If there's one thing I admire about myself, it's my determination and drive to aim for high goals and not give up on them.
I have dreamt of being a writer since I was six years old and now I am one step closer to achieving that dream. I am ecstatic to announce that I was recently accepted into the School of Journalism and Mass Communications at UW-Madison and I finally feel like I am making big steps in the right direction.
My plan is to graduate with a BA in Strategic Communications and four certificates — Integrated Liberal Studies, Digital Studies, Environmental Studies and Photography. I am excited to pursue a career in journalism after college and hopefully land a job that allows me the opportunity to travel. My goal is to eventually work as a traveling journalist and photographer for National Geographic.
Over the last few years, I have developed a strong desire for travel. I want to explore the world and immerse myself in cultures that broaden my perspective on life. I hope to better myself as a person by exposing myself to different lifestyles and giving myself a more diverse point-of-view. I believe that to make a real difference in the world, you have to understand the world and to understand the world, you have to have seen the world.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Enough about that, answer the real question.
Why journalism?
When people ask me what my major is they are generally surprised by my answer. Nowadays, it seems like everyone is pursuing a degree in business, engineering or the medical field. To many people, writing isn't a career, it's a hobby or a chore you must suffer through to make it through your gen eds. It seems no one understands the motivation behind pursuing a journalism degree.
I have had many people tell me that journalism is dead and not worth pursuing. I have even had professors spew hurtful words at "all the future journalists in the room" and don't think I haven't heard the sneering comments about how much lower the pay is than in the sciences.
Believe me, I have felt belittled because of my career choice and I have been made to feel like my future career is obsolete. Journalism is dead they say, but I wholeheartedly disagree.
Journalism is just as necessary as any other career. Journalists provide the public with the best, unbiased information they can to enable citizens to make their own opinions on public matters occurring in their local area, state, country or even internationally. Journalists have one of the most powerful careers on the planet because they get to choose what is reported on and how it is reported.
Now, before you start yelling at me about fake news and clickbait and the like, understand that just like any other career, there are people who are good at their job and people you're surprised haven't been fired yet. I'm not going to stand here and defend the journalists that write news stories spewing false facts who purposely try to create chaos. I view those people as a disgrace to what it means to be a journalist.
A true journalist seeks the truth and nothing but the truth. Their goal is to provide the public with the facts and let them do with it what they will. Of course, there are always the few that ruin the name for the whole. There are pros and cons to the media, depending on what media you are using, and some companies have different expectations of their writers than others. For example, some companies value traffic more than quality, and that's why we have clickbait.
The rise of the internet has given everyone the opportunity to voice their opinions for thousands to hear. There are a plethora of sites claiming to be professional but have no real journalists on their staff. So, before you get upset with career journalists, take a look at the sites you are using for your news. Is it Facebook? Buzzfeed? Some no name sketchy website? Buzzfeed? If you are trusting some low-end site with non-professional writers, then it's your own fault for believing the fake news you are reading *cough* Buzzfeed.
True journalists are still out there, they are just being buried in the nonsense that the attention-seeking and chaos-driving fakes are writing. Professional journalists can only do so much. If we are writing the content and publishing it on credible nonbiased news sites, then it is your responsibility as a well-informed citizen to seek out the reliable sites and ignore the garbage being spewed about on social media. It is our job to find the facts and report on them. It is not our job to spoon-feed the facts to every person on the planet. Take up some responsibility and check your sources.
So, yes, journalism is my chosen career path and, no, I will not hang my head. I love where my life is heading, and I am beyond excited to make a good name for myself by performing my responsibilities as a true journalist. Writing has always been my passion and I am succeeding in it. Through my writing and exploring, I plan to make a positive impact on the world, and you guys can read all about it.
"I became a journalist to come as close as possible to the heart of the world." -Henry Luce
