Jamison Barker is a Communications/Journalism major at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania. After he graduates in December 2017, he hopes to work as a reporter for about five years.
Staff Writer
“This time in the field will either affirm to me my love of journalism/reporting, or tell me I need to pivot,” he said. “If I decide to be a reporter, I hope that time will show whether or not I want to specialize in some area of reporting.”
Whether he becomes a reporter with or without a specialization, or determines that another job would suit him better, Jamison wants to be involved in the media and communications field. His short term goals include possibly moving to a new location in a different state, but if that doesn’t happen, he’ll be happy working in Pennsylvania.
Long term, he says that he’d like “to become an investigative journalist so that I can expose corruption and hold those in power accountable. Later on in my career, I’d like to get involved in politics at some level.”
For my work as a whole, I hope that I can affect as much positive change with my stories as possible. If something I write helped just one person, I’d be satisfied.
Jamison describes himself as “an observer with a keen disdain for injustice. I see things happen all the time that make me some variation of upset or angry. I have — in the past — felt powerless to change these things. But now, with the power of the pen, I hope to bring these injustices to the attention of as many people as possible.”
Staff Question: Explain why you believe that immigration is an important issue in our communities that needs to be confronted by our elected officials.
“First of all — and this may sound cliché at this point — but we are a country of immigrants. We were founded by immigrants, built by immigrants, and still are powered by immigrants. Many of our families came to this country to simply build a better life for themselves. I believe others should have that same opportunity today.
I am troubled by the rhetoric surrounding immigration today because it seems that some people lose sight of this. Rather than seeing an immigrant’s perspective as a human being like themselves, I think many citizens of this country rather see them as a threat. Someone who is here to take jobs and dilute the culture of the U.S. I want to expose these people to the real faces behind the immigration debate, and show them immigrants not only power our country and add to our culture, but are also more like us than they are not.
I think social issues like this one require compassion when they are approached because we often forget about the impact on the individual when we think of an issue on a macro scale like this one. There are real people with real stories behind each statistic that is thrown up regarding the subject. The more we approach these issues with compassion, the less likely we are to dehumanize one another.”
Writing Wrongs 