My Thoughts On Journalism

Journalism. Defined as the collection and editing of news for presentation through the media, the public press, or an academic study concerned with the collection and editing of news or the management of a news medium, by Merriam-Webster. 

I would have never guessed in a thousand years that I would be a part of a newspaper staff, or even interested in journalism whatsoever. 

When I was in high school I began writing in a word document whenever I had something on my mind. It was my own personal computer journal. I would write about everything and anything that was going on in my life. It was my "safe place" where I could talk about anything and no one would judge me. I used to try to write a book about this boy I met before I went to high school named Jake Adams. He had a "Lifetime Movie" sort of life, full of drama and I used to want to write a book about my experiences with him as a friend. I got to page 2 and I was done. I was bored of writing about the same topic in such depth; I didn't like only having one subject, one person to write about. I needed to have numerous things to talk about, so I just continued to journal on a regular basis. I decided that writing about one subject wasn't my thing, writing about numerous subjects and life experiences was. 

So I continued writing until college, but when I got to school I started writing less and less. Only writing when I was bored or had something very interesting happen to me that I never wanted to forget. 

I have over 80 pages of text about my life; they are full of secrets, dreams and aspirations. They are about me. 

When I learned I had to take newspaper as part of my major, I looked at it as a learning experience. I thought I would be able to have my own column where I could help other people with their life experiences because that is what I have always enjoyed doing, but I was soon disappointed. I would have to write about something every two weeks that I wasn't necessarily interested in. I was not excited about this at first, but once I got my first story topic I became more intrigued. I was going to broaden my mind by writing. I was going to learn about things I had never had much of an interest in and actually enjoy it. 

I wanted to enjoy it and also be good at it, so I enrolled in Advanced Reporting and Editing. It probably wasn't smart to get into the advanced class before taking the regular one, but I did it anyways. I was out of my element! I was so behind compared to some of my other classmates, so I had to adapt. Although it wasn't easy, by the end of the semester, I had more of a feel for what I was doing. I really felt like a journalist. 

The classes I've taken that include journalism have made me respect journalist a lot more. It's not as easy as I thought to write a really great, intriguing story. It takes a lot of time and effort, as well as knowledge about journalism and grammar. 

My future in journalism probably won't go past college, but I plan on using everything I've learned over the next two years of school. I hope to one day get my own "Ask Alice" column in the school newspaper and really do what I love; help others and hear personal stories.