Guardian’s favorite | Graphic by Rose Taylor | The Wright State Guardian
If you are a Wright State University student who engages with the Guardian’s content you might wonder who the people behind the screens are. To answer this, a Google form was sent to our staff, asking the truly hard-hitting questions such as "what is your favorite TV show", and the results now are in..
Ethan Bistline: contributing writer
A new addition to the Wright State Guardian this semester, Bistline is a true lover of “Little Women”. The classic novel by Louisa May Alcott is his favorite book, and the 2019 film adaptation is his favorite movie.
For the question about his favorite Guardian memory, Bistline answered, “I haven’t been here too long, but one that really sticks out to me is when Brit was really passionate about wanting her stories chosen so she starred them.”
While the team member mentioned in this quote is not traditionally featured in this article, she and the others at the Guardian are pleased to have his positivity added to our team.
Bistline’s favorite show is the American version of “Shameless,”and his favorite song often changes, but is currently “Popular” by Ariana Grande from the hit movie “Wicked”.
Emily Mancuso: contributing writer
Contributing writer Emily Mancuso has just graduated with a double major, and the Wright State Guardian is so excited for her and all of the wonderful opportunities she has coming up.
Her favorite book is “A New Wilderness”by Diane Cook, and her favorite movie is Blink Twice. Her favorite trend right now is “die with a smile.” She enjoys listening to Conan Gray, specifically “Winner,” and she can often be found watching her favorite show, Arcane.
Mancuso’s favorite memories at the Guardian include recording the “Raider Report” podcast every week with staff videographer Isaac Warnecke.
Rachel Shigley: contributing writer
Rachel Shigley can often be found watching “Fleabag”. Her favorite Guardian memory is researching and writing her Dayton’s Not Dead article, which can be found here.
Shigley’s favorite song is “Champagne Supernova” by Oasis, and her favorite TikTok sound is “mama a girl behind you.” She is into a lot of classics, with her favorite book being “Catcher in the Rye,”by J. D. Salinger, and her favorite film being “Coraline,”a modern classic.
Bethany Althauser: photographer intern and contributing writer
Recent graduate Bethany Althauser is currently really into Gracie Abrams, listing her favorite songs as “I Love You, I’m Sorry,” and “That’s So True.” She also enjoys anything by Taylor Swift or Noah Kahan.
While she is undecided on her favorite movie, Althauser’s favorite TV show is the classic “Gilmore Girls,”and her favorite book is bestseller “Happy Place"by Emily Henry.
Her favorite memories with the Guardian include team bonding in the spring and celebrating the launch of Flight magazine. Althauser will be missed by the rest of the staff, as she moves onto her next adventure in life, and we are all grateful for her positivity throughout the years.
Samantha Dreier: social media intern
To prove how dedicated she is to the Guardian, Samantha Dreier filled out the Google form two days in a row, first on Dec. 3, and then again the following day, Dec. 4. Each time, she had slightly varying answers.
On her first submission, Dreier said her favorite song was “Vienna" by Billy Joel, but on her second, she said she had no idea. The same goes for TV shows, as she first named “Modern Family”and then later left this question blank.
Depending on the day, Dreier might claim her favorite movie to be either “Perks of Being a Wallflower" or “Wicked,” but her favorite book is decidedly “The Stranger"by Albert Camus. Similarly, she is very into the TikTok trend of “holding space.”
In her first semester at the Guardian, Dreier shared that her favorite memory was filming TikToks and making other online posts with Social Media Manager Hannah Ferrell, which is good since Dreier will be taking over the position this spring.
Vikram Sharma: web designer
New to the Guardian this semester, Sharma’s favorite book is Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter. He loves the TikTok sound “why are you running?” and the song “Chemical” by Post Malone.
Our web designer loves watching the shows “Friends,” “The Office” and “Modern Family,” and his favorite movie is science fiction classic “Interstellar”.
