Who we are and how we got here Q&A

As mass communication week comes to a close at Texas State University, students and staff were invited to a Q&A with CNN correspondent Polo Sandoval, Google’s Ana Cantu and director of communications at San Antonio’s Chamber of Commerce Michael Vela.

At the beginning of the session Sandoval, Cantu and Vela all spoke about the road that led them all to where they are now.

“It’s been a journey – it really has,” Sandoval said.

Sandoval made sure to begin getting field related experiences while still attending Texas State University by interning for KTBC in Austin.

While everyone on the panel agreed that internships are crucial, Vela said he got his practice another way.

“The way I was able to get experience was here at Texas State,” Vela said.

Vela said that the knowledge we get in the classroom would stay with us for the long run.

Alongside internships, social media was another topic floating around this morning.

“Establish yourself online,” Sandoval said.

While staying relevant in social media is important Cantu said we need to always be cautious about what we put forward on the Internet.

“If I want to keep it private – it does not go online.” Cantu said.

As the Q&A was ending the panel offered a sense of reassurance to the audience.

“Communications is a tough business, but there is a lot of opportunities in it,” Cantu said. “I have a job that didn’t exist a year ago.”

You can watch this Q&A session, along with many other mass communication week events, at https://www.txstatemcweek.com/live-video.