Host intro: The coronavirus pandemic is ravaging across the world. Many countries have been ordering businesses to close and residents to stay home amidst the constantly changing situation. Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, sent a notice that all city and state universities be online for the rest of the Spring 2020 semester. Just like experiencing the calm before a storm, Reporter Nadia Khan was able to ask a CUNY professor what her plans would be when Baruch closed.
AMBI: Footsteps. Professor talking to class (FADE DOWN AS TRACK BEGINS)
AMBI: Room tone (LAYER UNDER TRACK)
TRACK: I’m here with Professor Emily Johnson in her office. She is both a journalist and a journalism professor at Baruch College, one of the City Universities in New York.
ACT: PROFESSOR JOHNSON: I have started thinking about how to accommodate my students remotely, in the event that the school gets shut down. I don’t know anything about that officially, but it just seems kind of like that’s how the wind is blowing.
TRACK: She notes that it’ll be difficult to transition her class remotely because of the fieldwork component of journalism.
ACT: PROFESSOR JOHNSON: In a multimedia journalism class, it’s hard to do things over the phone. You really have to be physically in front of people to photograph them or record them or film them. We are going to have to be a little creative in terms of how we go about the rest of our assignments throughout the rest of the semester.
TRACK: When asked if the coronavirus is affecting her career as a journalist, Professor Johnson expressed uncertainty about her summer endeavors.
ACT: PROFESSOR JOHNSON: I’m concerned it might affect my reporting plans for the summer. ‘Cuz I have no idea what travel restrictions or recommendations might be in place in June, when I’m most likely going to be doing some reporting in Kenya.
TRACK: All in all, Professor Johnson emphasized staying up to date with the news.
ACT: PROFESSOR JOHNSON: I’ve just been reading a lot of news about it and just trying to inform myself as much as possible about what’s going on and how best to proceed.
TRACK: Currently, New York State has at least 30,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus. Universities will remain closed for at least the remainder of the spring semester. For Baruch College, I’m Nadia Khan.
