Journalism and advocacy are not mutually exclusive — and if they were, I wouldn’t be here.
While I have pursued a career in journalism for several years, it wasn’t until recently that I, as a journalist, started to wrestle with the line between reporting and advocacy. The more I wrestle with it however, the more excited I get to forge a new path for journalists given the current, often hostile, social climate.
When reading a recent feature in Nieman Reports entitled, “Where Does Journalism End and Activism Begin?” I started to ask myself questions about who we, as journalists, have historically served, and what we become complicit to as we aim to remain objective for the sake of not being perceived as having a bias. To my frustration, journalists have long-recognized that we all write from our own point of view, but we have done just about everything possible to avoid any suspicion of bias, as if that is even possible.
In reality, we are all human. We may feel comfortable citing our humanity when it comes to making errors in our work, but we should do the same for our bias rooted in our human experience. Gone are the days in which journalists avert their reporting from the areas, groups and communities with which we are most familiar. It is our human experience that, like our sources, informs our work, and we should be utilizing it!
The feature story, rich with anecdotes from various reporters, had many details that I found relevant to my work and field of study, but one point struck me the most. It was the idea that reporters who ingrain themselves in the experience of those they cover gain exposure to a different set of facts than those who operate on the other side of that experience.
As a high school journalist, I covered an unthinkable tragedy in a fellow senior student, opened fire in our school, shooting one other student before setting a fire in our school’s library and killing himself. Visceral reactions, detailed moments and emotions were key to telling this story, which meant that my experience and my connection to my sources could not be removed from it. Time and time again my staff and I recognized that we were uniquely positioned to tell our story most accurately and in-depth; to serve our community like no one else could. And that is what we did.
Who ever said we couldn’t struggle, grow and learn along with the subjects of our work? I firmly believe we are in the business of establishing relationships just as much as we are in the business of serving communities, for it is the former that makes possible the ladder. I find it so sad to reflect on the industry I stand proud to be apart of and to see so many of my colleagues relying on word from officials at press conferences for their news and who settle for digital communication over in-person connection.
I have been guilty of doing both myself, but I chose to study Social Journalism at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY to establish a new set of standards for myself as a reporter and social servant.
As a social journalist, I want to embed myself within the groups, organizations and communities that I will cover. I want to show grace to those who have been taken advantage of in news media and serve those who have traditionally been underrepresented in the mainstream coverage while still reporting in a fair and balanced way.
“Embedded journalists,” as the Nieman Reports feature describes them, such as those covering protests or arguably “objective” violations of human rights, often get criticized for writing with a more emotional and sympathetic tone. I, however, see this as necessary to render our stories with personhood, and our sources with dignity.
I want to grow in my ability to portray visceral experiences, as I believe that to be lacking from traditional news coverage. Again, we as journalists have prided ourselves in listening and observing well, but today, I see more people troubled, and in some cases damaged, by our inadequate practice of both. I am excited to tell stories that need to be heard first and foremost. In some cases those are stories of success, improvement and triumph and in others, those are heartbreaking, agonizing and uncomfortable.
How will I know which is necessary? By listening to and learning with my sources, and observing as selflessly as I can. No one is perfect, but all are accountable to something. If I am to remain balanced in my reporting I will be sure to include perspectives that hold each other accountable within the same piece of work. Similarly, if I aim to provide answers for those who need them, I will be accountable to those I serve. Accountability and pressure, I welcome. Injustice and disrespect, I do not.
In addition to the numerous networking opportunities that the J-School at CUNY has already and will continue to provide me, the experiences I will gain through my reporting and studying are why I am here. I am beyond grateful and inspired to learn and work from my current position in the field and in the world. Let’s not waste another minute!

