) was watching the Jalopnik guys debate if I was a "real" girl or not in the comments.

What experiences did you hope to gain from this internship?
 I wanted to improve my editing skills and learn more about the inner-workings of Gawker.

Did your internship live up to your expectations? How so?
 It definitely did. I feel that by watching several shows on a regular basis gave me a better understanding on how those shows choose their stories and it was interesting to watch what stories were given higher placement on the different networks. There were a lot of patterns that I have never noticed before: Fox and Friends has Glenn Beck on every Tuesday, Regis is terrible at dialing phones, etc. This helped a lot when creating videos.

Was there something in particular that you learned from this internship that you didn't know before you started?
 I learned a lot more than I thought I would. I studied both broadcast and print journalism at NYU so it was nice to branch away from making videos that were balanced and in a specific order. I had to learn to steer away from the chronological and go for short and sweet videos that provided humor and/or commentary. I was also taught how to use Final Cut Pro, which I use at my current job at Capture Your Flag.

What was your favorite part about your internship?
 The feedback I got from the video editors and writers was great. I felt like they took time out to help me tweak my editing and give me updates on how I was progressing, more so than other internships. They took time out to meet one-on-one and as a group to discuss where we were all at and provide feedback. They also encouraged us to start our own side projects and offered to mentor us through them if we wanted help.

What skills do you feel you've gained as a result of this internship?
 I feel like I became a better video editor and I definitely have a better understanding of how a non-traditional media company works. It was amazing to simply watch as Gawker Media projects and Gawker employees and fellow interns' side projects took off. It was a completely different environment from what I had worked in before.

What was the biggest surprise you encountered interning at Gawker?
 I didn't realize how many sites Gawker owned. It was amazing to see all of their different sites working together at the office and from their respective home offices while maintaining distinct divisions between them (such as sales and editorial).

How does this internship differ from any other previous internships you might have had in the past?
 The emphasis from the start to finish was what I wanted to do and learn during my time there. I was asked to pull specific clips for the writers but the emphasis was always on learning to create and pitch videos to the writers on our own. They wanted us to be prepared not for another internship but rather for another job. There was a lot of care put into getting all of the interns to know each other, connecting the current interns to former interns and maintaining that connection through social events and an email DL that often shares info about other possible internships, job opportunities, meet-ups and networking opportunities.

If you could, would you intern here all over again?
 Of course, I learned a lot.

Would you recommend interning at Gawker to others?
 Definitely

Do you have any tips or advice you would give future Gawker interns?
 Attend as many events as you can because not only are Gawker employees a great resource for referrals and job opportunities but so are your fellow interns. I've been on some awesome job interviews and gotten some great job offers that I wouldn't have had without the internship. When I have interviewed with traditional media companies, they often gloss over my other work in traditional media and skip right to the question I always get asked, "So what was it like interning at Gawker?" Almost every interviewer since I've interned at Gawker has asked that.

What have you been up to since your internship ended?
 I started working for Good Morning America about two weeks after my internship ended and I am currently an editor and content manager for a new media company called Capture Your Flag.

Have you been able to use any of the skills you learned at Gawker in the real world?
 Definitely! When I applied to Capture Your Flag and they asked for my editing clips I was able to send them links to not only my favorite videos that were posted on Gawker but also to my tumblr portfolio of clips that all of the interns were encouraged to create.

Any regrets?
 Maybe not thinking of applying earlier in my college career? I've seen a lot of great internship opportunities sent out on the present and former intern DL but I was at the stage in my career and education where Gawker was my last internship.

Follow Nicole on Twitter @nicolekeller , on tumblr, and email herhere.

If you or someone you know is interested in interning at Gawker.TV send an email to internships@gawker.tv for more information.