March 18 Hollywood Issue

A week from today, all eyes will be on Hollywood for the Academy Awards. Thousands of people will be camped out a block from our school, hoping to glimpse their favorite actor. Television news crews and print journalists from around the world will be covering the Oscars.

This is the perfect time to take a good look at the neighborhood in which we live, work, and attend school. What does it mean to attend "the world famous" Hollywood High School? What is it like walking down the Walk of Fame on a daily basis?

How is Hollywood changing? Not only do people pay $200-$500 a night to stay at the new W Hotel, they pay up to $2 million to buy a condo there. The Lofts at Hollywood and Vine go for a half million to a million each. There's a Trader Joes and a Whole Foods Market coming to that neighborhood.

The changes add a shot of glamor to Hollywood, but what is the downside of gentrification (look up the word)? Will families still be able to afford to live in Hollywood? If they move elsewhere, what will happen to the student population of Hollywood High School? Will HHS survive? For how long? These are questions we should be asking.

Maria and Kevin: go to the W Hotel website and click on neighborhood and also press releases. Read the articles from USA Today and other publications posted there.
Ana: Go to the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and read about the Walk of Fame. Find out what it takes to get a star. How many fans are needed? How much does it cost? Who pays for it? What are the next scheduled stars to be cemented?
Adam:Do you want to come up with a timeline for significant events in Hollywood history?
Breigh:Who is Josh Arguelles and why does it sound like the owner wrote the article? Would our students go to this restaurant?
Also, when you contact Councilmember La Bonge, you may want to attach the February issue pdf, so he can see our paper. Mention that we interviewed School Boardmember Steven Zimmer and now we would like to interview him about saving the peak.

Thanks Malina for sending the photos. I've attached one in the box.

Student Writing from near and far

Check out this blog from Wilson High

http://thehitchingpost.wordpress.com/

and this school newspaper from Illinois

http://www.lanewarrior.com/Lane_Warrior/Print_Archives.html

Summer Journalism Workshop

The 59th Annual California Scholastic Press Association Journalism Workshop will be held July 18-30 at Cal Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo. It is limited to 25 high school juniors and seniors.

Students will attend several press conferences, publish their own newspaper, publish blogs, report on a simulated major disaster, learn how to cover a simulated breaking crime story, tour a daily newpaper office and television station.

Tuition is $1,025 which includes meals and lodging. There are a limited number of partial scholarships. Deadline for applying is Friday, April 16, 2010.

For more information, go to wwww.cspaworkshop.org

Technology is Good

I was impressed with how well everyone worked together today. Thanks to Adam for jumping in and teaching half the class how to use InDesign. I was so excited that I added some files (see box above) on using design. Thanks to Mr. Benainous for setting up the Box.net account so that I can post those (I've been carrying them around on a CD since July). For how to crop in InDesign, see the tutorial link at right.

The rest of the editors are also to be commended for making good use of a shortened day, as are the staffers who expressed interest in ad sales.

Keep up the good work!

Newspaper Exchange Critique, Story Ideas

Your critique is due Monday. This is a good way to see what other schools are doing, to practice reading critically and to get ideas for future issues.

Be sure to introduce yourself to your beat contacts. Tell them your name and that you will be covering the assigned beat and that you will be checking with them weekly about possible stories. Encourage them to contact you if they have a story tip.

MET: contact George Benainous, lead teacher, Room 123 and Antonio Manriquez, video teacher, Room 120
Teaching Academy: contact Kelly Bender, lead teacher, Room 315
Social Justice: contact Susan Von Manske, lead teacher, 310

Congratulations on the February Issue

I'm really proud of this issue. There is something interesting and worth reading on every page. There are also some firsts: our first commissioned comic on the editorial page, our first Q and A with a school board member on the news page, and our first advice column on the features page.

Now we need to work on our distribution. Next time, I will need a couple students to meet me at say, 7 a.m., and stuff the teachers mailboxes before they go to their classrooms in the morning. I think this is easier and simpler than having people run around and deliver copies of the paper.

Feb. 12 edition

Class meets next on Thursday. On Friday, we have two hours for our final. I expect to see the opinion (2-3), features (8-9) and entertainment pages (10-11) done by Friday. The news pages (4-5) should be well on their way. The front page will be a big Hollywood Idol photo, so we need to be sure we get a cover worthy photo. Feel free to bring your own cameras in addition to the staff cameras.

That leaves the sports page (12) and the Valentine's Day color spread (6-7) for next week. Maybe we can sell some Valentine's messages during advisory. Each of you can ask people in your own advisory and maybe a few people could go to other advisories as well.

Also, I've cleaned up the AOL mail. The only items in the inbox are what we are currently working on. Old stuff has been deleted or put into folders. If you can't find something, look in the folders.