Members of the White House press corps represent the elite few of American journalists, spending their days traveling with the president and reporting his every move to the rest of the world. Some reach this level thanks to a combination of hard work and an insatiable appetite for political news. Others get there because of a curiosity for mangoes.

Erica Anderson, B.A. ’06, attended the May 17 White House press briefing between President George Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair thanks to an invitation from a fellow journalist she met while covering the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Mango Celebration, which highlighted the first time Indian mangoes have been imported into the U.S. in 18 years.

"This was the most random encounter,” she said in a telephone interview. “But journalism is all about taking chances and going places."

Indeed, Anderson’s outgoing spirit paid off by landing her fourth-row seats at the press briefing, an experience she still considers as "surreal."

Once she arrived at the White House that morning, Anderson entered the West Wing where other members of the media were waiting.

"I was taken aback by watching the White House press corps," she said. "They were talking and joking around with each other. For what was about to happen, the mood was really light."

When it was time for the press briefing to begin, the Secret Service escorted Anderson to her seat in the Rose Garden, where she grabbed the only remaining chair without a name card on it.

"I was sitting there with my notepad out, and then all of a sudden everyone stood up. They walked out, and it was a moment I’ll always remember," she said. "I realized the whole world would see these clips."

For someone who grew up idolizing the movie, All the President’s Men, however, the press briefing was quite a surprise from what Anderson expected.

"Bush and Blair spoke first, but only about six people asked questions," she said. "There weren't many follow-ups, and they took a really long time to answer the questions."

Following the briefing, Anderson had the chance to go behind the scenes to the White House Conference Center, where members of the corps were working on their stories.

"It reminded me of labs in the J-school," she said. "They each had their own computers and sound rooms. But by the time I made the 10-minute walk back to my office, there were already stories on the wire."

Anderson’s former journalism professor, David Nord, is not surprised about her recent White House venture.

"She was a very engaged student," he said. "She really wanted to get in the seams of the relationship between journalism and politics."

Anderson agrees.

"Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to be a journalist. I was always asking questions," she said. "I also knew I wanted to be in D.C."

For the time being, Anderson is employed as an assistant account executive at Spectrum Science Communications, a Washington-based health care communications firm, while doing freelance work on the side.

Still, she has her sights on loftier goals and expects to reach them thanks to her time at the School of Journalism.

"I had a great experience with the School of Journalism," she said. "I didn’t understand why until recently. Sure, you have bloggers and citizen journalists, but I do think there’s something to be said about trained journalists. I’m beginning to appreciate what I was trained to do."

Read a transcript from the May 17 White House press briefing.