LEAVEY – Freshman Dan Saint-Pierre (COL ‘25) hadn’t dared to look up as he read his article aloud. He knew that this was his only chance to achieve his dream of becoming a student journalist at The Georgetown Voice, the paper he had read over his morning porridge every day as a child. And yet, he couldn’t help himself. As his reading of his article, which investigated the impact of Dungeons and Dragons players on the results of GUSA elections, came to a soaring conclusion, he took just one glance off of his paper, praying that he would see that one, just one, of the editors of the Voice had decided to change his life forever. But it was not to be.
Saint-Pierre’s reading came to an end, and the dramatic mood lighting that had engulfed the offices of the Voice was replaced by the fluorescent lights of the Leavey Center. Clapping, but with pained looks on their faces, the four lead editors of the Voice – Tommy Weston (COL ‘22, News), Monique Barre (COL ‘23, Sports), Alex Lansing (SFS ‘23, Leisure), and Blake Shelton (NHS ‘22, Opinion) – slowly turned around in their oversized red chairs to face Saint-Pierre, who was on the verge of tears.
“I like the way you write,” said Weston, “you’ve clearly got a real passion for student journalism. But it just needs work. And at this point, I can’t afford to take on someone as raw as you.” The other editors nodded in assent, with Shelton noting that Saint-Pierre’s delivery was “a bit pitchy.”
Saint-Pierre, barely holding it together, thanked the editors for their kindness and consideration before walking out of the offices, where a reporter from the Heckler immediately jumped him with a question about the most disappointing event in his life.
“Yeah, I really thought I did a good job, and I thought that I had gotten people on my side with that video about how I’ve overcome the tragedy of my dog dying when she was just 18 to come this far,” said Saint-Pierre. “But I guess the audience doesn’t matter, all that matters is the editors. And I just wasn’t good enough. But I promise you this: A setback like this will only inspire me to work harder. This will not be the last you hear of me.”
It was.