10 Things High School Newspaper Gave Me | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Sports

10 Things High School Newspaper Gave Me

How stress, sources, and deadlines (oh my!) lend to valuable skill and experience

109
10 Things High School Newspaper Gave Me
Hannah Brown

From running up and down tracking down people to interview, to sweating over deadlines, high school journalism could be a sport. It may have been stressful, but every high school journalist leaves the newsroom with a few things — for better or for worse.

1. The difference between passive and active voice



Passive voice is the cardinal sin of journalism. Out of all of the grammar rules high school journalists learn (or re-learn), this is the first and arguably one of the most important.

2. The ability to talk to anyone

Almost every article requires an interview with a stranger. These people come with different backgrounds and stories, and high school journalists have to find these stories. Some of these people give one word answers to every question, much to the dismay of student journalists.

3. Time-management skills

Deadline: this is the word that strikes fear — or stress — into student journalists. Every newspaper issue is a cycle of rushing to get interviews, take pictures, write stories, and design layouts by mini-deadlines and the ominous final deadline.

4. The ability to finish something under intense pressure (when deadlines are uncomfortably close)

Of course, because high school journalists are teenagers, they procrastinate. This means that they wait until the very last minute on all deadlines and possibly go grey earlier than others.

5. An insane eye for detail

While the job of copyeditors is to look for mistakes, it is the job of the entire staff to make sure the issue is perfect. Of course, this means that oversights are most obvious once the issue is published for everyone to see.

6. The ability to get the inside scoop

As a student journalist, you are constantly looking for a new story. You pay close attention to even the most casual conversations around you and develop connections with people from all over just in case they may have a story.

7. A little bit of knowledge on a lot of different topics

From writing articles on students with different hobbies, opinion articles on current events, and community occurrences, student journalists pick up tidbits on a wide variety of subjects — ranging from owning alligators as pets to the best restaurants in town to net neutrality.

8. Lasting bonds with staff

By spending countless hours together in the newspaper room, student journalists develop connections and even friendships with each other. These may or may not be a result of shared stress and venting.

9. Memorable quotes

Because student journalists spend so much time together and inevitably go insane, they say some funny things.

Here are select few from my time in high school newspaper:

-“I’m a potato.”

-“Oh crop!”

-“This is why we copyedit.”

-“Why is it Wednesday and not Wed-nes-day?”

10. Pride in your work and an identity of journalist that will never go away

After spending time on a journalism staff, you will create stories and cultivate skills that you will value for the rest of your life. Even though it was (or is) a pain at times, you know that being a part of a newspaper in high was worth it. Journalist will always be a part of your identity — even if you decide to pursue it professionally or not — and you will always value what being on a high school newspaper staff gave you.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
ross geller
YouTube

As college students, we are all familiar with the horror show that is course registration week. Whether you are an incoming freshman or selecting classes for your last semester, I am certain that you can relate to how traumatic this can be.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

Bonus points if it is more than two.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends

Whether you're commuting or dorming, your first year of college is a huge adjustment. The transition from living with parents to being on my own was an experience I couldn't have even imagined- both a good and a bad thing. Here's a personal archive of a few of the things I learned after going away for the first time.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

Economic Benefits of Higher Wages

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

300627
Illistrated image of people crowded with banners to support a cause
StableDiffusion

Raising the minimum wage to a livable wage would not only benefit workers and their families, it would also have positive impacts on the economy and society. Studies have shown that by increasing the minimum wage, poverty and inequality can be reduced by enabling workers to meet their basic needs and reducing income disparities.

I come from a low-income family. A family, like many others in the United States, which has lived paycheck to paycheck. My family and other families in my community have been trying to make ends meet by living on the minimum wage. We are proof that it doesn't work.

Keep Reading...Show less
blank paper
Allena Tapia

As an English Major in college, I have a lot of writing and especially creative writing pieces that I work on throughout the semester and sometimes, I'll find it hard to get the motivation to type a few pages and the thought process that goes behind it. These are eleven thoughts that I have as a writer while writing my stories.

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate

Every college student knows and understands the struggle of forcing themselves to continue to care about school. Between the piles of homework, the hours of studying and the painfully long lectures, the desire to dropout is something that is constantly weighing on each and every one of us, but the glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel helps to keep us motivated. While we are somehow managing to stay enrolled and (semi) alert, that does not mean that our inner-demons aren't telling us otherwise, and who is better to explain inner-demons than the beloved April Ludgate herself? Because of her dark-spirit and lack of filter, April has successfully been able to describe the emotional roller-coaster that is college on at least 13 different occasions and here they are.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments