Law, Ethics & News Literacy
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Ethics
Our first ever assignment in Journalism 1 on August 1st was called “Journalism Ethics and Foundation.” This was because our advisor, Delbert Ellerton, understood that ethics ARE the foundation of journalism and form the cornerstone of responsible and credible reporting. In the past two years, I have worked diligently to always understand how ethics play into my current reporting and journalistic practices.
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News Literacy
News literacy is incredibly important for every high school journalist. It equips them with the critical skills needed to discern reliable sources, verify information, and distinguish between fact and opinion in an era of abundant information and misinformation. With proper news literacy, we can all be empowered to inform our peers effectively and contribute positively to public discourse.
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Law
I have a true passion for the rights of journalists. So, I always bring this fervor and energy into my personal reporting and the broader Midtown journalism staff, attending conferences to learn about law and journalism and teaching other staffers what I have learned in my time.
In-Depth Research on Journalist Laws
AP Seminar Presentation
In sophomore year, I was so compelled by international journalistic law that I was spurred to do a semester-long research project on crimes against journalists outside of my journalism class.
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This was a transformative experience for me to understand the serious threats to journalists around the globe and recognize how I can get involved. I have carried the knowledge I have learned into our staff and education amongst our publication.
Breaking Down the Law
Trump Indictment Story
When reporting on the specific indictments and law for the Trump indictments in Georgia for “Fulton County takes national stage with historic Trump indictment,” we had to break down the complicated law jargon into a language that our high school audience could understand. This required bringing in the perspectives of law professors and active students, who could put the RICO acts into more simple language. This was essential to the concept, so we decided to insert it early on to create an informed reader throughout.
Law
As high school journalists, we stand at the intersection of information and inspiration, forging a connection that empowers our community to make informed decisions and shape a brighter future. We bear witness to the stories that define our high school experience, preserving them for generations to come. In this role, we become storytellers, truth-seekers, and champions of free expression, cultivating skills that will serve us well beyond the school walls and into the world at large. It is only through deep reporting and informative writing that we harness the true power of student journalism. Please read below insights from some of my journalistic portfolio.
Use of Open Records Requests
Sample: Revenue from Royalties
The most technical story I have ever reported on involved over 50 hours of open records requests, telephone voicemails and processing, and elaborate functions on Google Sheets. “Retail licensing royalties bring less than $1,600 to school over 14 years” was investigating where money was going in a chain from licensers and retailers of school products to Midtown High Schools. This involved checking money flow at every step of the way, and submitting over 20 open records requests.
When beginning to tackle this, I had to research what could be requested through open records, how to go about doing so, and what structure was necessary to request. This became a very valuable lesson for me as a journalist to understand the limits of public property and domain. I have shared these lessons with multiple other students who have tackled investigative journalism.
GSPA Presentation
Meeting Dean Charles Davis
In the GSPA Fall Conference 2022, I attended multiple sessions that discussed law and journalism, where I took away extremely necessary skills surrounding freedom of speech and journalistic rights. Most notably, I attended “Getting to Yes: Negotiating, Building Alliances and Getting Stuff Done” given by Charles Davis, Dean of the Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia. He described scholastic press rights as “shaky on a good day” and highlighted how we need to build “hide-and-seek” with our sources while maintaining the law on our side.
He taught powerful tools of the National Freedom of Information Coalition, which helps reporters navigate through freedom of the press issues, and taught us how to draw the line between risk mitigation and newsworthy reporting utilizing measurements of net harm.
This taught me essentials of how to engage police and broader community that I used later in reporting for both “Midtown receives bomb threat for second consecutive year” and “Two teens shot after party for Midtown grad.”
Breaking Down the Law
Trump Indictment Story
When reporting on the specific indictments and law for the Trump indictments in Georgia for “Fulton County takes national stage with historic Trump indictment,” we had to break down the complicated law jargon into a language that our high school audience could understand. This required bringing in the perspectives of law professors and active students, who could put the RICO acts into more simple language. This was essential to the concept, so we decided to insert it early on to create an informed reader throughout.
Ethics
Our first ever assignment in Journalism 1 on August 1st was called “Journalism Ethics and Foundation.” This was because our advisor, Delbert Ellerton, understood that ethics ARE the foundation of journalism and forms the cornerstone of responsible and credible reporting. In the past two years, I have worked diligently to always understand how ethics play into my current reporting and journalistic practices.
Journalism I Teachings
Worksheets and Shattered Glass
We spent months focusing on the ethics of our future reporting in Journalism 1 and it laid a complete foundation for the dilemmas we would come to encounter. We lived in the hypothetical in the newsroom spitting words of “ifs” and “when.” In several important case studies, we looked at misuse of journalistic platforms and malpractice.
As a class, we watched the acclaimed film “Shattered Glass” to see up-close what malpractice in the newsroom looks like. Additionally, I did an extensive research project on “The Times and Jayson Blair” and “Intruding on Subjects Experiencing Grief” which allowed me to understand the issue, the impact on individuals, and the broader implications to the profession of journalism.
GSPA Presentation
Sharing Ethical Practices with Other High School Journalists
In September 2023, I had the fantastic opportunity to share ethical practice when reporting on national news to over 50 students at Georgia Scholastic Press Association's Fall Conference “Momentum.” In such, I shared who to interview to lessen bias, utilizing a unique “bucket” system that is like a heat sheet to properly report. I additionally included specific fact-based questions to ask that raise the level of ethical reporting .
News Literacy
News literacy is incredibly important for every high school journalist. It equips them with the critical skills needed to discern reliable sources, verify information, and distinguish between fact and opinion in an era of abundant information and misinformation. With proper news literacy, we can all be empowered to inform our peers effectively and contribute positively to public discourse.
Being a Source for Community Concerns
Increase in Car Break-Ins Story
The point of any high school or local paper is to be an outlet or source for community concern. On multiple occasions, community leaders have reached out to me to address a concern in our publication. From “Community group seeks approval to utilize district excess land for pool” to “Streak of summer car break-ins in community raise parking concerns” to “Community members negotiate park land use of new Virginia Highland Elementary School,” all the reporting and initial concepts were discovered by being engaged on community platforms and understanding different issues that neighbors were facing.
Room for Improvement
Variety of Posts
I believe there is some room for improvement on our social media channels that I will work to implement next year when I might assume a more senior position on the staff. Firstly, social media platforms are constantly changing landscapes and I believe that we need to work to adjust to the popularized methods of communication on each given platform. For example, we are yet to utilize the Reels feature on Instagram even though it has been around for over a year, and I want to work to increase this usage and variety overall. This is important if we truly want to connect with audiences, especially younger high school age margins.
Importance of Reading Releases
Dr. Herring Departure Story
It has proven vital to stay abreast on local reports on news updates. Minutes after it was released in June, I sent the report that outlined the non-renewal of our superintendent’s contract to GroupMe with the entire staff. A week later, this enabled us to post an in-depth story on her removal to update the community.
Connecting on Social Media
North Avenue Fire Story
Social media is a great way to engage with people and find story ideas. In April, I initially saw a horrifying video of an apartment complex near the school going up in flames and immediately slid up on the story. Gaining more information online, I got their real contact, along with others affected, and was able to publish a breaking news story on the tragic fire and community response.