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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

I spend countless hours working on our online news site, Scot Scoop. I spent my summer redesigning the site and revamping our categories. I aim to ensure that the highest quality content is published daily. I plan lessons and give presentations in class on different styles or aspects of news writing I feel need improvement, create all of the schedules and rubrics for content, oversee my editorial board of 4 managing editors, and make decisions about the publication with their input. From feedback, I created a new category, Entertainment, to cover light-hearted news to contrast the heavier stuff we often publish. In addition, I helped a team of editors create the Games section to encourage interactivity and community engagement. Besides site innovation, I am also the person that all writers and editors come to with frustrations, suggestions, and struggles. It is important to me that everyone feels heard and seen within the program, so I created an Editor Feedback Form for writers to fill out at the end of the beat cycle to tell me what goes on in their process that I can't see. Through the feedback, I set up meetings with my editors to go over what they are doing well and what they need to improve on. I want all involved in the program to feel connected with one another and happy in their environment. I schedule meetings with my staff of 12 editors where we discuss issues we've been having with articles, ideas for site improvement, and simply time to bond. A significant portion of my work is problem-solving. I created an anonymous tipline for community members to suggest article topics, created a new way for writers to pitch article ideas when our previous system stopped working well, and created the Sports Center add-on with the help of my sports editors to increase page views and the information we deliver to the community.

 

Overall, my goal is to be supportive and reliable to all my staff while keeping high expectations for the site's content. 

EDITING ARTICLES

As an editor, much of my time is spent reading articles and ensuring they are at Carlmont's standards for publication. Editing allows me to see other writing styles and learn what I can do better by reading what others do. I do my best to give constructive feedback to my writers and work with them if they are struggling with any part of the article process. It is important to me that I help my writers hone their journalism skills, and I hold that to myself when providing feedback. While being firm in meeting the Scot Scoop standards, I still make sure I am approachable and accommodating to foster a good relationship between myself and my writers. 

As a writer myself, I go through many revisions of my articles before handing them off to my editor. I consider it essential to thoroughly draft, edit, and revise all my writing so I am always showing my best work. 

WHAT I CONSIDER/EDITING CRITERIA

  1. Writing flow; Does the transition between grafs and quotes make sense? How can I make this read smoother; what sentences are too long, too short, or choppy?​

  2. Reader interest; Does this work keep the reader engaged the whole time? What is the angle of the work?

  3. AP Style; In addition to following Scot Scoop standards, does this work follow all AP style guidelines?

  4. Accuracy; Are all names, pronouns, grade levels, and facts accurate? What needs to be done to increase the credibility of the work?

  5. Sourcing; Do the sources represent multiple different points of view? Who's thoughts are missing from this work?

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