Upon Further Reflection, I am satisfied with what I have accomplished in this paper. From interviewing critical local politicians, sheriffs, and other individuals, to going to New York City and studying under the watchful eye of the New York Times, I’ve truly achieved most of the goals I have set for myself. However, what would I recommend for any aspiring Journalist? What would I want to tell this person, or what would I want to tell myself? 

For one, be honest about your biases. NO JOURNALISM IS UNBIASED. While yes, reporting can be unbiased in some circumstances, almost 99% of the time, Journalism is biased. Whether it’s biased because the editor’s room decided to add something to your piece that they were told to by the heads of the paper, or your personal biases about specific topics, you can never be truly “objective”. So don’t act like you are objective. Be honest, be upfront, tell your viewer “I personally disagree with (X)”, don’t try to claim “I am an honest individual, and never let bias enter my reporting”. That, my friend, is a lie you tell yourself and your audience.

Secondly, on the topic of bias, I would recommend avoiding aligning yourself with a specific political movement (unless you genuinely agree with their message). I saw this somewhere, yet couldn’t find a source, but the saying goes, “If you totally agree with everything the party says, those aren’t your beliefs, those are the party’s beliefs.” This quote is the best reason to avoid alignment with a specific party or person. You are allowed to disagree with them, and I disagree with both sides of the American political scene quite heavily on many issues.

Finally, don’t refuse to publish something even if it could negatively affect someone or something you like or support. Refusing to publish a story about the American President only delays a story coming out, which likely does far more harm than good. If someone, a politician, policeman, or otherwise, is committing a crime, not saying anything about it or exposing it only continues to further the harm caused. For example, Sean Combs (also known as Diddy) has, as you probably know, been accused of dozens of horrible things and decades of abuse/crimes which he, supposedly, personally committed. Yet, because of a culture of fear and concerns about retribution, almost everyone who knew him in Hollywood (and by extension likely knew of his crimes) refused to talk about them or expose him until he was arrested by the US Government. The choice to let these crimes go unknown allowed Diddy to use his influence to (allegedly) do horrible things, which affected many, many people.