Broadcast Journalism
I’ve always preferred writing, so podcasts and videos are not my favorite thing to do. I love to write and take pictures as that is what I am good at. Typically, when a video idea gets brought up, other people will take it- and I let them. Videos are out of my comfort zone but are still something I am willing to try. Over time, I have pushed myself out of my comfort zone in hopes of broadening my experience with journalism. While I may not like to create them myself, I am always willing to help my peers with editing and gathering information for their videos.
Podcasts
My main contribution to podcasts is Inside the Insider where I created a podcast that gives a behind-the-scenes look at how the Wahawk Insider staff works on day to day basis and the things we have accomplished.
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In my first episode, I introduced the new program and talked about how we came up with the idea and our plans for the year. This was published in May of my junior year, just about six months after Wahawk Insider took off.
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In the second episode published in December of '23, I recapped our first year and the successes we had. From the All-Iowa News Team of The Year to being a SNO distinguished site.
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In the future, I have plans for the Inside the Insider podcast where I want to dive further into what the program is like and how our day-to-day classes look.
Photo By: Nicole Goodman
In May, I recorded a podcast with two seniors about their opinions on student government in school. Even though the podcast was never published, it was a good introduction to a different form of interviewing and reporting.
Videos
I used videos as a way to promote the yearbook program on Wahawk Insider. With more interaction on the website than we typically have for the yearbook, it is a good platform for me to encourage students to buy a yearbook, submit senior quotes or to interact with the yearbook program as well.
My first video for the Wahawk Insider was "This is Wahawk Insider: An Inside Look into Our Publication" where I introduced the Insider staff and some of our classroom traditions. This video is not a typical broadcast video, but is more of a presentation format to document the class. This video accompanied a larger article that highlighted what the first year of Wahawk Insider looked like.
My second video shared how the yearbook program had broken our sales record and captured how proud everyone in the program was. After years of selling less than 200 books in a school of over 1800 students, to be able to reach our goal of 300 was heartwarming for us all. By the end of the year, we sold just under 400 books. This video also goes over the awards that the Wahawk Yearbook program won that year.
TikTok
While the Wahawk Insider may not have hundreds of videos, we do have an active TikTok account.
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Videos are meant to keep students entertained and up to date on current West High events. With both yearbook and Insider, we know that we have less than a minute to grab the attention of a viewer and get them to learn, enjoy or think something before they scroll away. How do you keep the attention of 14 to 18 year olds right now? You follow trends.
Photo By: Nicole Goodman
"We're Wahawk Insider, of course-"
This trend allows the creator to say relatable and comical statements that make viewers laugh and can gain their interest.
This trending sound allows creators to talk about something that made them feel good which pushes viewers to want to also do that action.
This trend shows a screenshot of an Instagram converasation where one person says something and the other changes the theme of the chat to 'Love.' We used this trend to encourage seniors to submit their quotes and portraits.