My journey to becoming a journalist started after a family trip to CNN’s Atlanta headquarters. On a behind-the-scenes tour, I sat at an anchor desk and just knew I needed to be part of this world — suddenly I was an 8-year-old telling everyone ‘I’m going to be a journalist when I grow up.'

By the time I started college at Michigan State University, the news landscape, not to mention the world, had changed quite a bit. The rise of social media changed the way people consumed and shared information. It was a time of flux.

My professors knew the fact that people had a camera on them 24/7 would inherently change the vocation. I learned about user-generated content (UGC) in passing, just familiar enough to be aware of it.

After college, I started my career in production and hadn’t thought too much about UGC until I looked to pivot away from broadcast. It was around then I came across a company called Storyful that focused on video verificatio. With my interest piqued, I applied. I’ve now been on the beat for over six years.

I’ve been across a wide range of stories from COVID-19 and BLM protests to the War in Ukraine, Gaza War, and most recently immigration enforcement in the United States. I’ve seen first-hand how valuable citizen journalists are, and how important visual verification will continue to be.

In addition to UGC, I am the go-to source for AI information on my team. For anything from debunks (proving a video is or is not fabricated or manipulated using AI) to teaching staff best practices, I’ve developed a well of knowledge around a topic I’m inherently skeptical of.

As AI becomes more sophisticated and footage, and facts, become easier to manipulate, it is the job of journalists and tech companies alike to ensure safeguards are in place to blunt the harm of mis- and dis- information in a world where you can’t always believe what you see.