(Lawer is depicted on the left in the black glasses)

“Because I’m not good at communicating my feelings through words, I do it through art,” said Addison Lawler, a junior at Sun Valley High School in Aston, Pennsylvania.

Lawler uses art as a form of self-expression. One of her pieces, The Rabbit Hole of Mental Health, is a multipart work that reflects her emotional state throughout the year. However, despite her love for the creative process, Lawler doesn’t plan to pursue art professionally.

She believes the art world can be overly competitive and biased, making it difficult for young artists to feel accepted.

“In my ideal world, the art world would be more open and supportive,” she said.

Lawler sees similar bias present in journalism, but rather than discourage her, it has inspired her to enter the field. She wants to pursue journalism to investigate crime and tell stories that often go unheard—particularly those from underrepresented or lower-income communities.

She started an anonymous interview page at her school, which led to her being recommended for the KYW Newsradio program in Philadelphia, where she graduated and earned a certification in journalism. KYW is a CBS-owned radio station based in Philadelphia.

Still, Lawler said she’s not interested in commercial news. Instead, she wants to focus on issues that she feels major stations often overlook.

“Commercial radio stations aren’t focused on what’s happening in low-income areas,” she said. “But if these stories were brought to light, maybe we could make changes that improve people’s quality of life.”

Lawler believes journalism has the power to spark change—especially when reporting uncovers neglected issues or preventable problems in local communities.

“If an elderly Black woman was shot in a low-income neighborhood, commercial news wouldn’t care,” Lawler said. “They’re more focused on, ‘What rich white celebrity is coming into town?’”

She explained that by exposing the conditions that contribute to certain crimes—such as poor lighting at a bus stop—journalists could help push for real improvements.

“If the root of the problem is reported, it can be fixed,” she said.

Outside of journalism and art, Lawler finds strength in her friends and family, who have helped her through challenging times. They even supported her journey to attend the High School Journalism Institute at Indiana University this summer.