Sponsored by a $10,000 gift from Friends of the Daily Texan, Cardenas and four other Moody College of Communication journalists traveled to cover the Rio Olympic Games

Like so many hungry souls who stumbled down the shadowy steps, looking for promise and finding purpose, Cat Cardenas bloomed in the unlikeliest of places. She grew in a basement.

The Daily Texan’s underground energy of fluorescent lights, hand-me-down couches and mis-matched desk chairs continues to forge the eyes and ears of a nation. Cardenas herself reported from Rio this past August, as one of five Texas Longhorns covering the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.

Sponsored by a $10,000 gift from Friends of the Daily Texan, Cardenas and four other Moody College of Communication journalists traveled to Rio with senior lecturer, author and longtime newspaperman Kevin Robbins; the group assembled a working newsroom. In addition to producing content for rio2016.com, the team completed assignments for newspapers across Texas and the nation. With Robbins as their on-site assigning editor, the student staffers rotated shifts copyediting, photo editing, live blogging or reporting freelance assignments out in the field.

Cardenas struck gold when the Daily Hampshire Gazette in Northampton, Mass., had to arrange coverage of Michael Hixon, a local long shot who surprised the world with a silver-medal finish in synchronized diving.

“Honestly, it was a ton of fun to have pressure on me to get things done really fast,” Cardenas said. “Even though I hadn’t done much sports writing before, I think the general gist of reporting is just finding how to tell a story in an interesting way.”

Cardenas, a junior, currently serves as associate life and arts editor at the Texan. She also interns at Texas Monthly. Upon graduation in May 2018, Cardenas hopes to travel Central and Latin America, finding stories and telling them.

“Rio reinforced that. There’s so many opportunities to write long form about what is going on in communities down there. There’s so much going on that the rest of the world doesn’t see,” she said.

Have you always wanted to be a journalist?

Writing was always the No. 1 career choice. The only time I ever deviated from that was a brief phase in middle school when I thought I wanted to be a doctor.

I liked writing a lot. My writing assignments were always my favorite to do, and I did a lot of UIL (competition) writing. My freshman year of high school, I needed an elective and I thought journalism sounded cool. That’s where it went from writing to wanting to do journalism.

Did you come to Texas prepared to pursue journalism as a profession?
Yes, I also applied to Plan II, but I was only interested in journalism. At first, my plan was to do entertainment journalism. I had my heart set on Rolling Stone.

How did you find The Daily Texan?
I literally had no idea what I was doing. The only reason I wanted to apply for the Texan was because during orientation there was a little slip of paper in the folders that said, “Apply at The Daily Texan.” I had no business applying. I still to this day have no idea why they hired me. Now having been an editor, I know what the applications look like.

Did the culture of the newsroom surprise you?
The best thing about the Texan is how many people who are down there who want to do the same things you do. I think my first semester and a little bit of my second, I was freaking out internally because I didn’t have the best friends in college yet. Once I was down at the Texan, that’s when I finally started to meet people. When you’re down there for the same thing, you get along. My roommate now is my former editor.

If you’re messing up, you’re not disappointing a distant boss, you’re disappointing your friends.

How does your Texan experience complement your journalism studies?

I learn things better by doing them. The Texan taught me how to do a lot of the basics, and my classes reinforced what I was learning. The first two semesters at the Texan, I was just an issue writer. That whole year was just me figuring out how to do newspaper writing. That was a huge change. Once I had that down, it became more about what I wanted to write and how I wanted to write.

The best part about the journalism school is the teachers. The faculty are so hands-on. Once you’re out of the huge classes of 200 people, once they get to know you, they really try to help. Kevin so far has been one of the best teachers that I’ve had. He’s dedicated to making you a better writer.

Do you see areas the Texan is looking to improve?

Every semester it’s a new group of people in charge. It’s hard to keep progressing. Every managing editor goes in with a list of ideas they want to see implemented, but because we have a daily deadline and a paper to fill, not all that stuff can get done.

What is your biggest takeaway from the Rio experience?

I really wanted to go, because I figured me throwing myself at something that I had no knowledge about would be beneficial. I had never been in a mixed zone before, had to get a word in edgewise with all these athletes. Learning about press conferences and a different style of interviewing, you have to expose yourself all the time. I was used to one-on-one, scheduled interviews.

Just the entire idea of going to a different country and reporting on a worldwide event … for my own personal interest, I thought there would be human stories I could pursue while I was there.

Natalie England is a writer living in Austin. By day she serves The University of Texas as a copywriter for Texas Athletics. She worked at The Daily Texan from 2001-2004, working as a reporter, associate sports editor and finally sports editor.