The Media Moments
Emily Bechtel
Over many years, here at KYA, there is a role that binds the conference together and is considered the backbone of the assembly. Being that KYA is virtual, this role is designated to the Media Corps team: the people you would see running around with cameras during in-person KYA. However, with virtual KYA, the Media Corps team has become more important than ever to be able to connect the hundreds of delegates that are participating in the conference now.
In the past, there would be four subdivisions of the Media Corps. These categories were photography, broadcasting, social media, and newspaper. First is our photography team who used to be the ones that would get good photos to be put in highlight video towards the end of the conference. Second is our broadcasting team who are the people that record and put the end of the conference highlight video together that so many of us enjoy. Third is our social media team who constantly update delegates with the news during the conference, and they also share funny moments and interactive polls with the delegates so everyone is connected. Fourth is our newspaper team who write articles, both informal and formal, to be published to the KYA media website to inform people who both attend and don’t attend the conference. However, to accommodate KYA being virtual this year, photography was removed and replaced with a new subdivision called Podcast, which will be posted on Spotify and Itunes for all delegates to hear.
Though we work hard in our jobs as Media Corps delegates, we also have a lot of fun in the process. Whether it is playing a scavenger hunt game or it is simply bonding over funny clips and bills that we reported on during the conference, Media Corps develops this small family within the short time of the two or three-day conference. The team gives us and gives our audience memories to reminisce on for years to come.
A few of our team members came to share their experiences. Brett Phelps stated “Media Corps had been a life changing experience! I have gotten to see how much things run behind the scenes, and how much effort and care really go into a conference. I am so glad that I discovered the Media Corps! The Media Corps has helped to show my place in democracy and I hope it will help others too along their journey.” Brett is our Editor-in-Chief who makes sure the Media Corps is running correctly and on-time during the conference. While another one of our team members, Olivia Walton stated “I am completely convinced that Media Corps is the heart of KYA. In no other program do you find individuals as passionate about the truth and spreading knowledge.” Olivia is one of our Assistant Editors, which is the job of running one of the subdivisions of the Media Corps. For example, Olivia is the Broadcasting Assistant Editor. To say the least, Media Corps members love their jobs during the conference and take those jobs with great pride.
The Media Corps members come together, even though we work in separate teams, to inform and give the delegates of the conference memories to look back on and bring all of them together at the end. In a way, we are the backbone of the conference as we try to make it enjoyable for everyone. From all our Media Corps members, we would like to thank all the delegates and Y-staff for supporting the work we put out and providing us with many memorable moments during our KYA careers. If you are a delegate, we encourage you to join us in the future!
