Starting Narratives

Category: Uncategorized

  • The Moment It Happened – My First Viral Video

    The Moment It Happened – My First Viral Video

    I still remember the exact moment it happened.
    It was the Fourth of July, and my family and I were driving to see fireworks when my phone suddenly exploded with notifications, thousands of them. For a second, I thought something was wrong. Then I realized what had happened: my most recent YouTube video had gone viral.

    It was the moment I had dreamed about for an entire year. I had poured hours into editing, scripting, and fine-tuning my videos, hoping one of them would finally break through. And that night, it did.

    But after the excitement settled, a question started to form in my head: why that video?

    Why do some videos go viral while others, sometimes even better ones, barely get noticed? It couldn’t just be about effort. There are thousands of small creators who spend hours perfecting their videos that never get traction, while some random five-second clip takes off overnight.

    That’s when I started digging deeper into how virality really works and what it says about us as viewers.

  • The Red Jacket – Finding My Story Through What I Wore

    The Red Jacket – Finding My Story Through What I Wore

    I still remember the first time I really thought about what clothes say. It was cultural heritage day at school, and everyone was encouraged to wear something that represented their background.

    I had no idea what to wear at first; jeans and a hoodie felt too plain, but dressing up in traditional clothing felt unfamiliar. Finally, my grandmother insisted I wear a silk jacket she had brought from China years ago. It was red with gold embroidery, slightly too big, and definitely stood out in the sea of T-shirts and sneakers.

    At first, I felt self-conscious walking down the hallway. But something changed during lunch. One of my friends asked me about the jacket, where it came from, and what the designs meant, and suddenly I found myself telling stories about my family, my grandparents, and the meaning behind the patterns.

    That jacket became a conversation, a bridge between cultures, and a reminder that clothing isn’t just fabric; it’s communication. It carries stories even when we don’t realize it.

  • The Ethics of AI Deepfakes in Political Campaigns

    The Ethics of AI Deepfakes in Political Campaigns

    I still remember scrolling one night and stumbling across a video of Donald Trump being shoved into a police car. The clip looked real, the shaky camera, the crowd shouting, even the police uniforms. My first thought was: Wait, when did this happen? It had millions of views across platforms, and everyone in the comments seemed to have an opinion.

    But after reading more closely, I realized something unsettling: the video was a deepfake. It never happened.

    That moment stuck with me, not because I believed it, but because of how many people did. Some comments treated it as breaking news. Others were outraged or celebrating. Either way, it shaped opinions before the truth even had a chance to catch up.

    AI-generated deepfakes have blurred the line between truth and fabrication, and in politics, that line matters more than ever. Campaigns thrive on trust, and misinformation can tip the scales of public perception in seconds. A convincing fake video can spread faster than any fact-check ever could, and unlike a simple rumor, it comes with “proof” that looks real.

    So where do we draw the line? Should AI tools be banned from campaign advertising altogether? Or is it up to platforms and us to recognize when something feels too cinematic to be true?

    What I learned from that night is simple but important: in a world where anyone can generate reality, skepticism isn’t cynicism; it’s responsibility.

  • From #SchoolTips to #Connection – How I Discovered the Power of Hashtags

    From #SchoolTips to #Connection – How I Discovered the Power of Hashtags

    I still remember the night I stayed up late researching something called SEO. At the time, I was trying to understand how to make my YouTube videos reach more people. The book I was reading about the YouTube algorithm mentioned something that caught my attention: hashtags.

    It said that accurate hashtags in the description were essential if I wanted my videos to be seen, shared, and maybe even go viral.

    So I experimented. I tried #Roblox, #HudsonJean, #Motivation, #SchoolTips, pretty much every tag I could think of that might connect to my content. Slowly, I started to see results. My videos began showing up on people’s recommended pages, and the views started climbing.

    It wasn’t magic; it was connection. Those tiny words after a # symbol were linking my work to a much larger conversation happening around the world.

    That’s when I realized hashtags aren’t just tools; they’re pathways.

  • The Night I Fell for a Deepfake – When Seeing Isn’t Believing

    The Night I Fell for a Deepfake – When Seeing Isn’t Believing

    I still remember scrolling one night and stumbling across a video of Donald Trump being shoved into a police car. It looked real, the flashing lights, the camera shaking, the crowd shouting his name. The video had millions of views, thousands of comments, and people arguing about what it meant.

    For a few seconds, I was genuinely confused. When did this happen? Why wasn’t it all over the news?

    Then I checked the comments more closely. Someone wrote, “Guys, this isn’t real, it’s a deepfake.” I paused the video, replayed it, and suddenly saw it, the odd blink, the strange mouth movement. The entire thing was AI-generated. None of it had ever happened.

    That moment stuck with me because it showed just how easy it is to mistake fiction for fact online. If I could believe it for even a moment, how many others shared it thinking it was real? How many formed opinions or arguments around something that never actually occurred?

    Deepfakes use artificial intelligence to create fake videos and audio that look and sound shockingly real. They’ve been used for entertainment and satire, but in politics, the consequences are far more serious.

  • Around the Fire – How My Grandmother Taught Me the Art of Listening

    Around the Fire – How My Grandmother Taught Me the Art of Listening

    I grew up listening to my grandmother’s stories, but what always amazed me wasn’t just what she told me; it was how she told it.

    She didn’t rush. She didn’t look down at a phone between sentences. She didn’t need a visual or a clickbait title to hold attention. She simply spoke.

    She told me about her childhood, growing up in a house with eight siblings. Every night, after a long day of chores, they would gather in the living room. There was no TV, no internet, just her mother’s voice. She said her mom had this way of weaving stories that felt almost magical. Some nights, the stories were about her grandparents’ journey from the old country. Other nights, they were about something funny that had happened in the village or a lesson about kindness, humility, or hard work.

