Huge congratulations to CSU Fullerton student, Raniel Santos, on being awarded the inaugural Sam Rubin Memorial Scholarship.
Like our dear Sam Rubin, Raniel got his start in print entertainment journalism.
“I’ve always been fascinated by film and television, especially music. There’s a saying: I grew up on television,” he explained to Melvin Robert on KTLA 5 Morning News. “I’ve always loved writing, and English was always my favorite subject in school, from kindergarten through 12th grade.”
During his first year in high school, he learned that he had the ability to hear news.
“I [thought] “Hey, this is something I’m good at, and this is something I really like to do.” So, I better deal with it with full force when I declare my major.”
Raniel writes for the Daily Titan, Fullerton’s student newspaper, and served last semester as lifestyle editor, his second time in that position. In addition to writing, he is also on the air! He has his own on-campus radio show called “Indie Encounters.”
“I play indie, alternative and pop music. I actually miss it now,” he revealed while sitting on the KTLA set.
The fourth-year university student explained that receiving the scholarship means more than he can express.
“My family has been going through financial problems recently. It’s something we never had to worry about before. We’re not rich, but we were fine for a while, but we were having some problems,” he explained. “So I’m trying hard to try and contribute to helping us with that, but I’m juggling a lot, so it’s been really difficult.”
The opportunity to apply for KTLA Channel 5’s Legendary Entertainment Broadcaster Honor Scholarship came at the right time, Ranell said.
After he graduates, he hopes to land niche publications like Variety, Pitchfork, Hollywood Reporter, or Stereogum. He wants to work for an outlet where he can “focus on writing about music, film and television” in the form of “reviews, analysis or interviews”.
The Sam Rubin Memorial Scholarship pays tribute to this legacy of nurturing and promoting young talent.