This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Mizzou chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

How Female Journalists In Movies Inspired Me.

As a young girl growing up in the early to mid 2000s, a rom-com is the top “movie” genre of choice. Crushes come and go, picking petals is old news and Valentine’s Day is now for the girls. The one thing that never wears out, though, is a good romance movie.

You start with, of course, the ‘80s classics, “When Harry Met Sally,” “Sixteen Candles,” “The Princess Bride,”and the list goes on. Then you began to feel the cultural shift going into the ‘90s and 2000s.

This is where the “it-girl career” was born and the well-loved female journalist archetype comes in.

Who is She?

The question that we as teenage girls are constantly asking ourselves. Our bodies are going through the semi-traumatic changes of becoming a woman, big, beautiful emotions lead our day-to-day life and relationships are all over the place.

For myself, I became totally consumed in romance books, movies and shows. Back then, I fell in love with the idea of what “meet-cute” I would have when I got older. If one day I would have a boy writing me 365 letters, if he would stand outside my bedroom window with a boombox or even learn French for me.

Little did I know back then that I would be simultaneously falling in love with the idea that I, too, will one day work in an office, at a desk of my own, writing for a glamorous magazine or asking hard-hitting questions to powerful leaders. But above all, be a strong-willed female journalist.

What Set Them Apart

The representation overall of women journalists was something inspiring. One in particular who was ahead of the wave was no other than Carrie Bradshaw. Despite the many ups and downs in her character’s story, she became the instant blueprint for many personalities following her.

It was the career-driven mentality of these women that gave hope through screens. They had degrees, passion and successful careers, while maintaining a fun, flirty side. This became the goal for many young women, including myself. To be a thoughtful writer, challenge gender roles, cause a little trouble and at the end of the day do it for themselves.

They had personal stories, challenges and desires, completely written for their character development. Rom-coms became centered around women and their careers.

A Chance to Romanticize

Despite these movies having brought a lot of inspiration to many young female journalists for their on-screen representation, they also come with a lot of inaccuracies. In “How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days,” Kate Hudson’s character is given an entire month to finish her story. In comparison to the quick turnarounds and handling multiple stories at a time, this career brings. Zoey Deutch’s “Set it Up” doesn’t even skim the surface of how completely inappropriate it would be to puppeteer your boss in the name of love. As for Anne Hathaway’s “ The Devil Wears Prada,” she wouldn’t have been cut from the start.

That’s what makes the movies so successful: to idealize a career that must have taken years to achieve. The takeaway should be the amount of determination, hard work and hunger it took for a woman to sit there.

That is what I want to be known for; that’s what I want to continue to romanticize.