A Snake with a Cause
When I was young, I would wander around our cosy apartment’s maze-like corridors with my mom’s compact mirror in hand. I was quiet, careful and moved undetected like a snake in the grass. I’d crouch down and flip the golden mirror and stick it out to see what was happening in the living room. I would listen, watch and analyze whatever my 7-year-old brain could. I learned people act differently depending on who they’re talking to. And that’s where my love for investigative journalism stems from.
As I grew up, journal-entries became a regular part of my day. I have to thank my fifth grade English teacher for that. He would say “take out your journals and write anything you want for 5 minutes. It can be the same word for two pages or it can be ‘I don’t know what to write’ — I don’t care, just don’t stop writing for five minutes!” Of course, at first, it was frustrating. But in time, I found myself creating stories or rewriting what had gone on in my day.
I started to create short stories with sketches and staple them together in my free time (as if being a fifth grader is super stressful, right?). The one that really stands out to me was a reimagined Lilo & Stitch “comic book” I created from scratch. Fast forward to the 7th grade, I became more interested in magazines. So, I created one at home with colored paper and created a section for “Personal Stories,” “News,” “Most Embarrassing Moments,” and my favorite till this day, “WTF”. Seventh grade me used that section in my “magazine” to write about injustices. Whether it be a girl from my school had been bullied all year or reading the news on African American crime rates in the US, that section’s scales was wide enough for me to jot down what I thought was wrong with the world.
One point one of my university professor’s may frown upon is that I am interested in Gonzo journalism. I am part of the story and I believe my experience makes a difference. This way, my love for journal entries and investigative journalism unite. Objectivity is subjective!
Gonzo journalism is a style of journalism that is written without claims of objectivity, often including the reporter as part of the story via a first-person narrative.
So, what does this have anything to do with why I want to be a Journalist? Maybe loving literature doesn’t make you a good Journalist. But a snake in the grass with a cause certainly does.
