Robin Newton began working at Elon in 2007, going on to represent C-SPAN at both the Republican and Democratic national conventions.
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For Robin Newton ’07, a career in communications was always on her mind. But first, Newton wanted to attend a smaller college with a strong communications program and active campus community. Her mother used those criteria to research colleges and Elon came up. It fit perfectly.
She wasted no time and joined the community she was looking for.
“While at Elon, I was a student ambassador, a copy editor for the Pendulum newspaper, a board member of the Black Cultural Association (now the Black Student Union), a DJ for WSOE, and a member of the Elon Gospel Choir. I Can’t Sing But they took me anyway,” Newton said. “I also pledged to join Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. my senior year.” She loves campus traditions such as the Black Excellence Awards dinner and always brings her family to campus. I went.
Delta Sigma Theta’s Spring 2007 Line Award winners at the Black Excellence Awards Dinner.
Newton majored in broadcast communications and virtually lived in the McEwen Communications Building and editing lab.
“One of the most challenging but rewarding classes I took at Elon was the Communication Writing course,” she said. “Every day we were assigned to read a different newspaper and quizzed on what we read. I knew that staying up to date with news and current events would be essential to my professional career. I hardly knew.”
Despite all these experiences, Newton’s transition to graduate school was not ideal. She graduated during the financial crisis, so finding a job was difficult and there was a lot of uncertainty. But her unexpected stint living at home and working seasonal jobs at Kings Dominion didn’t last long.
Costa Rica Semester Study Abroad Program – Spring 2006 Elon Cohort
“Within three months, I moved to Washington, D.C., started working at WTOP News, and enrolled in graduate school at Trinity Washington University,” she said. “Looking back, I’m so glad I went home for those three months. Even though I won’t be able to be back with my family at that time, I’m grateful for it now.”
After earning a master’s degree in communications and working in local news for eight years, Newton was ready to try national news. She joined C-SPAN in 2015 as a media relations specialist and is responsible for keeping journalists, Capitol Hill reporters, and the public informed about all things C-SPAN. This position proved beneficial to Newton.
“The most rewarding part of my career has been the people I’ve had the opportunity to meet and the places I’ve had the opportunity to go,” she said. “C-SPAN has allowed me to stay in the rooms of my dreams and travel to many cities and towns across the country, some for the first time.”
Those trips also included the Republican National Convention and Democratic National Convention this summer. There, Newton was responsible for recording video testimonials from participants in C-SPAN’s Voices 2024 campaign.
“The C-SPAN skybox was packed every night with special guests, from cable TV stations and reporters to former C-SPAN employees and interns,” she said. “It was fun meeting so many new people and reconnecting with people I hadn’t seen in years.”
photo of newton senior
Newton’s career was not without its challenges, but the biggest were the long days.
“The news keeps coming in. My work hours are normal, but something can happen at any time that requires my team’s attention,” she said.
Luckily, thanks to Elon, she was well prepared for her career.
“Writing and public speaking are major components of my job, and I did a lot of that at Elon,” Newton said. “I still use a lot of the skill-based knowledge I learned in my communication classes.”
She encourages current students to take advantage of the core Elon experience as well.
“Go the extra mile by getting an internship,” she advised. “I interned at BET the summer after my freshman and sophomore years, and the summer after my junior year, I stayed on campus and did a summer undergraduate research experience program. Having it on my resume and getting good professional recommendations helped me land my first job in the news industry.”
