“You know how everybody kind of has their thing? Well, for me, photography is that thing,” Cliff Maske, a third-year studying communication and the current editor-in-chief of Roundabout, said when asked to describe what led him to his position as this edition’s editor-in-chief.
Roundabout is NC State’s quarterly general-interest magazine. Maske said the magazine aspires to provide coverage to underrepresented groups on campus.
“We have been focusing on giving coverage to areas that feel a little bit underrepresented,” Maske said. “So a lot of the arts and those areas, focusing on things happening in the College of Textiles, all the kinds of things that don’t get as much coverage.”
In his role, Maske is responsible primarily for communicating with staff, generating content ideas, deciding on the magazine’s layout and ensuring all aspects of the publication are as good as they can be before they are printed. According to Maske, having a close relationship with his staff has made his role seamless, which is refreshing compared to last year.
According to Maske, it was the encouragement of a friend and his love for photography that kick-started his involvement with Student Media and Roundabout. Having learned his friend had been hired as design editor, Maske said he was interested in the idea of joining when he learned the position for photo editor had not yet been filled.
“I didn’t even know Student Media existed,” Maske said. “I saw that Technician was a thing and was like, ‘That comes from the sky, someone does that.’ I kind of jumped in head first into an editor position as a photo editor.”
Maske began his position as photo editor at the end of his first year and held that position until he was selected as editor-in-chief earlier this year. Once in his position as a photo editor, Maske said he quickly had to learn how to manage the responsibilities of the magazine’s other sections after both the design and content editor stepped away mid-year. While difficult, Maske notes how thankful he is for the experience, as it helped prepare him for his role now.
“The middle and end of my sophomore year, it was literally just me,” Maske said. “I kind of did this job last year. It felt like a lateral move.”
When asked what he does outside of his position within Roundabout, Maske joked, “Outside of my role, I do not exist,” but said he enjoys spending his spare time skateboarding or taking photos, something he’s loved doing since high school.
“I like to skate in my free time; I’m actually nursing a fractured ankle right now,” Maske said. “I like to shoot photos more now that I’m not a full-time photo editor. I’ve been doing creative work freelance since high school. I would shoot prom photos, graduation photos, all that stuff. I used to do product photos for some brands in Charlotte for a while. A lot of that was clothing-based.”
Maske said he feels honored to be in a position where he can provide content for the student body and urges anyone who can to check out Roundabout.
“It’s nice to be creating content in a time where people just want to be consuming something,” Maske said. “People are usually happy with the things we put out and putting out things, especially now, is super rewarding.”
For students interested in getting involved with Roundabout, email Cliff Maske at roundabout-editor@ncsu.edu.
