Investigative Journalism: Is This My Path?

“This job tears you apart. Piece by piece. But we do it because someone has to.” - Jennifer “JJ” Jareau - BAU Coms. Liaison; Crminal Minds

As it’s known, I’m going to Newhouse with the hopes of becoming a journalist; obviously, considering the fact that this blog’s backbone is that fact.

What’s not known, however, is what kind of journalism I want to take on. I’ve been asked this question every time I tell people what my career goal is and almost every time I draw a blank. It’s that, or I say, “anything but political and international.”

I have my reasons for both: I refuse to partake in political journalism simply because of our current political climate. Political journalism opens the door for more biased content and I am a firm believer in the fact that informative media needs to remain neutral. Can political media be that? Absolutely it can. I praise the journalists who follow the ethics. However, nowadays, political media is catered towards the entertainment side of journalism, and that is not where my interests are. I also refuse to partake in international journalism because of how dangerous it is. Peak your head in the wrong door and you’re done for. Literally and figuratively speaking.

Is journalism something that ignites the high if a chase? Absolutely it is. I am not willing to risk my life on foreign land for a story.

But as I think on it, it seems hypocritical of me to say that and to title this post what it is; because investigative journalism is life threatening to a degree. It involves calling out corporate America and corrupt leaders and demanding change. It involves looking into files that are locked and redacted. It involves risking your life for the truth. Everyone’s definition of investigative journalism is different, and mine revolves around crime.

Not many know this: journalism wasn’t my original focus of study. I wanted to be a detective or a forensic scientist. Chasing a lead and solving a case always seemed thrilling to me. I would follow the leads in crime shows like Criminal Minds and see if I could come up with the same conclusions as them. Was the cinematic elements just as intriguing? Of course. But it’s those shows that turn me away from dissecting a film in that way.

Here at Newhouse, singlely enrolled students have to have a minor. In other words, as I’m not a double major, I need more credits in order to graduate. I can go the business route - which is a smart move, don’t get me wrong.

I don’t believe it’s the move for me.

I need a feild where I genuinely believe I can make a difference, where I can inflict change wherever I can. Business doesn’t give me that feeling. It doesn’t scratch that itch. Can a degree in it land me more opportunities in life? In our day and age, it’s the only thing that can help you survive. It’s already risky getting a degree in the liberal arts, adding a STEM field on top is just asking to be called out for being different.

But I think that’s what I want. I want to be different. I want to take on the responsibility in a field that’s made up of less than 20% (Yin et al., 2022) of people who look like me. I want to be that face you see who television who isn’t just looking into a crime just because it’s my job, but who’s looking into a crime because I know what I’m doing.

It’s still something I’m thinking over, but investigative journalism might be my route.

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Source:

Yim, A. D., Juarez, J. K., Goliath, J. R., & Melhado, I. S. (2022). Diversity in forensic sciences: Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) representation in different medicolegal fields in the United States. Forensic science international. Synergy, 5, 100280. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fsisyn.2022.100280