Getting over the fear

To fear and not to fear. That is the question. "If you're not careful fear can alo affect your journalism," said Ken Paulson,from the First Amendment Center. For high school students, fear is one of the biggest obstacles to success. Whether it be the fear of writing or the fear of interviewing, there are many times students are unwilling to step out of their box and take a chance. I've seen my students come up to me literally shaking with the idea of having to visit an administrator for an interview. And it does not go away with the first story. My seniors often shudder at the thought of the principal's office and shy away from taking on the larger stories. This past year, I suggested we do a piece on the cafeteria and how lunch is made for 1500 students within two hours. However, it was never adopted by the students because they were fearful of doing the work. Paulson wondered aloud that if fear is something that short circuits feedom then how do you get rid of that fear. As members of the press, our duty is to report the truth, but if our own fear of finding the truth prevents us from reporting it, we are not fulfilling that duty. Then, are we really reporters? Our students have to put aside their fears and we, as advisors, have to put aside ours. Whther it be fear of retribution or fear of inadequacy, they are obstacles to the success of our students, the newspaper, and ourselves. Paulson speculated, "Perhaps we are marketers in the promoting of fear." And in some cases, avoiding reporting the fear is impossible but overcoming our own fears is not. Jackie Ludka