Reporting & Writing
-Arts & Entertainment-
This story was my first attempt at review writing, and it ultimately helped me discover how much I enjoy this type of writing. At first, I wasn’t sure how to approach it, but with the guidance of my co-writer, who has more experience with reviews, I was able to learn and grow in the area. One of my biggest challenges was expressing my opinions about the albums confidently, but over time I learned how to clearly convey my thoughts and use specific examples to support what I meant.
This story covers the MVHS Homecoming Rally, which featured a variety of performances and showcased the school’s spirit and pride. While covering the event, I faced a challenge when my camera ran out of charge, forcing me to improvise. I was ultimately able to borrow a friend’s camera while my co-writer covered the other side of the rally. Despite the setback, the final photos turned out well and were used in both a social media post and a photo gallery.
This story was a food review of Nabi Cat Cafe, a new cat cafe that recently opened in Santa Clara. I found it really fun to try the different menu items and share my honest opinions, along with my co-writer, on whether they were worth it or not. Taking photos for the piece was relatively easy, but the bigger challenge was using all my senses to describe the food in detail and effectively convey those experiences to readers.
-Opinion-
This story covers the important societal issue of diet culture, which also affects students within my community. Writing this editorial required deep research, as we aimed to redefine what diet culture truly is and find how it perpetuates harmful beliefs about body image and health. My co-writer and I chose to feature a powerful quote and statistic as our graphics to strengthen the impact of our story. One challenge we faced was finding a meaningful solution, which led us to propose incorporating lessons on the relationship between weight, health, and body image into freshman biology classes, or adding more advisory lessons that emphasize the importance of balanced nutrition and the risks of unhealthy habits.