Student journalists hit the streets

By Nate Hinckley

 

Students in the St.Clair College journalism program took part in their biannual Blitz Day on Nov 4.

Blitz Day consists of the school’s first-year students going out and finding a story then conducting their interviews. They return to the campus to write their stories, go through a three-edit process and have their story published. All of this takes place in a span of eight hours.

The second-year students organize and run the Blitz, mentoring and copy editing stories for their team of first years throughout the day.

This is a very important day in the journalism program because it allows students to experience the journalism field firsthand. It also allows them to learn from their mistakes and write a story at a faster pace. Stories published in the The Converged Citizen are typically written days in advance, while Blitz stories are written in one day.

“One of the most important things for journalists is to be able to meet a deadline,” said Veronique Mandal, journalism program coordinator at the St. Clair College MediaPlex. “In the media, deadlines are important and Blitz Day has everyone involved in the MediaPlex. It’s a challenge for a first year journalism student to do interviews and have a paper produced by four o’clock.”

Todd Shearon, co-managing editor of The Converged Citizen, said it is very important for all students at the MediaPlex to get involved to help the first year students learn. On Blitz Day, the publication’s copy editing staff grows from five people to more than 20.

“It’s important for the first years. They get the first actual news experience where they come in and have their meeting, then go out and chases their stories,” said Shearon.
The higher-level students help edit their stories and explain how they can improve their writing skills. Reporters, writers and alumni from the region also come to the MediaPlex to assist the young journalists.

First year journalism student Amos Johnson said Blitz Day helped him improve his writing.

“Everyone’s very helpful here,” said Johnson. “I’ve learned a lot and I’ve made a lot of mistakes.”

The first years learned a lot from Blitz Day overall, helping them move one step closer into the journalism field and workplace.

The next Blitz Day will take place during St. Clair College’s 2017 Winter semester.