Hi, my
name is Sam, and I’m a media addict.
Like many college students, I’ve
long dreamt of being able to honestly refer to YouTube-surfing as research.
Media Matters made that dream a reality. The day I found myself with the club’s
president Rick Belbutoski, listening
to “Tipsy” and studying other media depictions of drinking, I felt right at
home.
The great philosopher Confucius said,
“Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” Media Matters
provides that kind of job — one that never feels like a chore and aims to offer
fun, enriching opportunities unlike any you’ve had before, namely giving you
the freedom to explore what you want.
These days, most of us are
explorers of media. From Facebook to “The Real Housewives of New Jersey,” media
consumes us. Media Matters allows me to shed my consumption guilt and put my
media addiction to good use.
The best part of this whole
enterprise is not just studying media, but the feeling that we are making it.
It’s not every day that you get to enjoy and contribute to a field you love.
Butterflies still flutter in my stomach when I go on the radio show or sit down
to write a blog. Working in the media is an exciting, daunting task — it's like
holding a giant mirror up to society and telling the world what you see. I
can’t think of anything else I’d rather do. And thanks to Media Matters, I’ve
never been happier as a media addict.
What is Media Matters? A Word
from Our President
When I first learned about Media
Matters, it wasn’t the organization that it is today. I went to the TCOM Super
Party last fall and found it there. Though at the time it wasn’t as active a
group, I immediately believed in the idea behind it. That wonderfully
alliterative name — Media Matters — jumped out as a relevant idea.
By the end of the fall 2012 semester we had broadcast four radio shows. I had recruited Joey Parrish, Bethany Wesley, and Sam Watermeier to join me in figuring out what this organization was going to become. Last week we celebrated show lucky number 13, a newly renovated Facebook page, and a blog that has grown right along with our organization’s identity.
We have sought to create a niche in
tackling one issue related to media or pop culture every week, but this week we
reflect in a behind the scenes look at what we are, why it’s so important to
us, and where we’re headed in the future.
The “10 cent tour” of what we do is
study a different subject related to media every week and share our thoughts
through commentary both on our radio show and the blog, but the “10 cent tour”
barely scratches the surface.
The radio show requires an average
of four to seven hours every week to produce. The blog demands multiple drafts,
meeting time, and revision before it’s finally posted. In regards to the
commentary we produce we aim for excellence.
Though it sounds like a lot of
work, the process is almost always delightful. I couldn’t ask for a better
group of people to work with. We have gotten to know each other as more than
just associates; we are friends, investing in each other’s lives, picking each
other up when we’re down, and cheering each other on every step of the way.
Photos by Tracy Attaway
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