George Porteous | Summer Internship - The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper (New York, NY)
I spent the summer of 2025 interning at CNN for The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, a long-form investigative and documentary series. The internship gave me an opportunity to practice the kind of historically minded journalism I am most passionate about: sto-ries that reveal how the past shapes present crises and possibilities. Through deeply reported, hour-long episodes, the Emmy-winning series aims to illuminate complex questions in politics and culture.
As an intern supporting producers within CNN’s documentary unit, my role introduced me to the many stages of researching, writing, and producing long-form stories. Each project I worked on required different skills and expertise, depending on its subject. For a documentary on the unfolding dispute between Harvard and the Trump administration, for example, I examined relevant legal and policy documents, tracked developments in the news, and edited interview transcripts throughout the shooting process. For another episode, focused on survivalism in the United States, I read ex-tensively about the history of apocalyptic thinking and conducted pre-interviews with so-called ‘doomsday preppers.’ I consistently drew on the research and writing skills that Stanford history courses emphasize to locate accurate and up-to-date information for producers.
When not preparing research and interview questions, which composed the majority of my work, I had the opportunity to assist with shoots around my hometown of New York City, including for a documentary on youth homelessness. By following young New Yorkers experiencing homelessness, outreach workers, and government officials, the project aims to shatter prevalent myths about homelessness and call attention to a persistent crisis. For another documentary examining the phenomenon of chronic pain, I accompanied photojournalists and medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta to an emergency room in Brooklyn. There, the team interviewed physicians and patients experimenting with innovative approaches to pain management. It was remarkable to see early research evolve into narrative non-fiction, bridging the gap between abstract political or cultural issues and the real people whose lives they affect.
Outside of my work on shoots, tapings, and research, I gained experience pitching two original documentaries, focused on art forgery and U.S. immigration enforcement, respectively. Both pitches pushed me to expand my thinking from traditional print journalism into visual reporting. As the landscape of modern journalism becomes increasingly fragmented, I was grateful to learn new methods of investigative storytelling across plat-forms.
Finally, I spent time learning about as many aspects of CNN’s work as possible. By shadowing nightly news shows, correspondents, and digital reporters, I witnessed firsthand the vital work that many CNN journalists undertake to uncover difficult truths and deliver essential information to the public. Those experiences deepened my passion for journalism as a means of advancing democracy, combining creative storytelling with a public service mission. They also clarified my belief that the most vital journalism today requires historical thinking. Studying the past enables reporters to understand how current crises connect to longer patterns, how policies echo past choices, and how individual stories reflect systemic forces.
I am confident that my time with The Whole Story will provide valuable experience and inspiration as I continue pursuing a career in journalism and historical research into modern politics.