Sharma’s favorite memory with the Guardian is when he first started and the team all played a game together. He recalls that his team won, and that it was a fun day.
Rose Taylor: staff photographer
Our beloved Staff Photographer does not have a favorite movie or TV show, and also does not have TikTok installed, which impresses and baffles many of her coworkers.
Taylor is a great photographer, whose favorite memories include practicing this craft around campus, specifically in the autumn. Her favorite song is “Three-Thirty” by AJR, meaning she has fantastic taste, and her favorite book is “The Iron Widow”by Xiran Jay Zhao.
Isaac Warnecke: staff videographer
Guardian videographer Warnecke is currently interested in all of the TikTok discourse and edits surrounding trad wife influencer Nara Smith. His favorite songs are “Watching TV” by Magdalena Bay and “Agoura Hills” by Doja Cat.
“When mold was spreading across campus housing, our reporter Emily asked, ‘How do I ask students for an interview? Do I just knock on their doors and say 'hi, I am the mold inspector. Can I see your mold'?’” Warnecke said this was his favorite memory at the Guardian.
Warnecke does not read often, but his favorite movie is “Longlegs,”and his favorite show is “Fallout”.
Hannah Ferrell: social media manager
Ferrell, the Guardian’s long-time Social Media Manager, has officially graduated, and we could not be more proud of her as she moves onto her next chapter. Her favorite memories with the Guardian include playing a murder mystery game while at dinner with the team, or going to Young’s Dairy.
She will be missed at all the future events, but like the other graduates, will always hold a place at the Wright State Guardian.
She also has great taste, with her favorite books being Sarah J. Maas’s famous “A Court of Thorns and Roses" series, and favorite movie “Someone Great”. Ferrell’s favorite social media trend is the viral “Domingo” parody of “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter.
Ferrell currently has three favorite songs, those being “Weeping Willow” and “Sin So Sweet” by Warren Zeiders and “How Did It End?” by Taylor Swift. She has just as many TV shows that she is into right now, including “New Girl,”“A.P. Bio”and “Sons of Anarchy”.
Julia Kirk: Wright life reporter
Kirk loves watching “Criminal Minds"and scrolling on TikTok between her favorite sound “wait, they don’t love you like I love you,” and trend “women in men’s fields.”
Her favorite book is “The Firm"by John Grisham, and her favorite movie is “All the Bright Places”. She also loves listening to “The Beach” by The Neighbourhood.
“One Wednesday, almost the entire newsroom staff showed up to the office early to work before our meetings, and we just sat in the office talking and goofing around with each other. Being a part of the Guardian is more than just a job; everyone really cares about each other, and I loved the moments where we were friends first and coworkers second,” Kirk said.
Ashley Hainzer: news reporter
Hainzer carries the Guardian news team with her investigative skills and creativity, and is also heavily involved with Flight magazine. Her favorite Guardian memory is the Flight release party in 2023.
Her favorite TikTok sound is "Why can't I move my eyes, why can't I move my mouth… HATSUNE MIKU," and she loves reading anything by John Steinbeck, especially Of Mice and Men.
Hainzer’s favorite shows include “Soul Eater,” “Jersey Shore,” “Bad Girls Club" and “1000 lb Sisters,”and her two favorite songs are “Famous Last Words” by My Chemical Romance and “Pink Pony Club” by Chappell Roan. Her favorite movie is “10 Things I Hate About You”.
Monica Brutto: Editor-in-Chief
Editor-in-Chief Monica Brutto, called the Queen of the Guardian by some staff, loves all things Taylor Swift, especially the song “The Black Dog.” She loves the book “Happy Place" by Emily Henry, and her favorite social media trend is “very mindful, very demure.”
Brutto’s favorite TV show is “Psych”, and her favorite movie this year was “Wicked”.
“We do a lot of work independently, so it was really fun getting to work with everyone on election night and just being with everyone that night really helped. And we got to work with the radio station!” Brutto said in answer to her favorite Guardian memory.
