Broadcast media used to be the way that people could obtain information and formulate opinions on what they support or what sparks an interest. However a lot of people nowadays get their info from social media like X, Instagram, and TikTok. Broadcast media has always been something alumni Alden Diaz enjoys doing because it’s his passion and allows him to discuss his interests like Star Wars. After hard work, Diaz has made his own radio station and is thriving in a career that might not exist in the future.
Graduating with the 2014 class, Diaz says that Pembroke Pines Charter High School (PPCHS) helped emboldening and enabling his nonsense. PPCHS allowed Diaz to express himself as a young adult because the teachers and administrators talked to him like one.
“Most of them spoke to me like I was a young adult,” Diaz said, “They gave me the opportunity to write jokes, feel the live show experience, and push the school boundaries a bit.”
On the radio, Diaz shows what he learned from PPCHS and implements his easy going personality into his radio today.
Diaz argues that broadcast media is declining due to the overuse of the word “content,” which diminishes appreciation for the art and effort behind broadcasting. He highlights how people focus on the content material rather than the time and dedication it took to create it.
“The last seven years have been a prolonged swan dive into ‘content’ mentality,” Diaz explains, “So the challenge… is fighting for authenticity.”
What sparks the interest of Diaz is Star Wars, saying that “It’s the way I view the world. Star Wars was how I learned what storytellers are capable of.”
What amazed him is that people were putting ideas into their work, and constantly wondered how people could think like this and create something so special that it became a way of life to people like Diaz.
To Diaz, Star Wars is the greatest story ever told and he realized this as a kid even if he couldn’t articulate it. At the end of the day, Star Wars is what he is passionate about, loves to discuss, and will continue to be his lifelong career.
With already battling to keep this art alive, Diaz has also faced obstacles in his personal life dealing with depression at a young age.
“I started dealing with it when I was 15, but I didn’t know how to really verbalize the experience until after high school,” for Diaz, it’s hard to focus on anything work-related because of his depression: “It doesn’t go away. You just learn to manage it .”
With all the struggles like depression and being part of a career that is dying by each passing day, Diaz does what he loves to do and that’s all that matters. When it comes to speaking about Star Wars and sharing his messages about the series to the world, Diaz says he continues because it is what sparks his interest, and recommends everyone else should do the same.
While many decide on a career that keeps them financially stable, the work Diaz does allows him to express his interest and meet amazing individuals.
Working in broadcast media gives him the opportunity to let his creativity shine, and Diaz has been able to gain a new perspective of life: “I’ve made some fun things, and I’ve been able to experience things in a whole new way.”
