Claire Geare Portfolio

As far as actual production, this semester I have pushed myself to produce the best quality work possible. I tried to take on challenging subjects whilst writing, such as recent Black Lives Matter protests, election results, and the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Additionally, I pushed myself creatively in my satire; as I had gotten into a bit of an uncomfortable routine with it. For “Here’s how Bernie can still win:” in this issue, I moved away from that formula, instead using a different voice for the story. Though the paper was online this year, I always tried to publish my stories in a timely manner, and am happy to report that the opinion section in Flow is completely green. This month, though, we finally got to design. For my first month as opinion editor I wanted to switch things up a bit, so I got a full-color illustration and changed the photo credits on my page. All the skills I’ve learned in Newspaper are compounding, so my gradual improvements as a writer, creator, editor, and designer will be useful for both future years of publication and my career.

Ah, deadlines. I’ll be honest, this semester was not my best in that particular department. I wanted to put out the best work possible, but with this year being so unpredictable I wasn’t really in the place to. Declining mental health, family issues, a pandemic, a sudden move, and money problems don’t really contribute to a healthy work environment, so I’m trying to cut myself some slack. I’m proud to say that at the very least I always finished the work.

To publish a newspaper, teamwork is a must. I think the class has a good mix of editors and staff, creating a more collaborative environment. The senior editors have helped me so much this year and last, and in turn I’ve been able to help others. Even being the difference between somebody calling over Max to help is huge during such a stressful time, so I’m glad I could help. I wish, however, that I had more patience when editing stories. I sometimes get frustrated at the staff writers stories, because a few of them simply aren’t trained. It can be difficult to step out of my own position to try and coach new writers, but it’s necessary. I just have to remember to slow down.

Obviously 2020 has been a pretty tense year in politics, so having written a few stories about these topics I really had to tighten up on my ethics. I had to double check that all interviews I conducted were with people with varying views, and that my writing was objective. I want to dispel the idea at this school that the paper is biased, so I took matters like writing about Black Lives Matter or the election very seriously. This diligence is pertinent to reporting

factual news. We may be students, but I’d like any reader to be impressed with the CSPRESS’s journalism.

If there is one thing I take seriously, it’s my dedication to this publication. I earnestly want everyone to succeed, and to help out wherever possible. For example, this year we are without an illustrator, so I took it into my own hands to find people willing to draw for us. Additionally, during the editor training day we had in the fall I was helping the newer editors to learn InDesign along with Max. I always try to be as useful as possible to the editor in chiefs, as I know this year has been tough on them. I frequently offer to take stories off people’s hands, complete a missing interview, or create stories in Flow.

I think the only real hardships I faced this semester were personal, which obviously affect the professional. I struggled a lot this year to finish my work, or even get out of bed for that matter. This taught me that though I may always face difficulties balancing my health and my work, I have to try. I really want to succeed in this class, so working full time to manage my responsibilities is my number one priority. My greatest weakness in publications is definitely procrastination due to perfectionism. My desire to write the perfect story (at least in my mind) often stops me from writing the story at all, causing me to turn things in late. I need to develop a better system of working, so that I can write a first draft and just improve upon it within the deadline instead of having one final draft that I write all at once.

This semester, I believe my best work was the December issue’s satire: “Here’s how Bernie can still win.” I understand that this sounds borderline ridiculous, since I also wrote the font page in the same issue. However, I genuinely always give the most effort in creative endeavors like the satire. Writing journalistically is simply fulfilling in a different way for me. It feels satisfying, like finishing a school project. Creative writing, though, feels purposeful.

That’s why I enjoy writing the satires so much.

For this story, I had a few goals in mind. One was to tackle some form of political satire. I didn’t want to come off too biased or snarky, so I figured a more whimsical route was my best option. I finally settled on a ridiculous semi-manifesto style way of describing different ways that Bernie Sanders could live forever. I also thought that anybody could find this funny, since both ends of the political spectrum could relate to seeing candidate loyalists attempt to inspire hope among themselves in this way. My other goal was to mix up the formula I had become accustomed to. After almost a year of writing a monthly satire for the paper, I realized something pretty disappointing: I had become a pretty boring writer. Every single story went the same, problem-sarcasm-serious moment-solution. While this method had created a recognizable voice between all the articles, it also began to get repetitive. I decided to challenge myself. For this story, I wrote in the voice of a stubborn Bernie Sanders supporter who couldn’t give up the idea that Bernie may still win this election.

