2011 Daniel Pearl Intern Chosen
 Alexandra Wexler |
Alexandra Wexler is working toward a master’s degree in communication, specializing in journalism, which she expects to complete in June. She will work in a foreign bureau of The Wall Street Journal this summer.
The internship was established to commemorate the work and ideals of Pearl, a Stanford graduate and Wall Street Journal foreign correspondent who was kidnapped and murdered in Pakistan in 2002.
In an essay written as part of the application process, Wexler, noted that "the most interesting pieces of journalism for me are those that tell the story of someone ordinary and outside the limelight. Their stories touch our lives because they are just like you and me — ordinary people living in the same everyday world."
Wexler is from New York City, and previously had internships at ABC Eyewitness News in Durham, North Carolina and the Durham Herald-Sun. Her writing has also appeared in GlobalPost.com during a stint in South Africa. She has a bachelor’s degree from Duke University.
A committee of Communication Department faculty members evaluated applicants for the internship. The final decision was made by The Wall Street Journal.
Pearl, a 1985 graduate of Stanford's Department of Communication, was kidnapped in Karachi on Jan. 23, 2002, while working on a story retracing the steps of "shoe bomber" Richard Reid. A month later, on Feb. 21, his captors released a videotape of his slaying. He was 38.
Alexandra Wexler's winning essay: