Months ago, when signing up for classes with our advisors,
it was highly recommended to take a discovery course. These courses are intended
to help students figure out what they wanted to major in and to find their
passions within their major. For the students that signed up for Journalism
199, we wanted to find out more about what types of writers we are and find our
passions. When Jean Garner came to speak to our class about Al Jazeera, she
taught us about more than just what she does every day; Garner made us think
about what types of writers we want to be, what drives that ambition, and why
we enjoy what we do.
Garner began her speech by telling our class about what she
does, what Al Jazeera does, and a little bit about her career. As she proceeded
to tell us all of these things, she singled students out and asked them
questions such as “Why we enjoyed writing? What gives you the drive to follow
these stories?” This made us consider what our passions in writing are. Whether
they had been a student that was singled out or not, every student in that room
questioned themselves for the answers to these questions.
Despite Garner asking me specifically why I enjoyed writing,
I still walked out of that classroom asking myself those questions. Why do I
enjoy journalism? Why does it keep my interest? I discovered the answers as I
was asking myself these things on my walk home; I enjoy finding the story,
interacting with others, and finding out their opinions about topics. I enjoy
researching different topics on a deeper level and developing a well-rounded
education on various different matters. Journalism allows me to discover things
I had not done before; and provides me with freedom of speech and on outlet to
fulfill my curiosity. Journalism describes me within my own terms what
describes you?
