New journalism class at LR is an important development

It was so long ago that carbon paper was at the center of the controversy around my first big scoop.

As a junior in a high school journalism class, I’d turned in a story about a very popular teacher who would be resigning at the end of the year, a tip I got by ferreting through a wastepaper basket outside the admin office and coming up with a sheet of crumpled carbon paper that contained the details.

The story wasn’t published because the publisher, which was the school, felt it would be inappropriate and too disruptive, or some such reasoning. But the principles of good journalism nevertheless began to impress a young brain during that class, common sense and human decency foremost among them.

Journalism is a curriculum offering that had been gone from Lake Roosevelt High School, the return for which we have long argued in favor. Not only does a high school journalism class offer a way to practice the crafts of writing, reporting, editing, photography, layout and design, it helps young journalists learn to think as they grapple with the ways the world actually works, not just the way they think it should.

We’re gratified that this year LR once again offers the course, as reported on the front page of this issue, and if we can find a way to enhance the experience for its students, our readers may see their work presented in the pages of The Star occasionally.

The creation of the course is an important development. As one young journalist confessed in a detail that didn’t quite make it into this week’s story, she changed her mind during the writing of an opinion piece. That’s not unusual; writing is thinking, and it often acts as a catalyst that can realign and solidify the molecules of thought into a clear picture.

That’s what today’s education needs to be about — critical thinking — and Grand Coulee Dam School District leaders are to be commended for recognizing that.

Now, teacher Steve Files should offer extra credit today for the first of his journalism students who can tell him exactly what carbon paper even is.

Scott Hunter

editor and publisher