Podcaster Carter Guensler made it his mission to land an internship at NPR. Now that we know his dream will not be realized this summer, Carter shares what he learned throughout the process and sets his sights on the future!! This is: Carter Will NOT Be An NPR Intern… yet!
UGH. Failure.
No, wait… That’s not quite the attitude we’re going for here.
HUZZAH! YES, FAILURE!!!
Ah, much better.
Surprise surprise… Carter didn’t get the internship this summer.
I know, I know! You can vent your frustration in the comments section below. Life is so completely bogus and totally unfair.
But take heart! Just creating the podcast provided quite an adventure, and despite its ultimate failure to achieve the intended end goal (Carter becoming an NPR intern), the making of Carter Will Be An NPR Intern was both extremely valuable and rewarding. Besides, this is only Chapter One! The saga is really just beginning.
First and foremost, thank you for following the story of podcaster Carter Guensler and his quest to make his lifelong dream—employment by National Public Radio—a reality. It was an adventure that taught him a great deal, kept his housemate from getting adequate sleep, and branded him as “that kid who’s tryina be an NPR intern” on and around campus.
Let us fill you in on some things you might have missed over the past few months:
Carter Was Blocked On LinkedIn By The Current NPR Interns
Yikes. We’d provide you a link to their profiles, but uh - yeah. They look like this:
One can only assume they took action in tandem.
Now, we know what you might be thinking:
“Good god, Carter! What did you say to these interns that made them block you on this well-respected business social media platform??”
Well reader, we have an answer for you:
Literally nothing. Not a word.
So how did they come to the decision to block our podcasting protagonist, let alone even know he exists?? These interns are shining, golden examples of broadcast journalism success. They are gods among men, and Carter is but a mere mortal maggot by comparison - unworthy of their attention.
Granted, Carter did spend a significant amount of time reading (and then rereading) their profiles in an attempt to glean information that might be of some use in his own pursuit of an internship. What made them such incredible applicants? Why were they chosen? What must he do to follow their example. How could he fill their shoes and live up to their impressive legacy?? Carter poured over their experiences tab, clicked through their accomplishments, and eyed their interests. Surely, answers would lie somewhere within these web pages!
Actually, come to think of it… Y’know, that might be what tipped them off. LinkedIn allows users to see who’s visited their profile, and we’re almost certain Carter’s face popped up in their notifications because one or both of them looked at Carter’s profile as well.
Maybe they thought the podcast title was too ~ presumptuous ~ or aggressive. Maybe they didn’t like my face! Interaction between current interns and potential applicants is discouraged, but blocking Carter entirely seems a little extreme, don’t you think?? The point is: Carter was now lost, adrift in a sea of unease. More questions swirled around in his head: Did they even listen to Episode One? Did they not like it? Good grief. Did they talk to Peter Sagal about it? Does this mean Carter has been blacklisted?!? Should he just give up?????
It was at this moment that Carter started to regret everything.
Maybe he should have thought of a better name for the podcast. Maybe he shouldn’t have done the blog at all. Maybe he should have listened to his grandfather and learned how to golf when he was younger.
Ah, woof. There it was. The rejection email.
But Carter’s faith was unwavering!! He applied to two jobs with Wait, Wait! Perhaps they would only be considering him for one of…
Nope. There was the second. Good. Cool. That’s fine. We held out hope for a full day.
Actually… You know what?
If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine!!
Er, wait. That was Obi-Wan Kenobi. This is Carter Guensler. What we mean to say is:
Your rejection emails will only make my future cover letter more entertaining than you can possibly imagine!
Make no mistake. This isn’t over. Not by a long shot. The dream is still very much alive.
Look. The point we’re trying to make is that Carter may not be an NPR intern, but you can rest assured that he’ll be back.
This is not a tale of woe, but an exposition. Every hero must overcome adversity to achieve greatness!
This is the journey of an underdog from crushing rejection to public radio fame and glory. Everybody loves an underdog.
This is still elaborate ploy to impress Peter Sagal and Miles Doornbos.
This is Carter Guensler, signing off. For now.
This … is NPR.
Listen on Spotify at: spoti.fi/2N5Cu2L
For a what’s-what about the podcast, visit my about page.
For an evolving catalog of photos/experiences, visit my portfolio.
