BREAKING NEWS: Most of the articles on this site are not journalism... or are they? Majority of the articles published on Odyssey consist of listicles, and information about some author's personal life that no one really cares to read about. Let's be honest here.
But what exactly defines journalism? After a bit of research, I found that the definition is very broad, and does not require a degree to have the label. Just as being labeled as a writer, muck wrecker, YouTuber or even coder. The word journalist is nothing shy of a title, and not a goal needed to be reached.
Some of us that write for Odyssey like to call ourselves journalists, but then readers like to call us writers and those that label themselves as journalists can become upset. And then there are those that study journalism and claim that none of what we are doing is journalism. But I argue that both sides are right. Because language is subjective.
If I say an article written about how painting canvases can lower stress is journalism, and someone else says it is not, we can both be right. No two people will read any piece of literature exactly the same, with the same inflections and emphases. But these emphases and inflections can be exactly what makes said person believe that the article is not journalism, while I believe it to be journalism.
But that in itself is an interest concept, what makes journalism, journalism? The New York Times and Washington Post are both newspapers that hold, what a large majority of Americans to believe, is journalism. But what about their articles make them journalism? Is it that they've had that title for decades, or that the writers are well known self-titles journalists? Because face it, you aren't anything until you give yourself a title.
We give ourselves labels to instill validations for not only existence, but for what we are doing in life. They can keep us moving forwards and reaching those goals that once seemed impossible. With the experience of calling myself a leader, writer, creator, lover, fighter, Christian etc. That has only made me want to become better at what I do, and form me into a better, more well-rounded individual.
So sure, call yourself a journalist, writer, artist, painter, engineer, janitor, nurse- whatever! Even if it's mandatory for you to have the degree in your hand before you can be a registered engineer (or however that works), call yourself that if it makes you feel great. The only validation you need is from yourself.
