Monday, March 2, 2009

Seriously. Why Are You Here?

A DePAUL UNIVERSITY journalism professor asked her students why they are studying journalism when the industry is in the throws of a massive revolution. Here are a few of the students' responses:

"I think we want to be journalists because it's who we are, as people," said Tina Shaerban, a budding broadcaster who moved here from Cleveland to enroll in J-school.

"We are willing to work for close to nothing because it is who we are," said Shaerban, 25. "It is an art form. Just like there are starving artists, we are starving journalists."

George Croitoru's dream is to cover the Cubs for a daily. Croitoru, 25, gets a rush from writing a news story, "putting together a puzzle, getting creative. That's a pretty good feeling. Turning a phrase that you didn't know you had in you."

La'Vena Richards has a public relations background, but journalism is her first love. She's a big gossip at heart. "I'm a news junkie. I'm nosy. I love information."

Why are you studying journalism?

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

My study of journalism is to know how to get informations out of people, and I think studying jurnalism give us the understanding of those informations.

Anonymous said...

As it turns out, I am not a Journalism major. I am an interdepartmental communications major so I hate to say it, but this class is required. I would love to proclaim that journalism is my passion but I suppose that's just writing in general. Mainly I like writing scripts but there is a special place in my heart for journalism. When I was in high school, I was the editor of the yearbook and I wrote for a little while for an online newspaper. There's something that makes you feel good when you do journalistic writing. It's nice to know that people will be reading it soon and that you're writing about topics that are current and interesting. When you're writing a piece of fiction, you don't always know how it's going to go and whether or not people have any interest at all in what you're reading. Journalism allows you write in smaller spurts and gain more instant feedback. It's a noble job and I respect anyone who decides to pursue journalism as a career. Who knows, maybe I'll end up in journalism.

Unknown said...

I take journalism courses because I think it is important to think critically about news sources; I am really interested in media reform. I think people need to be able to understand where the information they consume comes from, how it was produced, and from which perspective. It is not enough for me to watch CNN or read the New York Times and think I know what's going on; I am constantly bombarded with propaganda of one form or another, and there are always people scrambling to give me my opinion for me, trying to shape my habits, spending, opinions, and vote.
It's difficult to overstate the extent to which News and media shape how people think, how they act, what they believe and how they view the world. If I don't learn to critically analyze the news I consume, I imagine I might find myself sort of lost in a sea of information, with no way to navigate.

Unknown said...

peter hayakawa

Anonymous said...

Although I am not a journalism major, I have always been enticed by the art. Although, I am a product of the starving journalists scare and took a Communications major over Journalism. For Safety, is why I did it. And pretty much a little more freedom when it comes to class picking. But I still feel the desire for journalism! And I hope others do to :)

Anonymous said...

Inspiration from figures such as Walt Whitman, Hunter S. Thompson, Gay Talese and Tom Wolfe.

Anonymous said...

It counts as a core ;)

Although journalism isn't something I would like to do for a living, it is very important to understand where we get our news from and how to get it. The more we know, the more we are able to think critically.

Anonymous said...

To be completely honest as to why I want to be a BROADCAST journalist is because of John Clark, Harry Kalas and Vai Sikahema. Anyone that really has an influence on the sports world through all types of journalism, is people I look up to. I admire what they do, and dream of one day doing it myself. It's just a passion to not only write, but to experience it all at the same time. Especially if it has to do with sports. Being a dedicated Phillies fan like no other, I just love sports, talking about sports, and analyzing sports.

- Jamie Hunsberger

Geo said...

I think Larry Andersen, the voice of Phillies radio, will be visiting in April.

- Geo
(the teacher who LOVES baseball)

Anonymous said...

I am a writer/poet. I study journalism to help me learn other writing forms and because I am interested in the news, more so magazine, reaching a specific demografic. I consider myself an artist because how I deliver information to people. It doesn't have to be in pyramid form to inform and engage the reader. It can be creative. So far I am happy with my decision and I like that with a journalism degree, I can enter many different fields.


Sherae Moore

Anonymous said...

I am a BTMM major that took this class because 1. Journalism has always been a small interest to me. 2. I heard it was a good class.

I am not as passionate about it as some others I know but I do respect it as a profession and also as a way for some to vent themselves.

Amanda DiStefano
(Current Journalism and Society student)

Anonymous said...

i studying journalism to know better about the world and try to get those news which are important for a citizens to know about the world.

Ryan Downey said...

Journalism is all about reaching an audience and telling a story. I'm looking to be an entertainment writer/performer; I have no interest in being in journalism/broadcasting. However, the two are much in the same in that you still have to know how to tell a good story and reach people. The only real difference is in this case it all has to be fact based. The presentation and marketing is all very much the same.