Column: A week in the life of a journalist

By Nadine Moore

This week, there are some ladies weaving in and out of meetings, classes and so on.

These girls are part of Journalism City, and we do much more than just cut in line for every meal.

Maybe this column will help spare us the glares.

To be honest, coming into this week, I was under the impression that newspaper or yearbook experience was a prerequisite to be a part of Journalism City. This is not true.

The girls who have ventured to Vermillion have a variety of ability levels. Some girls are seasoned journalists or photographers, and others are beginners.

Regardless, the Journalism City delegates must collaborate daily to publish the newspaper, update social media and overall learn more about journalism and media altogether.

Due to the fact that journalists must remain neutral for the sake of news writing, they cannot run for office or sign petitions; however, they can vote.

Journalism City gives each girl the opportunity to write stories, take pictures and step outside of her comfort zone to gain experience in the journalism field.

The journalists for the week run on a somewhat different schedule than the rest of the Girls State delegates.

Depending on the deadline or the availability of whom they are interviewing, each girl is constantly on the go and running around campus.

Due to a need for flexibility, Journalism City is also dismissed first for every meal.

The need for journalism is not only crucial for those at Girls State to remain informed, but also for each delegate to know exactly what is going on and when during the week.

Not to mention, we get the opportunity to meet some interesting and extremely cool people on a different level.

Each journalist plays an important role this week.  With our First Amendment right to freedom of the press comes a great responsibility to report the facts without our opinions getting in the way.

So take the opportunity to take to a journalist this week. You would be surprised by what we see behind the scenes.