NJ Teens Complete Third Annual SCM Summer Journalism Workshop

The School of Communication and Media recently held its third annual Summer Journalism Workshop from June 25-28.  Twenty-four New Jersey high school students got the incredible opportunity to learn about all aspects of journalism from SCM professors and industry professionals.   The high schoolers learned such skills as scripting, news writing, blogging, photography, and all the tricks of creating narrative packages with video, radio, TV, and digital media.  It was not all work, however.  The future journalists toured the ABC News studios in NYC and CNBC in Englewood Cliffs.  They also got a chance to apply their newfound skills and covered a NJ Jackals baseball game at Yogi Berra Stadium.

They were inspired by industry leaders such as ABC VP Al Prieto and co-anchor of ABC News Nightline Byron Pitts. At CNBC they received a tour from Senior Vice President Steve Fastook and met financial reporter Sue Herrera. They also met a number of SCM alums who offered words of encouragement and advice.

During the week, students wrote and published stories on Medium, each profiling another student, and posted social media reports from the game.  They also got to record bits in the TV studios and at WMSC, which turned out to be the most popular activity.

The annual summer Workshop provides a special opportunity for high school students from various under-served areas in the state to get a taste of the media industries, meet real industry professionals, and experience college life. It also gives us at SCM a chance to show off our program, our amazing faculty, and fabulous new building to potential Montclair State University students.  Assistant Professor Thomas Franklin summed up the four-day event – “The feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive, the goodbyes yesterday were emotional and heartfelt. And on a day where journalists are under fire quite literally, we showed them there is honor and great importance in what we do.”

If this year’s cohort is any indication, the future of journalism is in good hands.