Student Develops Crime Blog based on her Double Major

February 09, 2022

WEST LIBERTY, W.Va., Feb. 9, 2022 — For West Liberty University student Annalise Murphy, 21, it’s natural to have an interest in crime. Since she was a youngster, she tuned into the daily news and developed an interested in the justice system and crime reporting.

Annalise Murphy works her internship at WTRF TV-7.

As she completes her degree at WLU, she’s found the perfect way to combine her double major of Criminal Justice and Journalism by developing a blog called “Local Crimes Explained.”

Interning with local television station WTRF-7 this semester went along perfectly with her blog and gives her an opportunity to cover news and learn more about crime reporting.

“I love my internship at TV7. I work two days a week in the newsroom and out on the road with the reporter covering the news,” Murphy explained.

The blog came about as she developed a second internship to gain more experience in journalism.

“Local Crimes Explained is the name of my blog and my hope is to simplify and report on crime for a general audience,” she said. It’s not for a class grade either, just something she wants to use as she prepares for her career.

Murphy gained lots of experience in reporting the news from her work with the student newspaper, The Trumpet. This is her third year as editor and she has worked with many other students, faculty and administrators in getting the digital newspaper out.

“As the current director of The Trumpet and communication faculty member, I have worked closely with Annalise. Annalise works hard to produce high-quality work. Her keen sense of online reporting combined with her passion for criminal justice is eloquently illustrated in her new blog. Her blog extends beyond the Hilltop by covering local crimes in the community,” said Dr. Danielle R. Mehlman-Brightwell, who is an assistant professor of communication; and the faculty director of The Trumpet.
 

Murphy is also working for the Criminal Justice Department and helping them develop a newsletter.

Her future goal is to be a professional crime reporter.

“I’ve always been interesting in crime. I guess I got interested in CJ because I was adopted and I have first-hand experience with abuse and family issues,” Murphy explained.

She was just 12 when her life changed due to the adoption and many other twists and turns followed but Murphy remains positive and focused on her future.

Local Crimes Explained blog will go out once every two weeks, Murphy stated.

Her content will be true life crime and she’ll report facts, rather than opinion. She plans to look at local news reports and share this type of information but she also plans to interview police officers and others that are involved with the crime stories.

The Ohio Valley native invites followers to sign up as she prepares to send her first blog very soon.

Right now, Murphy has a little more than 60 subscribers. To find out more about her blog or sign up to be a subscriber, please visit localcrimesexplainedohvalley.substack.com.

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