Aurel Samsom – Blogpost 4

From pressure to passion: what Munich taught me about the future of media

Before this course, I already knew that I was interested in the media world. I had done an internship in podcasting before, and I could already imagine myself working in a creative media environment later. Still, the visits in Munich made that interest much more concrete. They showed me different sides of journalism and media production, from community radio to journalism education and media innovation. More importantly, they made me realise that media is not only about numbers, performance and pressure. It is also about people, passion, experimentation and the freedom to create something meaningful.

The visit that stayed with me most unexpectedly was Radio LORA. When we entered, I was almost surprised by how old fashioned and dusty the organisation looked. It did not feel like the polished media environments I was used to from my own internship experience, where everything often revolves around growth, statistics, productivity and constant pressure. At first, I had to adjust my expectations. But exactly because of that contrast, LORA made a strong impression on me. The volunteers seemed to work from genuine passion. They did not appear to be driven by commercial success or audience numbers, but by the belief that their voices and topics mattered.

For me, this was almost a small shock. It forced me to look at media from another perspective. I am used to thinking about content in relation to reach, strategy and professional output. At LORA, I saw a form of media that was much more rooted in community and free expression. Academically, this made me think about the democratic role of media. Not every media organisation needs to be fast, commercial or perfectly branded to have value. Sometimes the value lies exactly in giving space to people who might not otherwise be heard. Personally, I found that inspiring. It reminded me that media can also be joyful, local and meaningful without the extreme pressure that is often connected to the industry.

At Media School Bayern, I recognised a similar creative drive, although in a younger and more professional educational setting. The students and young media makers seemed very motivated to create cool content, experiment with formats and develop themselves. Because many of them are at the beginning of their careers, I did feel a little more pressure there than at LORA. That made sense to me. Young people in media often want to prove themselves, build a portfolio and make work that feels relevant. Still, the atmosphere felt much freer than in many commercial media environments. It felt like a place where people were allowed to try things, make mistakes and learn by producing real media.

I could genuinely imagine myself walking around in an environment like that. People were using their creative brains, working on different projects and testing ideas in practice. The atmosphere reminded me, in a personal way, of the creative and free image I associate with organisations such as BNN in the Netherlands. Of course, Media School Bayern is connected to a different German media context, especially through the BLM, but the feeling of creative freedom was something I recognised and appreciated. This visit confirmed for me that I am drawn to media environments where people are enthusiastic, open and willing to build something together.

The Media Lab showed me yet another side of the media world. Here, the focus was less on traditional journalism or broadcasting and more on innovation, start ups and new ideas. I had never really had such a close look into that world before, and I found it very interesting. What I liked most was that we were immediately put to work. Instead of only listening to a presentation, we had to create an idea ourselves. In groups, we worked on a concept for a short podcast that would give young people useful information and inspiration in ten minutes.

This exercise brought me back to design thinking. In the first year of my studies I once spent a full week working through a design thinking process, but I had not thought about it much recently. At Media Lab, I was reminded how much I enjoy this way of working. Everyone started pitching ideas, and because many of them were good, it was actually difficult to choose one direction. In the end, our group developed an idea that felt a little like Pokémon Go for podcasts. The listener would walk through the city, unlock places and receive short stories, historical information and random facts about those locations. There would also be an interactive element, because users could connect with other people who were at the same place.

What I liked about this idea was that we were genuinely enthusiastic about it ourselves. I would actually listen to something like that. That made the exercise feel valuable. It showed me that creative methods such as design thinking can lead to ideas that are playful, useful and connected to how people move through everyday life. It also reminded me that I want to work in environments where this type of creative thinking is part of the process.

The group presentation about the press added a more academic layer to these experiences. My own part focused mainly on the press in Germany, and I also contributed to the comparison with the Dutch press. I enjoyed looking at similarities and differences, for example the presence of media companies such as RTL in both countries. The collaboration within our presentation group worked well. We checked in with each other, stayed involved in the whole presentation and tried to make the different parts connect. This helped me understand that comparing media systems is not only about listing facts, but about seeing how history, politics, ownership and culture shape journalism.

My biggest conclusion from this course is that I want to continue working in media even more than before. The visits confirmed that I am on the right path, but they also broadened my view of what that path could look like. Podcasting still interests me a lot, especially because I have already experienced that world through my internship. At the same time, I now see more clearly that the media field is much wider than one format or one industry role. I could see myself exploring other media internships as well, perhaps in editorial production, creative concept development, audio, digital storytelling or media innovation.

The course also gave me more appreciation for media environments where there is space for free expression, public support and less commercial pressure. I do not think pressure is always negative, because it can also create professionalism and ambition. But these visits showed me that creativity can grow differently when people are not constantly pushed by numbers. The future of journalism will of course be shaped by technology, platforms and new practices. But after this course, I believe even more that the future of media also depends on something very human: people who care enough to create, question, experiment and tell stories in new ways.