What I was doing the morning of 9/11 in inconsequential. I know exactly where I was, what I was doing and who I was with when I found out about the events of that day, but none of that matters to me. Everything changed for me that day.
I was naïve – 18, a freshman in college and shielded from the dangers of the world. I rarely watched the news, let alone thought one day I would work in it.
And then, the towers fell. I became a news junkie. I watched as many news programs in a day that I possibly could. I read the newspaper daily. I followed my hometown news, and national news. If I didn't know what was going on in the world, I felt incomplete. Less than a year after 9/11, I started working in news. I couldn't stay away.
Sept. 11 opened my eyes to a world I never knew existed. I thought everyone loved the United States. I thought all of our work around the world was good. I also only knew about Christianity and Judaism. I knew other religions existed, but nothing about them. 9/11 encouraged me to have a wider array of studies about the world, religion and politics.
I think 9/11 is a significant factor in my choice to be in journalism, much as it encouraged many of my friends to be a part of the military.
I will always remember where I was when I heard. I will always remember everything I did the day the world stopped turning. Few things have happened in my lifetime where the world remembers everything about that day. This one impacted my life in ways I never would have expected. It didn't make me afraid of the world, but it made me proud of my country and the resilience we had after the attacks.
And I love being a member of the media and helping bring each and every one of you the news 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. But to paraphrase reporter Mark Slavit, I'd give anything to take back the reason I do it.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forKRCG