statement of intent for AAJ

this is the statement of intent that I wrote for an application to the Academy for Alternative Journalism. given that all I do is watch movies and listen to music (some video gaming sprinkled onto the mix), I thought it might be entertaining to try to write for an alternative news weekly like the Chicago Reader or the Phoenix New Times; the Academy is funded by these papers and conducts an intensive summer writing program at Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism. I thought it sounded pretty cool, so I gave it a half-assed shot. I managed to scrape together about five "articles" (including a few rants from this site), threw in some random commentary and sent the mess off. despite having virtually no experience in writing for a "real" paper, I ended up placing within the top 30 of a couple hundred applicants. unfortunately, they only take ten people. so endeth my foray into journalism. weeee.

"A journalist... enjoys a license to be educated in public; we are the lucky ones, allowed to spend our days in a continuing course of adult education," wrote Bill Moyers in his introduction to the book "The Power of Myth." This statement provides the foundation for my interest in the field of journalism. To me, journalists are inquisitive by nature, ever seeking to better understand their communities and their environments and driven to spread their findings. During the short time I wrote for NYOU, the Daily Northwestern's magazine, I was struck by how attuned the editor was to the events of the city and the world, and how he sought to be an active participant in the community and to further explore Chicago. To me, this was nothing short of a new methodology of living in a vibrant city; one of curiosity driven exploration, rather than passive drifting. One of feeling a part of something greater, rather than feeling like a simple spectator.

It was quite easy and very appealing to dig a warm snug hole to hide in during my first years at NU. Half a country away from anything familar, I was bewildered by everything from the mass-transit system to the weather. I came from Phoenix; I believed that the sun never disappeared for more than a few days, that the time didn't simply jump ahead for an hour then back after a few months and that by "mass-transit" people meant "car-pool". Needless to say, I felt it would be a good idea to spend some time getting my bearings. I had a safe batch of similarly disoriented friends who preferred to tip-toe into well-controlled situations rather than plunging headlong into the unknown. For awhile, we made calculated but limited expeditions into the city until I found that I was in my last year of school, about to move away, still unable to come up with more than a handful of sites to show off to visiting friends.

The sudden desire to explore the city coincided neatly with my sudden interest in journalism. A close friend wrote for Arizona State University's magazine, and she bounced article ideas off of me so often, I started looking into Chicago for ideas just to keep the discussion from being so one-sided. I figured that participating in my school's paper would aid in the endeavor, but I definitely did not expect to become so inspired.

Understand that despite growing up in Phoenix, it was no more "my city" than a hotel room would be "my home." The culture itself supports this; the average time people will spend in a neighborhood is about 6 years. It's easy to exist in Phoenix for a number of years watching people pass through, occasionally looking to the city for entertainment between work and sleep. I found myself unable to keep this sort of detachment with Chicago. Hunting for new things to do, talking to friends about the city, simply skimming through the Reader all led to a larger sense of pride and belonging. This coupled with the discovery of underground scenes that have existed for decades gradually transformed Chicago into more than just someplace I spent nine months out of my year. It so enriched my experience, it grew to become part of my identity. I began to wonder if a more vibrant culture lay within Phoenix as well.

Curiosity fuels exploration fuels the desire and necessity for action. I experienced the exhiliaration of expanding an awareness of my community and of my place within it. This intoxication was contagious; I caught it from my editor and from my ASU friend and I hope to pass it on to others. I hope that my writing would inspire the same mix of pride and curiosity in readers as was inspired in me. On the surface, my interest in journalism is based upon an interest in furthering my education of the city I choose to live in. But beyond that, it is based upon an interest in finding a place in the place that I live; allowing where I live to be more incorporated with my life.