Every Wednesday after The Flash airs there is one thing I will ask, ‘What did you think?” To everyone. First to make sure my friends are paying attention, but also to see what we can improve on. In my study hall, classmates and I will discuss elements of the show instead of doing our math assignments. This is because I believe that we need to listen to our viewers and make sure that their perspective is heard. ‘I didn’t understand that at all’ or ‘I really didn’t care about it’ are so important to hear when making media. The content we produce has to be made for our audience, and there needs to be clarity in what is produced.
The Flash is a student-led production, and with that, we have made all of our products for the students of Eastview. I work with the students of Eastview to make sure that the stories we cover are important to them. Purpose is so important when talking about journalism. Who we produce determines what we produce. I think our audience engagement is best seen through our use of social media.
The Flash is a student-led production, and with that, we have made all of our products for the students of Eastview. I work with the students of Eastview to make sure that the stories we cover are important to them. Purpose is so important when talking about journalism. Who we produce determines what we produce. I think our audience engagement is best seen through our use of social media.
Social Media
We have nearly 700 followers, so even though our impact may be small in the millions of viewers on the internet, we can work with our community. A colleague was working on a story about students with Spanish heritage and was struggling to find students to interview. So we made a graphic and placed it on the media account. For 24 hours the media account showed the graphic and everyone saw it. We got a few replies, with people willing to share their stories. If it were not for our social media presence, we wouldn't be able to reach the people we do. We wouldn’t get the voices we discuss. Because I used the media account, I was able to allow the story to grow more.
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We have nearly 700 followers, so even though our impact may be small in the millions of viewers on the internet, we can work with our community. A colleague was working on a story about students with Spanish heritage and was struggling to find students to interview. So we made a graphic and placed it on the media account. For 24 hours the media account showed the graphic and everyone saw it. We got a few replies, with people willing to share their stories. If it were not for our social media presence, we wouldn't be able to reach the people we do. We wouldn’t get the voices we discuss. Because I used the media account, I was able to allow the story to grow more. We have nearly 700 followers, so even though our impact may be small in the millions of viewers on the internet, we can work with our community. A colleague was working on a story about students with Spanish heritage and was struggling to find students to interview.
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So we made a graphic and placed it on the media account. For 24 hours the media account showed the graphic and everyone saw it. We got a few replies, with people willing to share their stories. If it were not for our social media presence, we wouldn't be able to reach the people we do. We wouldn’t get the voices we discuss. Because I used the media account, I was able to allow the story to grow more. We also use the media account for more positive engagement. We see that if people come to the media account for some fun interactives, they might stay for our other content. In October of 2022, one credit of The Flash showcased a contest. We had developed a game-show type event called ‘trash fashion’. Three groups of students worked together to create outfits out of nothing. It was a silly, lighthearted credit that had a special piece to it.
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In the end, we asked the students to pick the winner, and so they were told to go to the media account to vote. We had a poll up for 24 hours and had over 400 students vote. The engagement was off the charts, and worked to bring the students together. I believe that for journalism to be successful, there has to be some lighthearted pieces. This little project worked to bring students to the media account, and help pull the student body to get involved in our production.
The biggest thing that I have used the media account for is promotion. We promote different sporting events and important announcements for the student body to know. We use this format to work with the other social media accounts in our community and work to keep the student body informed. |
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