No matter what method of delivery a student journalist uses, newsworthy journalistic pieces need to have a strong impact upon the audience.  It’s critical that student journalists ask themselves if a potential story will affect audience members’ lives. And, it certainly doesn’t hurt to toss in a question like, “How many audience members will be impacted by this story?”  For example, a student journalist discovered that because of budgetary concerns due to funding cuts, the school is considering an across-the-board price increase on all school lunch items next school year. This poten ..read more

Book bans, social media censorship, and other reports of First Amendment violations pervade our newsfeeds in 2023. In recent months MSNBC shared a viral video where a 100-year-old widow stood up to a local school board banning books–an act that directly violates the freedoms her husband fought to protect in WWII. Limiting the freedoms listed in the First Amendment was not the intention of the founding fathers.  SchoolJournalism has hosted the First Amendment Matters PSA contest for the past seven years. Now, more than ever, our First Amendment is under attack and needs our protection.&nbs ..read more

SchoolJournalism.org invites YOU to enter the The First Amendment Matters PSA contest. Over the past seven years of this contest, teachers like Stacy Gerst have used this as an opportunity to create a deeper understanding of the First Amendment with her students. We believe that you can have similar success.  “Where America Stands” found many Americans lack a fundamental understanding of the First Amendment. About one in five (18%) couldn’t name one freedom covered by the First Amendment. Of those who could name at least one: 78% could identify free speech, followed by 49% naming religio ..read more

(Note to Advisers: consider reviewing this article with students. Also included is a printable crossword, an activity sheet and a Kahoot! to use with students.)  As a journalism student, learning the critical role attribution plays within the craft is one of the true building blocks necessary to become a strong, ethical reporter. Without proper attribution, reporters can be deemed untrustworthy and lacking credibility.  Proper attribution lets the audience know exactly where information came from, and who is being quoted and why they are uniquely qualified to do so. This is critical ..read more

The Sixth Annual First Amendment Matters PSA contest was challenging for our three judges. Unfortunately, over half of the entries did not follow the guidelines provided. It’s critical entrants follow the rules, in addition to showing a true understanding of what the First Amendment entails.  After several rounds, the judges decided they cannot select one true “Grand Prize” honoree. However, they chose to do something never done before in this contest and declare a tie. Jennifer Mi of Castro Valley High School in California and Kaedyn Coker of Coral Springs Charter School in Florida will ..read more

SchoolJournalism.org cordially invites YOU to enter the The First Amendment Matters PSA contest. Over the past six years of this contest, teachers like Stacy Gerst have used this as an opportunity to create a deeper understanding of the First Amendment with her students. It’s our hope that you can have similar success.  “Where America Stands” found many of us lack a fundamental understanding of the First Amendment. About one in five (18%) couldn’t name one freedom covered by the First Amendment. Of those who could name at least one: 78% could identify free speech, followed by 49% naming ..read more

Scholastic journalists and their advisers may find themselves on the struggle bus when it comes to locating fresh story ideas. Here are some kernels of wisdom to help get those ideas flowing when (or before) that happens.  “Are there new ways teens are endangering their health or well-being with their choices? It is a question I ask at least once a year, as we begin brainstorming projects that will resonate with teens, and offer perspectives scholastic journalists have unique access to. Finding ‘positive’ features, those stories that reveal the upside of teenage life, are also important ..read more

This past fall, SchoolJournalism posed a question for student journalists to seek the answer to: What are schools doing to include Media Literacy in their curriculum?   After reviewing the submissions, it’s our pleasure to share the winning entries. Our two Grand Prize honorees and one Runner-Up are three excellent examples of not only scholastic journalism, but also of how schools are working to educate and promote Media Literacy.   The Grand Prize winner in Broadcast is Grace Coleman of Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles, Calif. According to our judge, Grace’s podcast is ..read more

Netflix. TikTok. PBS. Wall Street Journal. ABC. YouTube. CNN. BuzzFeed. National Geographic. Twitter. Wikipedia. CBS. FOX. SnapChat. New York Times. Facebook. Hulu. Facebook. NPR.  The list could go on and on because we live in a world where media content runs rampant! There is so much information coming at us from so many directions, it can be overwhelming, confusing, and downright frustrating. That is where Media Literacy steps in to take some of the stress out of the mess!  What are schools doing to include Media Literacy in their curriculum?   It is up to you, as repor ..read more

From yearbooks to newspapers, websites to infographics, and everything in between, headlines are critical to draw in readers. Yet, headlines are often taken for granted and not talked about nearly enough in the Journalism classroom. A great place to start is reading this article and sharing it with your students. Headlines do hold historic importance that resonates today. Headlines date back to when increased competition between newspapers led to the use of bolder and stronger headlines. The name of the game was grabbing someone’s attention so they would purchase YOUR newspaper and not the co ..read more