entertain

An 18 year-old-girl was interrogated for hours by the SFPD, but she would not reveal her secret. Who is she? She is a student reporter for The Lowell and was being pressured to release the name of a source that was quoted in her controversial news story. The article covered an incident that occurred on the campus where a teacher’s car tires were slashed. The reporter was able to find the person who committed the crime and interviewed him, promising to protect the identity of the source. When the school administration read the article, they demanded that the reporter release the name of her source to the police. She refused, replied that the relationship between reporter and source was her responsibility to uphold, and that her right to secrecy was protected by the First Amendment. This action shows the quality journalism of a professional reporter. It also shows that the difference between a good and bad reporter depends on the amount of courage, confidence, and desire to follow through with a story.

Students might join The Lowell because they want to be among the staff of an award-winning paper and have their byline printed next to a story that they had written. Or they might join The Lowell because it will look good on their college transcripts. A bad reporter will want to cover stories that do not require much interviewing and with sources who are easy to reach. This affects the potential of the article, because the reporter is only doing the minimal amount of effort to develop the story. When a reporter lacks dedication to actual news reporting, then important details can be missed and affect the article.

A good reporter spends time researching background information, takes into account possible different views, and tries to maintain an unbiased style of writing so that readers will be able to form opinions about the topic. Although The Lowell is a high school paper, students should assume the responsibilities of being a professional reporter. One responsibility is protecting the name of a source. Watergate is an example of protecting the source, because if the sources’ identities are easily revealed, then people will be afraid to disclose information and the story will be incomplete.

Reporters must have the fortitude to face opposition and continue to search for explanations about a story until all possible angles of the story are presented. The typeset story will have better substance than if written half-heartedly by an undedicated journalist.