BLOOMBERG

Shelby & Raquel not stoked for Bloomberg.

Business journalism isn't our cup of journalism tea, so we were skeptical about this week's field trip to the Bloomberg London offices. 

The moment we entered the lobby (early for the first time!), that started to change. I managed to snipe this pic before being warned about the no-photo policy. The lobby had swanky seating, sweet lights, and free magazines. Sure, it was Bloomberg Business Week, but we always appreciate free magazines.

 Once the rest of the j-schoolers joined us, we grabbed our security badges and headed up the escalator. First thing we see? A massive fish tank. It gets better. 

We rounded the corner and were greeted by The Pantry (English for the kitchen). The Pantry is the hub of the three office buildings. We were told to help ourselves to complimentary snacks, so Sierra did just that. 

After an office tour, the lovely Anne Pollak briefed us on the Bloomberg brand. Highlights:

1. Bloomberg's bread & butter is breaking business & financial news. Their goal is to beat Reuters and Wall Street Journal to the headline. 
2. The Terminal is the product they sell to their clients who want financial insider info. It's like a newswire. Although it looks confusing - black screen, digital fonts, graphs everywhere - Bloomberg trains clients to decipher it for financial decisions. All their employees use five giant computer screens at one time. The Terminal is on one of them.  
3. Their journalism model: show don't tell, no jargon, and write simply. Business news can get confusing, so Bloomberg strives to show the average reader the story. 

While we weren't stoked to learn about business journalism, Bloomberg won us over. Maybe it was the free granola or the monthly art installments... For me, it was the revelation that following the money can be interesting. It takes suspicion, guts & a lot of patience. Also, you don't have to be a financial expert to write about financial things. Who knew? 

Since we couldn't take photos, I'll direct you to this video that shows you around the office. 

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!