It's Intern Season: Introducing Leidhra Johnson

This summer, Patch local editors from New York to California are fortunate to be working with some of the sharpest students from the country's top journalism programs. Here in the Sacramento area, we are thrilled to welcome Leidhra Johnson to our team. A Folsom native, Leidhra comes to us with the formidable reporting chops she honed as the State Hornet’s editor in chief. She graduates from California State University, Sacramento, with a journalism degree in December.

We snagged Leidhra for a short Q and A before she took off to report in Elk Grove.

Patch: What was the best story you worked on at the Hornet?

Leidhra: It was a terrible thing to work on, but there was a homicide on campus and we did the coverage. I was the news editor. It exposed me to news journalism and how important and impactful it can be.

P: Have you always wanted to be a reporter?

LJ: I always knew I wanted to write. It wasn’t until high school and college that I realized I was interested in journalism.

P: What would be your dream job?

LJ: I think it would be really fun to work for something like Rolling Stone. I was raised by a musician so music has always been a big part of my life.

P: What’s your favorite Sacramento band?

LJ: Killing the Dream.

P: Why would a smart, talented young person such as yourself want to go into journalism now?

LJ:  First of all, it's fun. You get to meet a lot of people. Journalism is not dying. It’s transitioning into something bigger and greater. And now we have all these technologies to help us tell stories better.

P: What’s that barking I hear in the background?

LJ: That’s Roxanne. She’s a mini dachshund. She has a full wardrobe and she goes everywhere with me.