If you’re a fan of WPBF25, you may be excited to learn that one of Admirals Cove’s own, Lindsey Fine, is playing a behind-the-scenes role in bringing you the news this summer. As a rising senior and journalist-in-training at Syracuse University, Lindsey is interning at the station, and she is making the most of this opportunity to expand her broadcasting skills.

Lindsey’s interest in journalism began at a young age, and she has been developing versatility in the field since middle school. Her academic resume includes stints as a junior high yearbook committee member, a high school news announcer and newspaper team member, a Northwestern University summer program participant, and a college broadcasting staffer.

Last summer, she made her first foray into professional journalism waters when she completed an internship at a news station near her university’s campus. Though she was interested in repeating the experience this year, she knew her prospects would be limited, as her priority was to spend her last college summer at home. Thanks to divine intervention - in the form of a helpful pal and some great timing - she was able to do both.

Lindsey’s friend, who happened to be employed by WPBF25 at the time, told her about the station’s internship opening and spoke very highly of the position and the company’s culture. Lindsey immediately submitted a resume for the role and, thanks to her friend’s connections, was able to reach out to the hiring team directly. “Journalism internships are interesting things. A lot of places will just ghost you, but I got lucky,” she says of the quick response she received from the station’s internship director.

Her first conversation with the director was a bit of a comical mix-up, as Lindsey didn’t realize it was an official interview. “I thought we were just having a conversation because she wasn’t the news director; [she] ran the internship program,” she remembers, adding that the call ended with her interviewer indicating she would initiate a follow-up conversation with her boss. Three weeks passed, and Lindsey was still uncertain of her application status, so she crafted a follow-up email and scheduled it to automatically send a specific number of days after the position listing closed. Coincidentally, exactly five minutes before her email was programmed to go out, she received the news that she had landed the job.

Though she’s only a little over a month in at this point, Lindsey’s knowledge base is already expanding, thanks in large part to the station’s commitment to making sure the internship is grounded in hands-on experiences rather than inconsequential tasks. “The girl I interviewed with literally said, ‘If they ask you to bring them coffee, come tell me because that’s not okay,’” she recalls.

As for what she hopes to learn this summer, Lindsey says her sights are focused on the ins and outs of producing, as her current career goal is to become a news producer. Specifically, she wants to improve her writing, learn how to be creative with shows, and she is keen to observe how different producers tell their stories and the various strategies they use.

When her internship wraps up, Lindsey will return to Syracuse to start her senior year. She is looking forward to continuing her role on campus as a tour guide, something she and her roommate enjoy doing together. She will also pick back up her job with the university’s admissions department, interviewing prospective students (a fitting gig for a future journalist who likes to hear other people’s stories).

When asked where she will take her talents after she receives her diploma, Lindsey says she plans to stay in the realm of local news rather than seek a national platform. “…They really are two different worlds, local news and national. I like the journalism in local news …you get to do more… You can’t be as creative in network news.”

Whether her local station dreams will be realized at WPBF25 post-graduation remains to be seen, but, for now, Lindsey is happy to just focus on the opportunity at hand, and she is thankful to be living out the experience at a network that has always meant a lot to her, even from an early age. “I grew up watching this station,” she says, adding that she still has a very vivid memory of her star-struck, twelve-year-old self meeting a very gracious Felicia Rodriguez at a community event. “She encouraged me. [It was] the typical little girls wanting to be on tv schtick.”

It’s a full-circle outcome, certainly, and there’s no doubt Lindsey will remain dedicated to continuing her broadcasting evolution. In a few years, she may very well be the one giving a pep talk to a teen interested in broadcast news, and we’re sure her creative producer talents will help her find all the right words to inspire the next generation. Best wishes on your journey, Lindsey! Admirals Cove is rooting for you!