As a Washington, D.C., program participant, Natalie Adams ’17 had already worked in public relations on Capitol Hill for a senator (Senator Bob Casey D-PA) as a communications intern when she embarked on a second internship in the field the following summer. Her position at Curley Company affirmed her commitment to communications and advocacy work leading to her current position at Subject Matter. The creative advocacy agency provides clients with communications, government relations and creative services.
“My learning curve has been slightly less steep because I have prior experience monitoring press coverage and developing media materials,” Adams said. She works on a team that focuses on using broadcast and digital media to help clients convey their messages to the public by pitching, producing, and reporting. They create media tours, series of interviews set up between client spokespeople and local, regional, and national television and radio stations in media markets all across the country.
Major: Comparative Literature
Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa.
High School: Winchester Thurston School
On a typical media tour day, Adams and her colleagues bring clients into the office as early as 6 a.m. The media specialists connect the spokespeople to media outlets anywhere in the country via phone and satellite for a marathon of live and taped interviews. Her primary responsibility is to develop reports on these media tours for clients, which gives her the opportunity to learn about the media industry and clients' industries. Recent tours have covered topics including food safety, advancements in internet technology and potential effects of the proposed Senate health care bill. “Through media tours, we help audiences learn about these issues.”
Adams' path to a career in communications came via a comparative literature major in which she says she learned “how to think critically, write well, and advocate for issues I care about. Not coincidentally, these skills are essential to my newfound career path,” according to Adams. She credits Nancy Rabinowitz for her love of comparative literature and her willingness to challenge ideas when appropriate. “I grew so much as a student and human being in her classes and during our office hours conversations.”
In addition to her literature classes, Adams added, “My government classes and semester in Washington helped prepare me to begin working in D.C. weeks after graduation. And the people I met on campus helped me become a stronger, more well-rounded person. I couldn't be more grateful for my Hamilton experience.”
Her advice for rising seniors: “This is easier said than done, but try to live in the moment and mitigate job-related stress. You have the rest of your life to work all day; you're only a Hamilton senior once.”
