From Tijuana to Tallahassee: SDSU’s Ana Ceballos chased headlines from The Daily Aztec to the Miami Herald’s statehouse beat

Growing up in Tijuana, Mexico, Ana Ceballos (‘14) turned to the news to help make sense of the violence in the city. Staying informed empowered her, transforming her curiosity and awareness into a lifelong passion.

Today, as a policy and government reporter for the Miami Herald, she credits San Diego State University's Journalism and Media Studies program and The Daily Aztec for giving her the experience she needed to launch her career.

“I grew up with a lot of awareness of what was going on in the city,” Ceballos said. Surrounded by a tumultuous environment, she constantly sought out the news to stay informed, trying to absorb as much information as possible. After graduating high school, she eagerly pursued a journalism degree at SDSU.

One of her first steps at SDSU was joining The Daily Aztec. She believes that decision set her on the path to success. She progressed from not knowing how to write a news article to becoming a staff writer, then assistant news editor and eventually managing editor of the paper.

After graduating from SDSU, Ceballos interned at a small local newspaper in Monterey where she covered general assignment courts. She then pursued her interest in immigration as a freelance border reporter. However, she solidified her beat when she moved to Tallahassee, Fla., to cover state government for The Associated Press.

“When I came here (to Tallahassee), it was with the idea of, ‘I'll just learn how to cover state government,’ which is a different beast of reporting – and I loved it,” Ceballos said. 
She has served five years as a reporter at the Miami Herald.

“My day is pretty much waking up, heading to the Capitol, going to meetings, listening to interviews, grabbing lawmakers in the hallway, finding some time to eat, transcribing, multitasking,” Ceballos said. “It's a lot of just unpredictable scheduling.” 

When asked what advice she has for students worried about finding jobs after graduation, she emphasized gaining as much experience as possible. She credits submitting numerous applications, saying yes to every opportunity, and using her Daily Aztec clips to build her portfolio as key steps in her journey.

“At the end of the day, I think journalism is about informing people,” Ceballos said. “It's not about name brands. In general, it shouldn't be above us to do local reporting and people need that information.

“Writing really is a muscle that comes with time, and you need to exercise that muscle to be able to produce good stories and ultimately make sure that the message is being conveyed to people who are out in the community.”