Samantha Freeman

Hi There,

I am a graduate student at Northwestern's Medill in Chicago.

I recently graduated from DePaul University, where I was editor-in-chief of my university’s student-run magazine 14 East, named the national website of the year by the College Media Association. I pride myself on reporting that’s transparent and reveals the importance of accountability from our leaders. I’m eager to join a newsroom where I can contribute to community-oriented reporting and publish informative and influential stories.

Featured Articles

14 East •

Trump Administration Terminates DePaul Student’s Legal Status – Fourteen East

A DePaul student was told by the university last week that his F-1 status that allows him to study in the United States was terminated, and he’s suing the Trump administration to get it back. A 26-year-old graduate student studying business analytics at DePaul was expected to graduate in June. He came to the United States in September 2023 to pursue his master’s degree, after he graduated with a Bachelor of Technology degree from an Indian university in 2019. To avoid increasing this student’s r...
14 East •

The Man Behind the Guitar

It’s 3:30 p.m. on a Saturday in Chicago, and I’m perched on an antique taupe couch surrounded by guitars, piles of records, violins, a black and red piano, and an elaborate stereo system. The space looks as if it hasn’t been touched since the 1970s – probably because it hasn’t.

Guitar repairist Geoff Benge resides in this preserved 1970s apartment. The floor is patterned with turquoise, royal blue and orange circles, and the walls are paneled white and brown. Around the corner there is a glass table with wooden chairs adjacent to a narrow kitchen with overhead cabinets.
14 East •

‘This is our Vietnam’

The 2024 Democratic National Convention came to a close last week after delegates cast their votes, the Obamas took the mic and Kamala Harris officially accepted the presidential nomination. During those four days, thousands of protesters gathered at Union Park with handmade signs and banners calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and a withdrawal of U.S. military aid to Israel. “This is our Vietnam,” said one of the speakers, who kicked off the final march before Harris took the stage at th...
14 East •

How Moms for Liberty Has Changed School Boards and Book Bans

Last year in Yorkville, Illinois, a parent wrote a complaint about one of the books in the school curriculum: Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, which focuses on two Black men who’ve been wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death by the U.S. incarceration system. After one parental complaint, the Yorkville Community District 115 School Board removed the book from the curriculum, claiming that it was “too controversial.”

What happened in Yorkville is no longer uncommon.