MY STORIES:
MY BLOG:
Going into this, I did know that the term “Asian American” was very broad, and that it was maybe a little too broad. So, I expected to learn about how diverse this community is to Utah, but I was not expecting to learn how integral it is. My peers wrote stories about bakeries, Buddhist temples, and markets that I didn’t know existed and I’ve lived in Salt Lake City my entire life.
It was a learning process for myself getting to know my community. It also was a big step toward becoming a journalist. I was challenged to step out of my comfort zone and pursue ideas that I was not initially sure I could write about.
The part of the story writing process that was challenging for me was the entire interview process. First it’s finding people willing to be interviewed, then it’s the actual interview where I had to have the right questions prepared and maintain a good rapport with the interviewee. It definitely took me out of my comfort zone.
Overall, I know this class has been fundamental to my career development. I was not only able to learn about how the story writing process works, but I was also able to apply strategies in real-time, thanks to Professor Mangun’s help as I powered through the story writing process this semester. Thanks to this class and experience, I know I have a future in journalism.
ABOUT ME:
Andre Montoya is a third-year student at the University of Utah completing his Bachelor of Arts in English and Communication with an emphasis in journalism.
Montoya had always enjoyed writing and decided early on to pursue a career in journalism.
While in high school, Montoya started and maintained a newsroom for local teens in the Glendale library with the lead editor of the Westview, Charlotte Fife-Jepperson, and Salt Lake City public library employee Pablo Abarca. Montoya facilitated discussions and activities for program participants relating to writing and self-expression and helped them publish their own original work in the Westview.
Although the newsroom had to be closed due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Montoya still found it a great experience for building leadership skills and growing as a writer.
Montoya plans to graduate in June 2023 and pursue writing locally before joining a larger publication.
Filed under: Asian American, Blogs & Bios, Student-Journalists |
voices-of-utah.com 