This was actually a pretty easy article to write. Since the structure of the article allowed for easy separation of the topics discussed. I knew what specific references I wanted to make, so I crafted an introduction and then swiftly led into the numbered ideas. After writing, I asked Ms. Clay to edit my article. I don’t often get much feedback anymore since this year has been so different, so just to check that I was on the right track I sent it to her. We discussed possible changes, and I adjusted as I saw fit.

To be honest, I think I accidentally peaked in February. I wrote a satire about Valentine’s Day, and since then nobody has ever liked another one more. Each month I try to top it, and have been unsuccessful. So truthfully, I suppose this is my second best work. I am happy with how it turned out, though. I’m proud of the balance between over the top cyborg references and the grounded nature of the idea. It’s inherently hilarious to me that this satire is being published mid-December, because it implies that the voice in the article still believes these things. I think it’s the first time I’ve actively worked with the paper’s schedule, not against it. I also enjoy the imagery in the article. I was able to get a full-color illustration of a Bernie Sanders cyborg, and I think it really adds to the whimsy of the concept. Overall, I’m proud of myself for branching out and trying something new.

This semester I really tried to challenge myself by taking on more delicate topics. Covering an election that some Arizonans are still bitter about was definitely one of them. However, I think I handled it well. This was my first front page story, so I definitely took it very seriously. My evidence and interviews were balanced and completely factual, and I thought my commentary showed a level of political understanding.

This article was also about a pretty sensitive topic. I wanted to honor Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s legacy as respectfully as possible. This article required a great deal of research, because it mostly contained information about Ginsburg’s life and accomplishments. Even with this volume of information, I think the article flows well. The tone is solemn, respectful, and reflective, which perfectly matches the subject matter. Overall, I’m proud that I could handle such an important piece.

I like this article because I think it’s really fun. It was written specifically for my peers, including references that nobody over the age of nineteen could possibly understand. Sometimes, when writing humor for such a large paper like this, I have to keep my topics more general. Things that any adult or student could enjoy. But for this specific satire, I really indulged in the nostalgia of my childhood.

During these unprecedented times, it has been crucial that the editors - just kidding. I’ll be honest. This year has been horrible. COVID stress, mental health issues, family issues, basically everything that could go wrong has. However, the paper has really kept me going.

Even though it has been stressful attempting to manage a paper without an advisor, the leadership displayed by each editor has proven to me that we could survive an apocalypse.

Personally, I sort of hate the online paper. It sucks the fun out of publications in a way. I always thought that the best part of Newspaper was the design and the accomplished feeling when we could hold a physical paper in our hands. As an editor, it was especially tough to experience. The use of Flow was a difficult adjustment, but over time it became a useful tool. However, it lacked accountability. There are multiple pages that never had any articles because staff just wouldn’t do them, and you can only pressure them so much. Additionally, the stress of having bi-weekly deadlines was hard to handle. With five other classes, having to produce a story I could be proud of in roughly a week felt impossible sometimes. I do think having been forced into producing online content was a net positive, though.

Sure, it sucked at the time, but it really trained the staff to work in a timely manner, and it trained editors to check work constantly and be responsible for publishing their own page.

With that being said, I am so grateful to be producing a print paper again.

Being an editor was always so intriguing to me because of the design aspect, and having that taken away for so long was difficult. Having more time to receive articles also allowed me more time to work individually with my writers.

Overall, the slower pace helped me pay more attention to the details that turn the paper from good to great.

It’s very difficult to balance friendship and leadership.

I’ve seen people lean hard in both directions, and one causes resentment but the other gets nothing done. I

try to always stay right in the middle.

When it comes to serious matters, I speak with intention.

However, in our free time I remain my usual joke-making self. I think that helps separate “editor” me and “regular” me. It’s also beneficial to create a few close staff relationships. For example, I edit David’s articles pretty hands on, since I know he respects me as both a friend and writer. I find this created the best quality work.

Having a leadership role in a class where everyone is older than you can be tough. I’m only fifteen, so having to boss older kids around can feel pretty stupid. Additionally, since we’re young, there is definitely the ego factor involved.

Sometimes even gentle criticism can cause some of the staff (particularly the males) to get pretty defensive. I don’t want to discourage anyone from fixing mistakes, but sometimes these clashing attitudes get in the way.

Despite these challenges, being an editor is the best thing I’ve experienced at this school. Having the trust and responsibility of a team is really motivating for me, and makes up for all the mindless busy work I get in other classes. I know the newspaper has a purpose, some level of importance, and I work to respect that.

Finally, the leader of the pack is in the back because they are responsible for the entire group. Being in the front would be selfish, as anything that were to happen in the back would go unnoticed. I’ve seen this behavior from Max this year. He tries his hardest to support and watch over everybody, not just focusing on himself. It’s quite impressive.