Khalifeh.

DEARBORN — Hassan Khalifeh, 23, a Wayne State University student majoring in broadcast journalism, recently joined the staff of The Arab American News as an intern for the summer.

Khalifeh, who grew up in both Lebanon and Michigan, now lives in Canton. In addition to his broadcast journalism major, he is minoring in business management. 

He said he developed a passion for telling stories through visuals, which is why he is pursuing a career in broadcast journalism.

“I love telling a story through a visual medium,” Khalifeh said. “It was also activism that made me interested in journalism. I worked on a documentary that taught me the trade of the field. I love to do the tough work, research, making phone calls and going after people.”

As he became more familiar with the field, he also discovered that he enjoyed investigative journalism. 

“For me investigative journalism is one of the most important roles that journalists can fulfill,” he said. 

Khalifeh originally crossed paths with the newspaper earlier this year when he was assigned to do a research paper on how a newspaper functions. Khalifeh did his study on The Arab American News and became familiar with the staff.

“I figured out how papers really work and what it takes to actually put a paper together,” Khalifeh said. 

He said he wants to write about social issues, human rights issues and conditions of labor workers overseas during his internship.

“I love the atmosphere here,” Khalifeh said. “It’s relaxed, but there’s accountability that’s expected from the reporters. I don’t ever feel like this is a job that I have to do; it’s more of a mission that I’m on to find information and give it back to the public.”

Khalifeh will be graduating from Wayne State this summer. His next goal will be to find a full time job after he obtains his bachelor’s degree.