The View has a rough start

December 17, 2009 • Roseana Cruz, editor-in-chief  
Filed under Journalism, News

Stress, tears, and theft have plagued this year’s journalism staff. The one major accomplishment has been the launch of the online newspaper dvthundermedia.com.  The site is host to our breaking news stories as it is being constantly updated. However, many students have struggled to get the hang of it.

            “I still don’t really understand how to upload stories, said Sami El-Sayed, first year staff writer.  “I normally just don’t do it.”

            Out of small staff of 18, only two students are veterans to journalism.  Many of the first time journalism students have expressed that they struggle to grasp concepts in this class.  This has lead to a slower growth of the staff.

A typical year in journalism consists of eight issues and one special issue.  This year’s staff did not create a single issue until December.

“This is the first time since I’ve been at DV that we’ve had only one paper this far into the year.  But that’s not necessarily a bad thing, “ said Michelle Coro, journalism advisor.  We’ve made really good progress with our online site, DVTHUNDERMEDIA.COM.  It’s been a high learning curb, but if we stick to it, we will continue to improve.”

Though many staffers share Coro’s optimism, their outlook is still mingled with slight resentment.

“It’s a little disappointing that we have only put out one issue thus far,” said Lindsey Laski, Managing Editor.” “Overall, it was a good issue, but we always have room to improve.”

It has been a particularly difficult year for The View, considering the work they’ve done in the past.

“I think we made a lot of mistakes early on and that sidetracked us,” said Coro.  “Obviously, we want to be known as one of the premiere high school staffs in the state.  It’s going to take effort to get there.”

            Desert Vista’s journalism staff still has many possibilities for greatness.  All staffers have access to 42 computers and laptops and 24 SLR cameras.  Both editors and some staff members are ready and willing to take our publication to the next level.

“My vision is to have a full-scale media program,” said Coro.  “I want to help make journalists of tomorrow who are confident in writing, taking photos, shooting video, working with the web, designing, producing audio and more.”

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