4 minute read
Kick-Ass Women that Inspire Me
By Allyson Konz, Editor in Chief
A KICK-ASS WOMEN T UW A D I M SON LEADING THE WAY IN CAMPUS JOURN A L I SM WOMEN THAT INSPIRE ME (Chelsea Hylton & Molly Kehoe)
By Allyson Konz, Editor in Chief
A KICK-ASS WOMEN T UW M A D I SON LEADING THE WAY IN WOMEN THAT INSPIRE ME (Chelsea Hylton & Molly Kehoe)
Too often the work of student journalism is brushed aside. For our March issue, I wanted to interview two women that inspire me and the work I produce. I (virtually) sat down with Chelsea Hylton and Molly Kehoe to ask them what the role of campus journalism and their respective publications mean to them. Chelsea Hylton (she/her) is the co-editor in chief of the Black Voice and a communications intern for the UW-Madison’s Communications Department. She is also a senior studying journalism, spanish and gender and women’s studies. Molly Kehoe (she/ her) is the editor in chief of Bell Magazine and the Madison hub coordinator for the Sunrise Movement. She is a junior studying political science, journalism and history. KICK-ASS WOMEN THAT “Campus journalism gives a voice to students. No matter who you are, you INSPIRE ME (Chelsea Hylton & Molly Kehoe) can come forward and tell your story, talk about an issue that matters to you, and provide a perspective that is left out of traditional journalism.”
MM: What is the mission of your publication and what does it mean to you? Chelsea Hylton: The Black Voice was founded after the ‘69 student protests at UW-Madison and was revived in 2016. Since the beginning, the Black Voice has been a means of empowering and uplifting the voices of Black and marginalized voices on campus. Our role is to create content that is both representative of the organization and members of our community, whether in reporting campus news or events. While our staff may be small in numbers, it is just as strong in force and ability as other campus publications. Molly Kehoe: Bell was founded to focus on women’s issues and topics of intersectionality on campus. Over time, we have shifted our mission to be more inclusive of our gender focus, recognizing that women aren’t the most marginalized gender on campus. We have worked to center the trans and nonbinary communities as much as possible, but the message of intersectionality has persisted since the beginning. We are constantly growing and finding more ways to really live up to our mission, and it’s a really beautiful thing to witness.
MM: What do you think the role of campus journalism is?
CH: The role of Black journalism and the work that Black journalists do is critical and pertinent. It’s a powerful and engaging way for students on campus to see the hard work that we put into our craft, making the work we do at the Black Voice all the more important. Campus journalism also gives students the ability to get their foot in the door while still producing great content. MK: Campus journalism gives a voice to students. No matter who you are, you can come forward and tell your story, talk about an issue that matters to you, and provide a perspective that is left out of traditional journalism.
MM: What’s your favorite article that you’ve ever written and why? CH: My favorite article I have written has to be “Chancellor Blank on meeting frequently with students: “That isn’t my job.” It was a huge milestone for three editors from the Black Voice, including myself, to sit down with the chancellor and not have to put up with scripted answers. It was especially empowering to write our story and share with BIPOC students what the chancellor really had to say. After we published the piece, faculty members reached out to us and congratulated us for our hard work which was rewarding to know our work was being recognized. MK: “Abolish UW–Madison PHA & IFC” was by far my favorite piece. I co-wrote it with our managing editor and a staff writer, both of whom are close friends of mine. We put in so much work to that piece and the response was absolutely amazing. It was nerve wracking to write about something that is so controversial, especially since we all were complicit members of PHA sororities at one point. But, we all knew how important the message was. While the PHA & IFC members were upset about it, it made us realize how glad we are to have published it. Clearly the conversation needed to be brought up and it hadn’t been in a meaningful way.
MM: What do you hope to accomplish with your publication before graduating? CH: My main goal is continuing to amplify the presence of the Black Voice on campus while also supporting BIPOC and marginalized students. We want the Black Voice to be a platform that serves them, through and through. MK: Bell started in the fall of 2018, so we have really been growing and changing the whole time I’ve been with the magazine. Since I started as editor in-chief, we have increased our story publication flow and membership from around 10 to 15 dedicated members to closer to 2530. We have never done a print issue, but last spring it got postponed because of COVID-19, so I would love to do that next fall. I would also love to create more partnerships with orgs on campus and do some collaborative projects that may supersede journalism and have a broader impact. ■
