Hello!
You may have seen my byline before attached to stories about Carlynton School District and Crafton Borough. I will be contributing a lot more stories this summer as an intern with the Gazette 2.0 through the Point Park University Center For Media Innovation's Pittsburgh Media Partnership. Editor/Publisher Sonja Reis invited me to apply, so here I am.
I graduated from Carlynton High School in 2020, and I currently live in Carnegie with my family. I will graduate from Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) in 2024 with a degree in history and political science.
I got my start in journalism working for the university newspaper called The Penn back in March of 2022. I figured it would be an easy way to earn money and to practice my writing.
Journalism was not a career choice I thought about getting into when I decided to go to college, but after writing those first few stories, I realized that I enjoy hearing about people’s stories and writing about them. Through those experiences, I began working at Gazette 2.0 and became the News Section Editor for The Penn.
I’m also interested in a career in politics and am the president of the IUP College Democrats and will be interning for State Rep. Anita Kulik (D-45) this summer.
Journalism pairs well with politics though.
Political journalism is a field I can work in and there is overlap between journalism and politics since a lot of political work is writing, strategic communications, and public relations.
I look forward to writing for the Gazette 2.0 and learning more about journalism this summer!
Regards,
Sam Bigham,
Carnegie
Editor's note: We've worked with Sam Bigham over the past year and just knew he'd be a great fit for our brand of community journalism. We're hoping to direct his interests to the field of political journalism. If you happen to see Bigham aound town, at a meeting or out taking pictures, please introduce yourself to him.
Also, a special shout out to Point Park University Center for Media Innovation's Founding Director Andrew Conte and Pittsburgh Media Partnership Director Frank Garland (both former journalists working to better the future of news for you and the rest of the country). We wouldn't be able to host a summer intern without their programming and financial support.