Disclaimer! I write a lot. Now usually using the word "disclaimer" implies something negative is forthcoming. However, I assure you-----as the reader-----will enjoy my longer than usual blog posts, as I try to make it as honest, entertaining, and refreshing as possible. I do not write a lot to add bluff and meaningless weight to the points I am trying to make, I write a lot because I genuinely enjoy writing and using words and ideas to express myself. Something else I genuinely enjoy is history, but before diving into that more, I will talk about myself and my journey from where I started to now-----which is being an intern at the Florida Historical Society.
My name is Sebastian Garcia, and I was born and raised in Miami, Florida. Both of my parents are from Barranquilla, Colombia (shoutout), and I am proud to have grown up and be a part of the Colombian (and broader Hispanic) culture and heritage. I also have a significant sports background-----specifically in basketball-----and I attribute a lot of my intensity, discipline, and hopeful passion (hopeful in terms of finding that passion I had for the sport, in other areas of life because that is what motivates me to be better everyday) to the sport and my experiences with it. Little did I know at the time when my interest of the sport started, that I would find that same fierce passion for the subject of history. Ever since middle school, I have always enjoyed my history classes more than any other classes I was taking. I can vividly paint the picture of historical events that I was learning at the time (still do). I remember taking AP US history in high school and being intensely engaged in each class, craving to learn and know more about the subject. This novel understanding of history only grew stronger and more profound as I progressed through middle and high school, and of course through college. I started my collegiate career at the University of Central Florida in summer of 2019 (which seems like a forever ago because of COVID), and I entered with a Biomedical Sciences major. The history major came along in the spring of 2020, making me a double major student throughout most of my time in college. The passion I had with history back in middle and high school was significantly amplified, as every class and professor I took at UCF just further galvanized me into wanting to study history as my career and the underrated importance of it. So I truly appreciate every single one of them (if I mention every single one of them, this blog would turn into a short book. Hopefully I have the opportunity to do so sometime in the future because I really do appreciate not only them, but even the people from when this passion started way back in middle school to now).
I was fortunate enough to have several encounters with Dr. Ben Brotemarkle, the executive director of the Florida Historical Society (FHS) and the producer and host of the Florida Frontiers: The Weekly Radio Magazine show, throughout the previous semester (spring 2022). I encountered him first via one of my classes, as I was (still am) in a documentary class regarding the history of Parramore neighborhood in Orlando, which was something Dr. Brotemarkle's dissertation heavily researched and talked about. Then I encountered him in a UCF history sponsored event which he was the moderator, and that was when I formally/informally approached him about any possible internship opportunities with FHS. I told him how I appreciate the work he does with history and media (in the form of radio and podcast), as I find that more important than ever before in this day and age, and how I would love to be a part of it (the main reason why I took the documentary class in the first place, little did I know he was indirectly part of it). He was so nice to me and gave me his business card and from there I was in contact with Holly Baker, who is the assistant producer of the podcast and my official internship supervisor (for simpler terms, from now I will be referring to the Florida Frontiers show as a podcast). I was in constant communication with her throughout the semester via email, which actually made the process of getting the official internship "class" (HIS 4944) much easier (which ended up happening towards the end of April).
So, what is my internship project actually about? Well, as told to me by Holly, I am tasked in creating a podcast for the Florida Frontiers radio show (multiple podcast segments within one show) about anything relating to Florida history. Throughout this process, not only will I learn the art of storytelling through a historical lens, but also the research and editing that goes into making of that art. This week on Tuesday, Holly emailed me "What story would you like to tell about Florida history in a 5-7 minute long Florida Frontiers radio segment? Who would you like to interview? You should try to find someone who is well versed on the topic, perhaps someone who has written a book, or someone who has taught a class about it." That is my current task, and we will touch base on it next week. The story I am currently thinking of to produce a short podcast/radio segment on is about the history of migration in Florida, specifically how migration from the 19th and 20th centuries have turned some of the major cities in Florida to be national-----and some cases international-----powerhouses. This is where my head is at currently, but my next week (next blog) there will be more firm position on this task, as I will talk about this with Holly and seeing who I can potentially interview for this throughout next week.
The skills I hope to gain from this internship is how to properly and appropriately tell a history. In today's world it can be so easy to perpetuate historical inaccuracies through the internet, media, and social media. I find this extremely alarming as studying the past helps us to better understand the world we live in, and to manipulate that past can have detrimental effects to our society today and for future generations living in it. Also, not only do I hope to gain this skill, but using this skill in a medium I have never done so before-----which is radio/podcasting (a form of media). Circa 2022, podcasts are one of the most powerful mediums in which people receive content, whether that is historical, news, sports, etc. Podcasts, radio, documentaries, all have the power to reach mass audiences without sacrificing the historical rigor and integrity of the subject, if done right. There are only a few out there, Florida Frontiers being one of them, which is why I am beyond excited and grateful to have this internship and the opportunity to develop and grow my historical skills and career with it.
Was that so bad? A bit long, and trust me could have been longer, but there gets to a point where my writing suffers because of the amount of writing, a skill I am still desperately learning because being concise is important. This blog might have some personal confessions here and there...oh well! It is a blog for a reason, and not an academic paper!
Thanks for reading!
SG