The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

TONE
We want to hear your voice!

Which school event do you most look forward to this year?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Throw us a bone, critics

Voice was lucky enough to have our very own semi-professional guest speaker yesterday during the regular period. Not an extra-credit lunch assignment (like I have anything better to do, anyway) or on-the-spot reporting — just a nice, easy presentation to listen to.

I appreciate that. It’s not all too common for us reporters to get such a story handed to us within the confines of our own period. The last time that happened to me, actually, I was in Beginning Journalism taking notes on Palo Alto’s very own Chief of Police, Lynne Johnson. I was a bit uninformed at the time (I have since become devoted to actually reading news regularly) and, in retrospect, wish the whole controversy thing what with the police brutality and racial profiling and all that other horrible stuff was more greatly emphasized in our amateur "press conference."

I don’t know why it is so hard to write about speakers. Go to the event, pay attention, gather quotes, summarize, and attach cupcakes to draft to curry favor with editors. Congratulations, it’s a beautiful, healthy article!

It seems relatively cut’n’dry, right?

But the problem is that when you sit down to recap for a ridiculously limited audience, you realize that you can’t for the life of you remember why your mundane event could ever be considered newsworthy for the mainstream population. Maybe it was interesting at the time, but honestly; nobody cares if they can’t apply whatever you’re reviewing to their own life. The Dalai Lama visited Paly? That’s awesome, but… uh… well, that is kind of newsworthy. Bad example.

I suppose what I’m getting at is, "How does one determine what that fickle beast known as "Average Paly Student" cares about?" How can we entice people to read the product of our blood, sweat, and illegible scribbles masquerading as "source notes"? We’ve been trying to figure out new and exciting ways to raise our visitor count without resorting to less-than-scrupulous methods. Unfortunately, we haven’t quite resolved that issue.

As Paly’s premiere online journalism conglomerate (okay, Paly’s only online publication), we are dedicated to bringing our readership only the most important and absorbing** tidbits this side of the Huggies factory. For example, I’m sure there are prolific underground PSP grudge matches scheduled for the weekend. I’m no gamer myself, but it sure could be fun to read about my overly caffeinated, subterranean comrades. The reason these fascinating peeks into oft-dismissed student subcultures don’t get published is because they are, by definition, not mainstream. People don’t know about them, no matter how much they would like to.

[**Note: Op-Ed section reserved for disjointed efforts to boost one’s quarterly word-count.]

So tell us what you want to read about, Paly. Do you want a photo essay chronicling the skimpily-dressed charity car wash volunteers (11-3 p.m., Saturday, March 26 in the Embarcadero parking lot)? What about a post-run review of "?Present Laughter"? If you’re reading this with that obnoxious little smirk (you know which one I’m referring to), thinking "I could do so much better with, like, a concussion," by all means send that gem in as feedback.

Hey — here’s a good idea. "Behind closed doors: what really happens in the teachers’ lounge?"

Leave a Comment

Comments (0)

All The Paly Voice Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *