Caleb Gottry poses with his cohort of multiplatform editors in the Dow Jones News Fund internship.
Journalism senior Caleb Gottry spent two months this summer as a Dow Jones News Fund intern, a highly competitive program that aims to produce “well-trained journalists who better reflect the demographics of the communities they cover … by supporting their growth and development.”
He served as a multiplatform editor at KUT, a National Public Radio member station owned and operated by the University of Texas at Austin. Multiplatform editors are analogous to the copy editors of print-only days, who also write SEO-friendly headlines and helping shape visual layouts under tight deadlines.
Below, Gottry shares his experiences, lessons learned and what he’s bringing back to the classroom and TCU 360 newsroom, where he serves as executive editor.
Gottry poses with his KUT press pass.
This summer, I learned what it means to be a journalist. I edited and reported on a diverse and newsworthy community, I saw how a newsroom handles sensitive issues, and I learned from and alongside some of the best in my field.
It started on the second floor of the Moody College of Communication building at the University of Texas at Austin, surrounded by 11 of the brightest editing minds from my generation.
I was among the ones fortunate enough to be in the 2025 Dow Jones News Fund multiplatform editing cohort, an internship program that started with a week-long training intensive.
Led by UT’s Emily Quigley, it was that week of wordsmithing that prepared each of us for our summer internships in various newsrooms including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the San Francisco Chronicle and The New York Times.
After an incredible week packed with AP style, headlines, captions, InDesign, fact checking and all things editing, I didn’t have to travel far to start my internship.
I spent the next 10 weeks at KUT, Austin’s NPR station, working as a digital news editor alongside the talented, hard-working and ever-encouraging Stephanie Frederico.
During my tenure, my mentors encouraged me to involve myself in every area of the newsroom. I wrote stories for the website (thanks, Jean), I recorded a radio story (thanks, Jim), I edited a video for social media (thanks, Patty). And, of course, I edited, working with seasoned reporters gracious enough to let me play in their stories.
The other KUT interns and I were treated as full-fledged KUT journalists. We were there to learn on the job.
We were also there to watch and to listen as proverbial flies on the wall.
When I wasn’t working on a story in some capacity, I met with Ben Philpott, KUT’s managing editor, to pick his brain on newsroom management. I grabbed a coffee with award-winning reporter Nathan Bernier to talk about career preparation and work-life balance. I sat in on meetings about covering protests and navigating stories with anonymous sources ethically.
Now, I step into Ben’s proverbial shoes: I try to run a newsroom.
Gottry speaks during Student Media training on Aug. 23, with executive teammates Madilyn Kopec, Paris Goodman, Drew Muller, Miroslava Lem Quinonez, Roderick Villareal, Perrin Gilman and Tyler Chan.
My time at KUT humbled me as a leader and strengthened me as a journalist. I am also further encouraged by the tenacity of the industry and the TCU 360 newsroom.
Now, surrounded again by my peers and mentors here, I am committed to strong journalistic principles and encouraging and gracious leadership, and I am confident in the continued success of TCU student media.
Go Frogs.
Check out Gottry’s work as a reporter and photographer on TCU360.com.