One of the most significant aspects that impressed me about the session was finding out Megan’s experience arriving at KTLA. She shared her own journey, how she became to be who she is today, and it assisted me in comprehending the experience and sacrifices one can have in journalism. What her journey did was remind me that overnight success does not exist. It takes hard work, patience, and perseverance. She talked about jumping at opportunities, even the small ones that other people would not take. That really struck a chord with me, at times we wait for this “perfect” moment but Megan showed us that every step is important, even if it does not seem big at the start. What made her speech even more powerful was how genuine and how relatable she was. Her lecture was less like a lecture and more like a discussion with a friend. She wasn’t attempting to impress us, she was just being real. That made it feel more achievable and tangible to work in the news, and not distant or unreal.
Another activity I enjoyed was the emoji exercise. It was a fun and creative way for us to understand visually how coding and decoding work. We may add emojis to our common texts or social media posts without even understanding the way that they convey meaning. Yet in the exercise, I could see how much tone and feeling could be constructed into one little symbol. It also made me think about how individuals will take messages in a variety of contexts. A joke to one individual will be considered seriously by another. Journalists have to be explicit and to the point when they are talking to an audience, especially where there is much potential for misinterpretation, which occurs online. Whether we’re writing a headline, tweeting, or developing an ad campaign, we have to make sure that our message is received the way we intend. The emoji activity was an exercise in remembering that every little choice in communication matters.
One thing that made a impression was watching the clip from the film They Live. It was interesting how the movie used the concept of special sunglasses to symbolize the ability to see hidden messages in the media. The main character puts on the glasses and starts seeing the truth behind billboards, magazines, and advertisements, all of which were secretly controlling how people think. This tied directly into what we’re learning about decoding messages in journalism. Media also has a very powerful potential to shape the way the public sees the world, and sometimes that isn’t entirely obvious. It led me to understand how important it is that reporters probe below the surface, ask what is being presented, and take into account the stories they cover and read. Reporters have a very important role in what we see, what gets said and what gets left out. As I had witnessed that scene, I became more aware and how crucial it is to be aware of what we watch in the media. I would like to know more on this topic and seek out new ways to advance my literature.
Communicating Change 