Tuesday, September 9, 2008

"We are living in a media world"

"What do you want to be when you grow up?"
When I was younger, my "aspirations" changed from day to day. Whether on a given day I was fighting fires in my mind or chasing down vicious criminals, one factor remained unchanged: I wanted to help people. Now, twelve plus years later, here I sit, beginning my journey to a degree in Journalism. I must admit, upon making this decision, I felt a little selfish; I felt as if I was taking a path that would lead me to doing anything but helping mankind. Turns out, I was extremely wrong.
After my first Journalism 101 class today in the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University, I remembered why I had chosen the field in the first place. The media is all around us. If not for the media, how would the average citizen be able to hear and understand the views of candidates running for election? If not for the media, how would organizations like the Humane Society or campaigns like the "Live Above the Influence" campaign against drugs get their message out to the masses as they do with newspapers and television ads?
Although the media is obviously changing, I believe that it is not withering away, it is simply upgrading. In fifty years from now, whether I'm checking the weather for my grandson's soccer game or looking to adopt a new pet, I'll still be receiving the amount of information I need and demand (even if it is through a chip in my arm); and in fifty years, I'll look back at my first few days as a college student and be glad that I chose a major that could help me make a difference.

4 comments:

The Gress Family said...

Heather,
Well written! I look forward to reading all of your thoughts! Hope you are having a blast!! I'll call you at the end of the week to see how your 1st week was. Love you, Stacy

A. Liebendorfer said...

good first post! ill have to say tho... the chip in the arm is where i draw the line haha

Anonymous said...

Nice post! I have to agree with your standpoints on where media is going. Not declining, just a slow upgrade. I'm in the J101 class too, and I followed the link from Prof. Stewart.
=]
Becca Rak

Cassie The Venomous said...

Hello, Heather.
I loved your post and perspective.
I, too,am passionate about helping people. I'm glad that we have both found our way to do so.