August 21, 2017

Karen Curry believes to understand global TV you have to visit London. Curry, a professor in Drexel University’s Paul F. Harron Television Management Program, should know. As NBC News’ former Bureau Chief, she lived fifteen years in London and from there covered the UK, Europe, the Middle East, and the untimely death of Princess Diana.

That’s why Professor Curry connected her former London colleagues and her students during a whirlwind week of visits to global media companies that affect the way news is reported and distributed around the world. Nine students spent a full week in mid-August on the trip while other students in the ten-week course followed along online, each learning about the larger global media ecosystem. 

Students began their week with a bus tour of the world cultural capital and attended a dinner with Lynne Edwards of CBS News at The Frontline Club, which is known internationally as a gathering place for journalists and photographers. John Owen, Chairman of the Frontline Club, also joined the students.  

“There’s a lot to see and learn about the media industry in London, and these students had the unique opportunity of meeting in person many of the media leaders who have been teaching them online during the summer quarter,” said Curry. 

The Television Management graduate students also visited NBC London, CNN, BBC and Channel 4 News, as well as meeting popular stage and screen actress Lesley Sharp of the original Full Monty and the award-winning Scott and Bailey that ran on PBS in the US.  

This August marked the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death and the students had a VIP tour of Althorp, Princess Diana’s childhood home and burial place, arranged by her brother Earl Spencer. After touring the state rooms at Buckingham Palace, they had tea with Robert Jobson, Royal Editor of The Evening Standard and Good Morning America’s royal expert. Jobson covered Princess Diana extensively and has covered the Royal Family for 30 years.  

“Experiencing the cultural richness of London is part of the experiential learning model on which the course is based,” Curry said. “What would a summer visit to London be without an evening at the Proms?” 

Professor Karen Curry says her students gained a lifetime of knowledge during their jam-packed six-day trip. “Television Management students always take advantage of the opportunities in London,” she said. “They’ll carry what they learned there throughout their careers and will have these contacts for life.”