Uncovering - West Virginia University

View of the landscape near the Pisaq ruins.
“To grasp the big
picture, any aspiring
journalist needs to have
an understanding of
globalization and how
cultural differences shape
international affairs.”
— Leah Cunningham
Photos clockwise from top: Anna
Phillips admires Machu Picchu during
the International Media class visit to
Peru. • Students and faculty traveling
with the International Media class
take in the view from the steps of
Cusco Cathedral in the Main Square,
Cusco, Peru. • Macy St. Clair (left)
and Stefanie Scarboro (right) walk the
steps at Sacsayhuaman Fortress near
Cusco, Peru. • Anna Phillips takes a
photo of Rosemary Lattus and Macy St.
Clair outside the San Francisco Church
in Lima, Peru. • The WVU group stops
to pose with llamas on the way to the
Sacred Valley in Cusco, Peru. From left:
Stefanie Scarboro, Leah Cunningham,
Steve Urbanski, Rosemary Lattus, Macy
St. Clair, Anna Phillips, Maria Miro-
Quesada, Andreas Stocker.
discovering
PERU
a South american excursion
breaks new territory for SoJ
WBy ERiC aRnolD, PhotoS SUBMittED By CoURSE PaRtiCiPantS
can
While most WVU students and faculty were
spending last winter break with family and
friends, six students and two SOJ professors
ventured to Peru to learn about its media and
gather content for a multimedia blog.
The 14-day trip was the climax of a new
course, International Media, led by Visiting
Assistant Professor Maria Ines Miro-Quesada,
first offered in Fall 2008. Students in the class
included political science, education and public
relations majors. To prepare them for the trip,
Miro-Quesada developed a two-hour night
class that explored mass media practices in
other countries, with an emphasis on Latin
America.
While in Peru, the group blogged about their
journey across the
country’s expansive
terrain – the coastal
beaches, the rainforests,
the Andes Mountains
and Lima, Peru’s capital.
The country’s diverse
history, landscape
and culture provided
a varied canvas for the
blog posts.
In Lima, students
attended Yuyanapaq, a
photography exhibition
on more than 70,000 politically motivated
deaths in Peru between 1980 and 2000.
Yuyanapaq means “to remember” in Peru’s
indigenous Quechua language.
“We became aware of the power and significance
the news media can have during times of
crisis,” said Leah Cunningham, a public relations
junior. “It really enhanced my perspective
as a writer and photographer to understand the
role that photojournalism, or any news media,
Leah Cunningham and Anna Phillips look at paintings
in Kennedy Park in Miraflores, Peru.
play in advocacy.”
The group also visited Lima’s highest-rated
news station, Channel 4; met with Marco
Sifuentes, Peru’s top journalist and blogger; and
toured El Comercio, the second-oldest newspaper
in Latin America. They celebrated the New
Year at the Incan ruins of Machu Picchu and
hiked 12,000 feet into the Andes Mountains.
“I think in order to grasp the big picture, any
aspiring journalist needs to have an understanding
of globalization and how cultural
differences shape international affairs,” said
Cunningham. “What better way to accomplish
this than to have study abroad opportunities
such as International Media-Peru?”
The Peru trip will
likely be followed by
other international
opportunities. Dr.
Steve Urbanski, who
accompanied Miro-
Quesada and the
students on the Peru
trip, is hoping to take
students to Ghana
and two other African
countries in Summer
2010. The success
of the Peru trip has
sparked interest
among faculty and students.
“By promoting international exposure to its
students, the School of Journalism is taking a
big step in adequately preparing the journalists
of tomorrow,” said Cunningham.
More on the Web
Read the Peru blog at
http://journalism.wvu.edu
(See “Featured Projects”)
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