Written by Jordyn Salahiddine-Rose

From the movie, *How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days*

When I was younger, I wasn’t the kid who automatically knew what they wanted to be when they grew up. Those kids knew their passion and started working to turn them into a reality right away. I never had an idea of what I wanted to do for a career until my junior and senior year of high school. In my English classes, we wrote about the news and current events instead of solely writing about dated books. Through these assignments, I was able to understand the significance of writing in our society. This passion for journalism was further enhanced when I arrived at UW-Madison and started writing pieces related to society for my classes and of course, writing for The Vault. People began asking me, “Why journalism?” and I would always say, “I don’t know, I like to write and I think it would be fun.” That was my recurrent answer until a realization dawned on me: all my favorite older, Rom-Com movies have a protagonist with a career in journalism.

I grew up watching movies like How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days and 13 Going On 30, which include iconic female characters working as journalists. Andie Anderson from How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days is an advice columnist for her publication, but she wants her boss to take her more seriously so she can write about topics of her choosing. This is one of those movies that I feel like everyone either has seen or should watch; it was my favorite movie for so long, as I saw myself being portrayed.

In the movie 13 Going on 30, the main character, Jenna Rink, works for a magazine as a fashion editor (my dream job), where she makes a drastic change to the aesthetic and style of the magazine. Both of these movies showed me the fun and creative elements that make up journalism. Did they probably give me false expectations of how effortless it is to become a journalist in the real world? Definitely- but I don’t care because the joy I get from writing makes it all worth it. These movies are so inspiring for young people interested in journalism and I was always in awe of Andy and Jenna's perfect jobs.

I never realized how many early 2000s’ movies and shows had an element of journalism in them. Looking back on it, it makes sense why I am so passionate about journalism and writing. The iconic 2006 movie, The Devil Wears Prada, is also about fashion journalism, as Meryl Streep’s character is an editor-in-chief of a New York-based magazine, “Runway Magazine.” The culturally diverse and rich history of New York City truly influenced me to want to live there. But these romantic comedies influenced my desire to work in New York City as a fashion editor because of what seemed like the busy and vibrant lifestyles these women were living.

While The Devil Wears Prada is iconic for how sharp and stylish it is, the movie, Confessions of a Shopaholic, is notable for how chaotic and amusing it is. The main character, Rebecca Bloomwood, wants to work for a fashion magazine, but instead ends up working as an advice columnist for a financial magazine owned by the same company. Both of these films showed me that no matter what kind of journalism one does, if you love it enough, you will have the ability to make your writing impactful.

Who knew that in the early 2000s the most sought out career would be a journalist? I didn’t, at least at the time. These movies were my favorite growing up, so it’s no shock that I would eventually want to become a journalist. Although not everyone’s passions begin in their younger years, there are still a lot of people whose passions are shaped by something that had a heavy influence in their lives. These movies had a clear and profound impact in my life, so much so that I am actively studying to become a journalist. Noticing this underlying passion of mine took a while, as I hadn’t discovered it until I started writing for The Vault. I realized that writing is fun and not just something to do solely for academic purposes. I’ll always fall victim to the cheesy, rom-com, New York City trope, but that’s not a bad thing because loving these kinds of movies led me to find who I am and what makes me passionate.