Artifacts

Yellow Journalism in the 21st Century

On a whim, I decided to enroll in a First Year Seminar over tabloid journalism. I always found Lady Diana Spencer and her life in front of the camera to be incredibly fascinating, and I love to write, so I decided to divvy up my course load with a class that had absolutely no relation to my major. Little did I know, I would grow to love this class. Every week for 55 minutes, I had the opportunity to evaluate newspaper articles dating back three centuries. I am loving every minute of my Public Affairs classes, but there is something special about this unique, low stakes course, that combines the English and History that I was missing in the rest of my course load.

Interestingly enough, I soon began to see the relevance of this class in relation to my other courses. The role that the media has and still continues to play in the political arena, the diaspora of information, and its relevance to society has only continued to grow. Public Affairs 2110 analyses the media as such an important tool for the government, as the court of public opinion, and as potentially even another, albeit unofficial, branch of government. I have spent the entire semester in a state of sheer fascination, as all of the historical and political incidences previously taught to me have finally linked up in my brain.

I selected this paper as my first artifact because it displays a connection between past and present. Yellow journalism, a phenomenon I first discovered in the midst of AP United States History, is not simply a concept of the 19th century. First taught to me from the historical perspective, I relearned the topic from an English perspective. Learning, and soon understanding, the same concept from different perspectives with different influences is a feeling that I simply cannot get enough of. That feeling constitutes my love of learning. Additionally, through the course of the semester, I have come to realize that I am not yet ready to be without writing. The symbiosis of words on paper with connections to public policy is so captivating to me that I have begun the process of creating my own specialization within the Glenn College on Public Policy Writing and Development.

In terms of what I have gained, this artifact reflects much more of a change in thought and academic focus than anything else. I did not learn any technical skills, as the formulation of an MLA formatted paper is anything but new to me, but the thought process behind the paper was one of incredible growth. In a class completely unrelated to my major, the focus that this seminar has had on tabloid journalism has only solidified my Public Affairs major as the center of my career. Further, it has allowed me to expand the realm of career possibilities, by combining yet another topic that I love, journalism, to enhance my major.

About Me

 

Nina Ryan is a first year undergraduate student in the Glenn College of Public Affairs, working towards a Bachelor of Arts in Public Management, Leadership, and Policy. Nina isn’t sure which route her life will take, but her ultimate goal is to inspire, whether it is through law, food policy, or maybe even publishing.  Learning more about herself beyond the classroom, Nina has worked to grow a community in her hometown to support OSU’s fight against pediatric cancer through instituting programs in both high schools and middle schools that raise both money and awareness for childhood cancer and Buckeyethon. Nina values the significance of travel and how it affects one’s world view, and she loves to explore other cultures and countries, with Poland being her favorite. Nina was an honor student in high school and received awards and scholarships in both English and Social Studies. She got the opportunity to meet an exonerated death row inmate, and that really solidified her desire to work in change for others. Nina celebrates the unique nature of the world and is fascinated to learn more through the International Affairs Scholars Program. She believes that one can learn a lot about themselves and stimulate growth in others by embracing differences. In addition to service and education, Nina is an avid baker, a bookworm, a self-proclaimed comedian, and a dancer. She is excited for the abundance of opportunity and goodness that is to come in her time at Ohio State.