Chris McCarty

Nearly 200 prospective students attended CMU’s High School Journalism Career Day Wednesday.

The second-annual event attracted high school students from all over Michigan.

Keynote speaker Rich Perlberg, Michigan Press Association president, spoke to students about the importance of journalism.

Perlberg, vice president and general manager of Hometown newspapers and publisher of the Livingston County Daily Press and Argus, said he was “born into the field of journalism.”

Perlberg said young journalists should receive more recognition and high school newspapers have shown significant improvement.

“Most of them allow the students to have complete editorial control and they are published more during the week,” Perlberg said.

He also addressed the importance of being accurate when writing a story.

“Journalists tell stories, but they have to tell them in an accurate way. Mistakes have consequences,” Perlberg said. “Accuracy is the No. 1 thing in a newspaper.”

Perlberg said journalists need knowledge, good writing skills and the desire to know and tell what happened.

“If you can tell a story, then journalism is for you,” he said.

Four workshops focusing on advertising, sports writing, photojournalism and news editorial were offered to the students.

Anna Demro, Mattawan High School junior, said she enjoyed the photojournalism workshop.

“I want to learn to take pictures that tell a story,” she said.

Lori Fulton, Mattawan High School teacher and yearbook adviser, said she wanted her students to learn new things from the workshops and apply them to the classroom.

“Our school doesn’t have a newspaper, so we use the yearbook as a way to communicate,” she said.

Fulton also said many of the students were interested in majoring in journalism and attending the event helped them learn first-hand what journalism was about.

The journalism department, along with the Michigan Press Association, sponsored the activity.

Seven students from JRN 556: Public Relations Seminar helped plan the event.

“We received the assignment on the first day of class and we’ve been planning ever since,” said Ashley Newman, Flint senior.

Newman volunteered her time during the event, assisting with registration and giving directions.

She said High School Journalism Career Day helps recruit students and it lets them know the benefits of journalism as a career.

“Many students are now interested in public relations, but they should still consider a career in journalism,” Newman said.

E-mail the author: Nu YangLIFE Staff Writer