Odyssey is one of the fastest-growing media proprieties in the country, with a booming 20 million monthly users. These statistics should come to no surprise, any college student’s Facebook newsfeed is sure to contain at least one article that is being shared amongst friends or with the world. This is particularly true during the beginning of the week when Odyssey's articles are published. This may have no tie to how it’s been shown that articles that are shared earlier in the week are more likely to get views. However, if it does, then that would just be one of many examples of Odyssey’s thoughtful engagement with its audience to maximize the potential connections that it can make across college campuses and the United States. Alternately, this showcases Odyssey’s analytic side, a fulfillment of its business model which promotes high levels of content exposure through required shares from writers who are already in a state of competition to have the most shared article on campus for the week’s $20. However, of course these things will occur. Odyssey is a business that relies on shares in order to thrive since 93 percent of its readers arrive through the site via social media. It’s a smart company and, as made evident by their insane monthly readership, what they’re doing is working stupendously well for this new company. So, why does it get such a bad rep?
Even while filling out my own application to become a writer for Odyssey, I had doubts on whether this was a publication that I wanted to join at all. I had fallen into too many semi-legible click bait article rabbit holes, which typically start with harmless and mildly entertaining articles describing finals week through "The Office" GIFS (even though exams are a month away) and somehow end up at “Why I Don’t Care About The Terrorist Attacks,” all printed under Odyssey's name, to really believe that this platform was engaging students in a productive way. I had trouble agreeing with CEO Evan Burns in his statement that Odyssey has “found new ways to drive meaningful conversations around content, and our growth proves that millennials are hungry for high-quality content that brings more perspectives and enables conversations and interactions.” How do open letters to your dog increase perspective?
However, I joined because I knew that all of those things were possible. Within the Carnegie Mellon staff, I’ve seen the thought-provoking work that I thought was missing from the platform as a whole. I've even been discouraged from writing the “fluffy” articles that I thought were characteristic of Odyssey, but this doesn’t mean that I haven’t written absolute trash under the blanket of most of my work being within the “Humor” section. This trash, however, was encouraged to become more than just jabs at Ted Cruz’s permanently uncomfortable state of being. I was asked by editors on campus how I could make my work more purposeful, with a reflection on why my satirical interpretations on already laughable, but nonetheless threatening, candidates mattered. I’m constantly being encouraged to write the best articles that I can provide, but I’m also given the freedom to exert myself as is most convenient to me at that time. I’ve stayed up until 6:00 a.m. writing about the exploitation of black stereotypes in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, prompted by the controversial imagery in Beyonce’s "Formation" video. During a very busy week, I gave in and wrote a list on the best Vice videos in order to make sure that I didn’t get a “strike” for not submitting an article that week. During a really hard week on CMU’s campus after the loss of two students, there was ample support from our editors. Of course, I always get annoyed when one of my titles is changed from something personal to be more "click-worthy," but the push and freedom that I've received from Odyssey staff has made the experience full of personal and professional growth.
What I’ve really learned from this is that Odyssey is absolutely what you make of it. As Odyssey is such an open interface for writers to produce work, the level of quality is up to the writer and the encouragement and goals of the staff behind him or her. Given the quality of the articles that are advertised on Odyssey’s homepage, I would argue that this company promotes thoughtful work on issues of high importance. However, high-quality reflection or critiques on any issue or experience that are written on a weekly basis to meet the Sunday deadline can be an ambitious goal to have on a busy college campus. It's within the right of every reader to request consistent good content from one of the websites that floods their newsfeeds the most. If you really believe that you can produce that thoughtful work at a fast pace, then consider writing for Odyssey.
