When I say high school journalism class to you, what’s the first thing that comes to your mind?
This is bad, but long-sleeved T-shirts. I think I still have mine. But I do recall that as a member of the newspaper – I feel dumb here, but I don’t think I actually had a journalism class to take back in 1999-2000 – I had to wear my shirt and try to sell the product when it was printed. I must be programmed to remember the bad times, because those days were my least favorite, and they stick out to me for some reason. I did not like trying to milk my friends out of money. Not if I didn’t get to keep it, that is!
Describe the best journalism trip you ever took in high school.
I think the Newsstreak’s ambition must have changed since I was there, because I don’t remember taking many, if any, trips to work on a story – and its not because I was lazy! But if a trip around classrooms in the school count, one that stands out to me is when I came up with a Dave Letterman-style Top 10 list (only with 25 things) of unknown teacher accomplishments, but before it could go to print, I had to present it to the various subjects for approval. I felt a little silly, but most of them played along. I definitely remember Joe Carico’s being, “He once bowled a 300. With his bald head.”
What was the best story you ever wrote in journalism and why?
I don’t know why, but I was so excited to do an advance story of our graduation speaker, Adam Torman, who was my history teacher my freshman year. At this point, he had gone off to California, so to track him down I had to berate Tim Meyers until I finally got an e-mail for him. I e-mailed him, and hoped he remembered me, and he did. I was happy doing the story and the way it turned out because I actually had real questions and a vision for what I wanted it to be like. Even though 99.9 percent of seniors probably don’t care, it was also breaking news to them about who was speaking at graduation. I think I’m more proud of the fact I pulled the story off rather than how it turned out, but those things also go hand in hand sometimes.
Tell me about a friend you made in journalism that you might not have made otherwise and how do you still keep in touch?
He’s a celebrity now, but Josh Sundquist was a year (I think) behind me and on staff at the Newsstreak. I would love to take some credit for what he has accomplished. We were certainly friends back then because of Newsstreak – we were in different classes and did not know each other through sports. Honestly, when you’re high school age, you may not have the ability to see beyond the outside of a person, and I’m certain that when I first got a look at Josh I saw that he was missing a leg and that was it. Thanks to the Newsstreak, I found out that he was missing nothing – he had determination, quick wit, love of life, you name it. He hasn’t changed, as far as I can tell. I’m happy he is impacting so many people’s lives, but, as tends to happen after high school, we do not keep in touch.
Describe something you learned in journalism class that you still use in your life, regardless of whether or not you’re a journalist.
You can never underestimate the power of the written word. Even in a high school paper, you need to be wary of what you are saying. A friend of mine got into deep trouble for this in college, when I was the paper’s editor, and now with blogs, Twitter, etc., nothing that anyone writes will magically disappear. Once it’s out there, it’s out there.
Why would you recommend that a student take journalism in high school?
I enjoyed taking journalism class because I enjoyed writing, and there really is no better format to get people to read your writing than in the newspaper. There are hundreds of copies to go around, and people could stumble upon your work after reading something else. I’ve always felt if I have the gift of being able to write, I want others to enjoy it. Journalism is the best way to go if someone has that same gift in high school. After time, you develop a voice in your writing, too, and it’s fun to play around with. No two stories are the same, so there are opportunities to put your own spin on material.
