North Journalists Attend Annual JEA Convention

Brandon Lightfoot, Photo Essay Expert|December 3, 2019

Newspaper and yearbook staff smile in front of the Newseum after exploring the exhibits. “I’m really glad I got to visit the Newseum before it closes this year. It’s such a fun and interactive space, and I hope they find a way to reopen it in the future,” said Fischer.

    On Nov. 21-24, the largest gathering of high school journalists with over 6,000 students from all over the world took place in Washington D.C.
    Over the course of three days, students and teachers were able to attend over 200 different workshops about all kinds of things regarding journalism and photography. JEA also offered a break with a pro in which students would be able to have an hour to sit down and talk to a professional in the field of journalism.
    “It was cool to talk to a professional journalist who was in the same place where I am now,” said Nick Bowman, who talked to Steve Stromberg, editorial writer for the Washington Post.
    One of the many highlights of the trip was the keynote speaker Chuck Todd, who is an American television journalist who is currently the 12th moderator of NBC’s Meet the Press, hosts MTP Daily on MSNBC, and is the Political Director for NBC News. During his presentation, he gave insight on how to succeed on reporting local political issues and be a successful journalist.
    “I was very excited to go to his speech because when I was in grade school, I used to watch him every morning on the today show,” said senior Madeline Fischer, Norsestar editor-in-chief.
    “It was cool hearing his take on how to report political issues. I’m definitely going to take what I learned and use it in yearbook,” said Terez King of Saga yearbook.
    Students who attended JEA also competed in media competitions for photography, caption writing, article writing, and many more. Fischer earned a superior rating in news editing/headline writing/current events which is a major accomplishment considering the amount of people who entered the competition.
    “It feels really good to be recognized for journalism after four years on staff. Listening to the BBC Global News Podcast helped me with learning current events,” said Fischer.
    Sophomore Norah Von Yeast, a copy editor for Saga yearbook earned honorable mention in yearbook copy/caption: student life.
    Aside from learning about journalism, students were able to visit historic monuments such as the Lincoln Memorial, the White House, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Instead of walking to get around to places around D.C., North journalists rode the metro.
    “One of my favorite memories from the trip was probably taking the metro. It was cool to see how different and more efficient it is than the one we have in St. Louis,” said King.
    Next year, the JEA Convention will be held in Orlando.