On December 1st, GloucesterHigh School students attended the Harvard Crimson’s Fall 2018 Journalism Conference.

Five Gillnetter staff writers, Elinor Ketelhohn, Danielle Denman, Willa Brosnihan, Catherine Cannavan-Dysthe, and Mila Barry, participated in a series of seminars and discussion groups lead by Harvard students and Crimson staff.

Gillnetter staff learned a variety of new skills and techniques that they can easily implement in the class, such as one-on-one editing, using multimedia tools to create charts and info-graphics, and creating a strong and close-knit newsroom environment.

“This conference deepened our understanding of the world of journalism,” said Mila Barry. “We learned skills that we can apply to The Gillnetter, and gained insight on journalism as a career. I cannot wait to take what I learned and use it in the classroom.”

The day was broken into four blocks in where students could choose from one of four discussions and seminars. These seminars taught a variety of valuable skills, including: editing stories, photojournalism, investigative reporting, and implementing multimedia elements to a story.

“It was a great opportunity to participate in an event held by such a prestigious college,” said Mila Barry. “Seeing how everything worked from within the Harvard Crimson’s building was super interesting.”

Anica Butler, a deputy news editor at the Boston Globe and member of Harvard’s Nieman Fellowship, presented as a Keynote Speaker.

Butler reminded student-journalists that we should aim to collect a wider range of perspectives in the newsroom.

“Diversity in the newsroom is imperative to our survival as a discipline,” said Butler. “We need people to see themselves represented in the media.”

Mila Barry added that “The Gillnetter should strive to involve people from different backgrounds, grade levels, and interests to engage and contribute to the newspaper.”

Conference Seminars: