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A Half-Hearted
Eulogy
The New Face of Is this good-bye for

Journalism
Teenagers carelessly discard the
latest issue of their high school pa-
per. They make a collage of forgotten
dedication on the lunch room floor.
Little do they appreciate the hard-
ships their peers overcame to create
such a publication. Little do they real-
ize that those fallen newspapers carry
with them the hopes of their creators.
The Price of Creativity
As Rachel Limb from Roches-
ter Adams put it, the battle to fund
school paper is a “catch-22”—Jour-
nalists want to do more. Doing more
would cost more. Higher costs would
mean lower sales. And without the
money, there are fewer possibilities.
Censorship Controversy
It is the duty of a journalist to tell
the story. The whole story. The objec-
tive story. The honest story. But prior
review often disapproves of cover-
ing ‘controversial’ issues, such as
teenage suicide or explicit dancing.
Angry parents at Dexter High School
even went so far as to form a blog
against Dexter’s paper, “The Squall,”
urging others to “clean up DHS.” How-
ever, the staff remains undeterred, pre-
pared to uncover the truth—even if it
means getting their hands a little dirty.
Opening Doors
Publishing online has proven to be
a fresh solution to many publications’
problems. It allows the freedom to cov-
er edgy, intriguing topics with less op-
position from school administrators. It
avoids many of the costs associated with
By Holly Drankhan
printing a periodical. Finally, it caters
to the trends of student readers, reach-
ing out across their preferred medium.
Beating the Odds
With so many obstacles stacked
against them, it is a wonder student
journalists have not given up the fight.
They do not possess the man-power
of the Romans. They have no Chi-
nese gunpowder or Viking vessels.
But they do have a relentless curios-
ity and inner-voice. An urge to learn
more. An unwavering enthusiasm.
And an innovative community to
share with, learn from, and progress.
It is time to step behind the com-
puter, behind the notepad, and
behind the lens to give these pio-
neers the recognition they deserve.
newspaper journalism?
By Holly Drankhan
The lilies have been ordered.
The casket positioned. The dirge
cued. A somber obituary begins.
“We are gathered here to-
day to mourn the end of
the newspaper industry…”
Or are we? It seems that ev-
ery critic is anxious to pro-
nounce newspaper journalism
as flat-lined. The truth is that
journalism, in some shape or
form, will never cease to exist.
That is at least until some
strange celestial event or alien
invasion changes the world as
we know it (But hey, that would
make one heck of a news story!).
Because, you see, there is al-
ways a story to be told, an opin-
ion to be shared. Journalism will
always find value in ground-
ing an audience whose grasp
of reality is being corrupted
by carrot-colored umpa-lump-
as with mile-high hair puffs.
And although the engine may
stall and sputter at times, a
new generation of Fords is us-
ing an innovative set of tools
to fine-tune yesterday’s product
until it purrs at a new decibel.
Blogs, Twitter, and tum-
blr are making today’s news
more accessible in these tech-
nologically-advanced times,
breaking down the barrier be-
tween journalists and consum-
ers one cyber brick at a time.
There is no better time
to join the conversation.
Is the newspaper really dead? Give your
opinion at www.pawprintsnewspaper.com

Extra! Extra!
72%
*18 high schoolers surveyed 5 reasons why
Read all about it!

60%
journalists make better college students

1 Self-sufficiency- can work alone

and utilize available resources

2 Timeliness- accustomed to meet-

28% ing deadlines

3 Sociability- able to get out of their

comfort zone to talk to others

ho r
4 Productivity- uses criticism con-
structively to re-invent
ho r o se
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en d apt en ca lis Awareness- always open to the
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5 volitile world around them
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