Media Participation Project: Unwind Magazine

I decided to write for the Unwind Magazine, the only print entertainment magazine on the UMD campus. Going to the meeting was a very intimidating event, but when I arrived I instantly felt comfortable. In the room in which the meeting was taking place, there were multiple boards with possible stories. I saw an option to write about Kanye West, and I was instantly intrigued. When the editors asked if anyone was interested in that particular story, I jumped on the opportunity and was assigned a profile on his life, and more specifically his new album, his relationship with Kim, and his new tour.

At this point in my life, I am unsure if I would rather do political journalism or pop culture/entertainment journalism. I love to write and talk about politics, but I also enjoy music and the modern entertainment industry. Writing about someone like Kanye was a new experience, but I quickly adapted and had a lot of fun while taking a risk. Writing about such a divisive entertainment figure definitely makes me think that I could pursue a career in pop culture journalism. 

 Perhaps I could write about both politics and entertainment, or maybe I’ll have to choose one to focus on. In the future I am going to pursue more stories about political events, to determine if my passion for those topics is just as high as my passion for entertainment journalism. Writing for the Unwind magazine did prove to be entertaining, and was also refreshing as I wrote articles about relevant topics. 

 Either way, this experience strengthened my conviction to my career goal of being a print journalist. I love to write, and seeing my work in a publication makes me happy and feeling fulfilled. I definitely discovered that working under the pressure of a deadline (along with the pressures of homework) is daunting, but doable. The satisfaction of finishing a story after the countless hours of creating an angle, editing and finding people to interview made the effort worth it all in the end. I am very happy I decided to volunteer particularly early, and I will continue to volunteer my services to other publications on campus, especially the Diamondback.