Reporting and Writing
Since the moment I started planning out writing five novel fiction books in my head in forth grade, I knew I wanted to be a writer. I never guessed that it would manifest through journalism.
From the moment I sat down I had a knack for asking the right questions, selecting good quotes, and writing snappy ledes. I still remember the first one I ever wrote after it came to me in a dream.
Read it in my gymnastics story on my sports page!
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I look for emotion in my interviews and always had an instinct for paraphrasing information and quoting emotion. Learning how to be prepared helped me gain a thirst for the thrill of writing stories in one sitting.
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Hearing someone speak about a cause they are passionate about is magical. You can see the light in their eyes and hear the brightness in their voice.
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That is what happened here, when I did to increase representation in our schools Hall of Honor (see below). In this process, I nominated the first ever black school board member who served in this election position as early as 1870. To provide modern contextualization, I interviewed current school board members of color. They showed me the true impact that seeing Black people in leadership positions had on them.
Yolanda Franklyn was so moved to know about having representation so early in the Lawrence School district she expressed desire to meet him.
This reporting session resulted in tears.
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While covering a local protest against the current presidential administration live, I wanted to report on it through the lens of how this rally affected young people. Most of the protesters were elderly, but they were still enthusiastic in inspiring the younger generation.
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When I asked one of the protesters, Jerry Jost, why he though high schoolers should care about politics, he guided me into the shadows under the awning of a bank as he began to tear up.
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You can hear it audibly in the recording
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One of my favorite parts about reporting is unlocking emotion. If you are persistent enough, even a factual subject has underlying emotion.
When interviewing chemistry teacher Clara Duncan about the environmental impact of the cosmetics industry for a story about Project Pan - a rising underconsumption movement - I asked her about her observed impact on high schoolers.
This prompted her to move from talking about the science of cosmetic products to one with the much more emotional weight of body image.
What is My Reporting Process Like?
Journalist writing has all the same components as academic writing except one key factor - reporting. ​ Reporting is the foundation of what makes a good news story. As a reporter, I am telling the story of the people impacted, not writing an argumentative essay. ​
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To do this, I need to:
1. Come up with questions that the speaker will be engaged in, and evoke emotion.
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2. Always be prepared to ask follow up questions for both background information and sometimes better quotes
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3. Select the most powerful and cohesive quotes to present the most authentic version of the speaker.
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Here are a few examples.
Diversifying our Hall of Honor - A current reporting project
A year ago, I stepped up to continue a project started by my former editors in 2021, with the mission to diversify our high schools Hall of Honor. This project was not continued until I picked it up in 2024 when two out of three of the nominees were officially inducted.
The Hall of Honor recognizes the achievements of LHS alumni, including the environmental activist Erin Brockovich and Google Earth co-creator Brian McClendon.
The project looks at the alumni of color who haven’t yet been recognized. I felt that this was an important project because after examining the alumni in our Hall of Honor, less than 10% were people of color. I felt it was my responsibility as a journalist to give a platform to.
Last year I focused on the story of three African American brothers who made a significant impact on the Lawrence community; the Harvey Brothers. Unfortunately, these siblings were not able to attend Lawrence High school due to segregation. Instead, they attended an integrated school in Blue Mound, almost 80 miles away. It is unclear how they made the commute.
Frederick, Sherman, Edward Harvey made significant advancements in the Lawrence community in many ways. First, through personal achievements by becoming some of Kansas University's first Black athletes, and going on to serve in the 23rd regiment during the Spanish-American. Second and most importantly, they advocated for the desegregation of education. They stood up for a young Langston Hughes after he was kicked out of his Lawrence Memorial Central middle school for writing a poem about segregation. Much closer to home for them, they advocated against KU's resegregation of its athletic program after being Black athletes in the program themselves. It was advocacy like this that led to the Board v. Brown of Education case, outlawing segregation.
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This year, I decided to continue my work for this project, by reporting on the long forgotten USD 497 Black school board member: Thomas W Henderson. After gaining recognition as a preacher, Henderson was elected to the Lawrence School Board, making him the first elected person of color in the state. Henderson went on to run for several elected positions, and serve as the editor of two political columns; The Colored Radical and The Colored Citizen. Henderson used both his political and journalistic platform to advocate for the desegregation of schools.
Both of these stories will also serve as a nomination for him to be added to our school’s Hall of Honor.
Click here for full reporting!
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Lawrence Police Chief Rich Lockhart speaks at a press conference on March 7 regarding the two shooting that took place in the Lawrence community within the last 24 hours. In Lawrence, we're not used to having a violent crime," Lockhart said in his address. "It's very hard when we happen to have two murders in two days."
Photo by Natasha Torkzaban
News Writing
News writing is a full-time job.
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Although it can be tedious constantly checking local news websites and sitting through long board meetings, it is worth it for the thrill of getting the scoop out to the public as quickly as possible.
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As a young reporter I dreamed of being on a breaking news scene and craved the pressure of working on a deadline of mere hours. This dream was realized while reporting on two shootings that happened within 24 hours, the board meeting where our new superintendent was officially hired, and reporting on the latest news of our AI monitoring technology Gaggle.
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These stories I worked on in a six to eight hour period where I sat down after attending a board meeting or press conference, selected quotes, and feverishly wrote 'til completion
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That is why I relish every story I report. It is not merely a story for the student body: it is a story for the community at large.
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Surrounded by flowers, Sunrise Project, a non-profit organization centered around food accessibility, distinguishes its garden area as they search for a new headquarters. The hand-painted sign emphasizes their value of local work as most of the food they produce is not only handmade, but hand-grown.
Photo by Cadence Scholtz
Feature Writing
My favorite way to wind down is by writing feature stories. Features bring me more joy than any other writing style, even if they lack the intensity of news.
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Feature writing is one of my favorite tasks by far.​ This style isn't just about telling the story, it's more about finding it.
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I love finding these buried gems whether it be a new club or a student whose parent struggled with cancer.​ It is the perfect place to add personal flair to journalistic writing.
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Embracing, gymnastics teammates, senior Peyton Fowler and junior Annie Shew, share a moment on the mat at the first home meet in three years on Sept. 24. This return was not only emotional due the temporary hault of in person athletics during covid, but because of the near cut of their program the previous semester.
Photo by Maison Flory
Sports Writing
Before journalism, I knew little about stealing signs or how to read a team’s record. However, after my first story about the girls gymnastics team became nationally recognized, I suddenly became the designated sports writer.
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​I went into almost every reporting piece knowing nothing about how the game worked, so I focused instead on the emotion that arises in athletics. I wanted to show the sports world through a lens that everyone can understand.
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​While immersing myself in sports reporting, I began to learn more about the games themselves. I was able to inform the public on the logistics of the game while continuing to show the humanity of the players and the sport itself.
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Editorial Writing
Editorial writing is a powerful tool. It lets journalists, including myself, take a break from being part of a news production and lets us show our humanity.
It can be intimidating to share personal opinions publicly. However, there are a couple issues that I believe were best contextualized by my personal experiences.
Whether it was sex education or invasive AI monitoring, I took up the pen when I believed that my personal narrative added something more than data or research alone could impart.
Click here or on the photo for more of my reporting
Depicting the restriction of sex education, is a book displaying female anatomy locked away in a cage. This is the reality of some education systems in Kansas, even if not intentionally.
Graphic by Ruby Hull