    They would listen for hours.

    What stood out to me most was how much attention those moments required. Nobody interrupted. Nobody “checked out.” The only thing glowing in the room was the fire in the fireplace, not a screen.

    When my grandmother talked about those nights, she always smiled. “That was how we learned,” she said. “That was how we connected.”

    In a way, those storytelling sessions were their form of social media, long, slow, and deeply human. Everyone had time to speak. Everyone had time to listen. It wasn’t about speed or stimulation; it was about connection.

  • From Clicks to Causes – How Hashtags Unite the World

    From Clicks to Causes – How Hashtags Unite the World

    What started as a strategy for boosting my videos opened my eyes to how hashtags shape movements far beyond social media marketing.

    Think about #MeToo, #BlackLivesMatter, #FridaysForFuture, or even #StandWithUkraine. Each one began as a small phrase typed by someone hoping to spark attention and ended up uniting millions. Hashtags transform individual voices into collective action. They turn isolated stories into shared experiences.

    In a world overflowing with content, hashtags help people find community. They cut through noise, organize chaos, and give visibility to the unseen. They’ve redefined activism, allowing anyone with a phone and Wi-Fi to participate in global change.

    For me, it started with trying to get a few more clicks on a video. But what I learned is that hashtags aren’t just about algorithms; they’re about alignment. They connect people who might never meet in person but share the same hopes, frustrations, and goals.

    A single post might not change the world, but a hashtag can bring together the people who will.

  • Popo’s Kitchen – Where Stories Were Served with Every Meal

    Popo’s Kitchen – Where Stories Were Served with Every Meal

    Every time I visited my grandmother, my Popo, her kitchen felt like stepping into another world. The air was always warm, thick with the smell of garlic and soy sauce, and filled with stories. Popo had a story for every dish she made, and as a kid, I never thought much of it. I just thought she liked talking while she cooked.

    One of my favorite dishes was this simple steamed egg she’d make by whisking leftover egg whites with water. It looked humble, but it was unbelievably comforting, soft, savory, and warm. I once asked her where she learned to make it, and she told me that her own mother created it during a time when their family didn’t have much. Food was scarce, so they learned to stretch every ingredient to feed everyone. It wasn’t just a recipe; it was survival turned into tradition.

    That moment stayed with me. I realized that what we eat tells a story about who we are, where we come from, and what our families have endured. Every meal is a piece of history, an edible memory.

    And when I started paying attention, I realized this truth isn’t unique to my family. It’s everywhere. Around the world, food carries identity, culture, and emotion.

  • The Edible Archive – How Sushi, Tacos, and Pasta Tell the Past

    The Edible Archive – How Sushi, Tacos, and Pasta Tell the Past

    The more I learned about different cuisines, the more I saw how each one holds the same thread of memory, resourcefulness, and pride.

    Take sushi, for example. Today, it’s a global phenomenon, a symbol of Japanese precision and artistry, but its roots stretch far beyond Tokyo’s high-end sushi bars. I remember learning in AP World that the earliest version of sushi actually began in Southeast Asia, where people preserved fish in fermented rice to keep it fresh longer. When the method reached Japan centuries ago, it evolved into narezushi, and eventually into nigiri, the fast, fresh version we know today. What started as a method of survival turned into an art form, reflecting Japan’s deep respect for simplicity and balance.

    Or think about tacos. Long before they became the handheld comfort food loved around the world, they were a daily staple for Indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica. The word “taco” likely comes from the Nahuatl word tlahco, meaning “in the middle,” referring to how fillings were placed inside tortillas. Later, miners in 18th-century Mexico wrapped explosives in paper “tacos” to break apart rock, eventually lending their nickname to the food. Tacos tell a story of adaptation, blending Indigenous, colonial, and working-class roots into something proudly Mexican.

    Then there’s pasta, a dish that feels distinctly Italian, but its story stretches across continents. While many people credit Marco Polo with bringing pasta from China, the truth is more complicated. Ancient Etruscans in Italy were already making pasta-like foods thousands of years ago, and Arab traders later brought dried noodles to Sicily. Over time, pasta became Italy’s great equalizer, affordable, adaptable, and endlessly creative. Every region gave it a different shape and sauce, and together those variations became the language of Italian identity.

    Behind every beloved dish is the same story told in different ways: resourcefulness, migration, and connection.

  • Between Faith and Fact-Checking – How Generations Learn to Trust Media

    Between Faith and Fact-Checking – How Generations Learn to Trust Media

    Studies have shown that younger generations tend to be more skeptical of media than older ones. I remember at a journalism and media conference I attended, I learned that Gen Z and Millennials are far more likely to fact-check or cross-reference something they see on social media.

    It’s not that we don’t trust information; it’s that we trust patterns of credibility. A blue checkmark, multiple sources, or an official link mean more to us than a single video or headline.

    At the same time, this constant skepticism can be exhausting. With AI-generated videos and hyper-realistic images circulating daily, we’re living in a time where seeing is no longer believing. Technology has made it easier than ever to manipulate reality and harder than ever to agree on what’s real.

    But maybe that’s what defines the generational difference: adaptability. Older generations learned to trust the systems that informed them, while younger generations are learning to question the systems that shape them. Both perspectives have value. One teaches faith in structure; the other teaches caution in chaos.

    That night with my parents ended with all of us laughing, rewatching the hoverboard video while debating whether AI will ever stop surprising us. But deep down, I knew what made that moment special; it wasn’t about the video at all. It was about how every generation sees the world through a different lens, shaped by the media that raised them.

    And in today’s digital age, those lenses are changing faster than ever.