Why Political Journalism?

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I first knew that I wanted to write for a professional newspaper when I took journalism in my junior year of high school. I found that I had a passion for finding information and writing news stories in a clear way.  I realized how important it was for people to inform themselves of current events.  Since that experience, I joined my university's newspaper and completed a summer internship at NJ.com, writing the stories that make up this portfolio.

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My career goals include writing news for a paper. As a news reporter, I would be honest and fair. My personal opinion will not influence what I write, as I pride myself on letting people come to their own conclusions about what is happening in the world. It is my belief that as a reporter, I have a duty to the people to be timely, straightforward, and most importantly, accurate in my reporting.

 

During my four years at Rider University, I have come to see journalism in a different light: I used to think that only hard, political news mattered in the world, but now I know that feel-good, "soft" pieces are important for society as well because they give people joy; however, I still have a passion for hard news because I value being informed and think my peers do as well. 

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I would like to specifically cover the news regarding the American political system. In the last few years, the news surrounding politics has often been one-sided and has put people against each other because of the idolization of our political leaders that has turned Americans who disagree with each other into something resembling fans of opposing sports teams.

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My primary goal will be to find all of the facts of the story, report them with honesty, and put them into context, when appropriate, for my readers. I took up another major, political science, during the spring semester of my sophomore year to learn more about how the government works, how it was intended to work at the founding of the country, how the current-day American public wants it to work, and where all three intersect.

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My other goals as a journalist include changing the way people think about the news and each other. People often only look at the news when it reinforces an existing belief; I hope my generation of journalists will use accuracy and fairness to change this fundamental problem.