Here at the University, a lot of us are so focused on our career paths that we never get a chance to explore any other major. I thought today that I would give you a glimpse into the world of print-editorial journalism that you can’t get from just reading the newspaper.

Now I personally aspire to be a magazine journalist. I love the feature-y writing style, the in-depth articles and the gorgeous pictures. I am one of those rare individuals who reads a magazine cover to cover and analyzes the advertisements that I see. Some people, including many journalism students and professors, don’t really think much of magazine writing. Or, they don’t think much of the women’s magazines that I wish to write for. But I just want to clarify one thing: Women’s magazines are not full of inane gossip. They are magazines full of human interest stories and tips for improving the quality of life.

Recently, one of my professors, Walt Harrington, a former Washington Post reporter, told us that we need to know what we want out of our journalism careers. Obviously many journalists want to change the world; they want to fight corruption and tyranny. They want to help people. Which got me to thinking about what I want to do. Like many of my fellow journalists, I want to help people. Then I began to feel conflicted. Should I really be selfish and endeavor to be a writer for Allure, the beauty magazine? Was I supposed to want to be an investigative reporter instead?

Yet, when I really began to think about it, I realized that the type of magazines I want to write for help people, too. Maybe not in such an obvious way, such as in an investigative piece uncovering corruption within the government, but in a way that would affect a lot of people. This month’s issue of Allure had an in-depth article about improving sleep habits. If one person read this article and followed the advice, his whole life could change for the better. And that is what I want to do. Even if I can’t change someone’s life in a dramatic way, I can still improve it.

That’s why magazines like US Weekly and OK! are not good magazines. They are filled with little more than celebrity news, and no one is better off reading them. Now, I do understand that they can be a fun distraction every once in a while, but I wish more people would read magazines with articles of substance.

People magazine is great if you still need celebrity gossip but also want to read something good. Want style and substance? Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue are great choices with extremely evocative pictures. Esquire and Maxim are great men’s magazines, and I really enjoy reading them, even as a female. Who doesn’t appreciate a rapier wit? And you’d be surprised, but Playboy has fantastically well-written articles. Don’t be put off by the naked women, ladies. And gentlemen, try to get past the naked women every once in a while.

But beware of Cosmopolitan. I’m sorry, but it is not my Bible, nor should it be any woman’s. Do you really want to read “47 ways to rev his engine” or “What you can do to make your man happier”? Have some self-respect. Cosmo gives the women’s magazine category a bad rep.

Give other magazines a chance, and you might find yourself a little more enlightened and your life a little better for it. Take it from me, as a journalism major. I know what I’m talking about.

Colleen Loggins is a junior in Communications who loves to read random Playboys and Maxims she finds lying about a guy’s house.