The DVIDS Journalist of the Month for August, Staff Sgt. Erin Mills, covered the humanitarian efforts in Iraq and retrograde in Afghanistan for U.S. Air Forces Central Command Public Affairs.
Mills, who is from Yucaipa,... read more
The DVIDS Journalist of the Month for August, Staff Sgt. Erin Mills, covered the humanitarian efforts in Iraq and retrograde in Afghanistan for U.S. Air Forces Central Command Public Affairs. <br /> <br />
Mills, who is from Yucaipa, California, shot video of U.S. military personnel preparing for humanitarian aid drops and night vision video of the actual air drops. Her video interviews with members of the U.S. aircrew conducting the air drops aired in local U.S. markets and international markets like Prague, Czech Republic.<br /> <br />
Overall, Mills’ videos aired more than any other DVIDS journalist in August totaling 3,402 times, and her videos were viewed on the DVIDS website almost as many times with 3,261 views. Media that aired Mills’ videos include Baghdad TV, CCTV, TVN24, France 24, FOX News, CNN Turkey, Channel News Asia, Al Arabiyah, CNBC World, KING-TV in Seattle, WTTG-TV, KVVU-TV in Las Vegas and many more. <br /> <br />
"Beyond her obvious technical skills, what makes Staff Sgt. Erin Mills a great broadcaster is her instinct," said Lt. Col. Tadd Sholtis, director of public affairs for U.S. Air Forces Central Command. "The speed of air operations means you often have just one chance to capture the moment. Erin dives right into the heart of a story and gets that shot, every time." <br /> <br />
In addition to her coverage of the humanitarian airdrops in Iraq, Mills also covered the retrograde in Afghanistan. <br /> <br />
Mills clearly stood out among the other videographers in August with the number of media impressions for her videos. However, she had some close competition with photographers in her own unit—AFCENT. Both Staff Sgt. Shawn Nickel and Staff Sgt. Vernon Young also covered the humanitarian airdrop and ranked high during the month for the number of media placements. Their photographs were picked up by a wide array of media around the world, but in the end, Mills videos were used by the media more. Her coverage of additional topics during the month made her stand out even more as the August Journalist of the Month.<br /> <br />
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