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Neither print nor website are subject to prior review, but our policies are guided by the publication policies of Seminole County Public Schools. In our county, high school publications are not always protected in free speech and reporting. For the past two years, Lyman High School, a school in our county, has had yearbook spreads challenged by community members and the school board. Our state is widely known for book bans, academic restrictions, and attacks on scholastic journalism when it does not line up with the controlling party's beliefs. Due to the threats of censorship, our staff maintains a close-knit relationship with our administration, who have been nothing but supportive of our journalistic endeavors. Freedoms of the press are necessary to have truthful and undisclosed reporting, no matter how "woke" or controversial they may be.
Law
Public Policies
Click to view our public policies.
To further prevent censorship or other threats to our publication, we have our publication policies public on our website. By having these guidelines public to viewers, concerns regarding authenticity, copyright, or any other complications can be dealt with effectively.
When it comes to staffers' opinions, backlash has been more public and less direct. In my sophomore year, a political opinion written by another staffer on abortion was met with offense by students on campus. While I too disagreed with his stand on abortion bans, I respected his opinion and thought the article was articulate and well-developed, as it had gone through several rounds of edits. However, the validity of his freedom of press and opinion was not recognized. A petition was created by students to censor our paper and block reporting on sensitive topics. As often happens with censorship, these students did not recognize the potential long-term consequences as the censorship of one topic would only lead to others being banned. Our administration supported our staff, and after review, the article was verified by administration as credible under the staffer's First Amendment rights.
Having easy access to policies allows viewers, whether off or on campus, to understand that our publication is intended to raise the voices of others, not have them silenced. Along with our social media upgrades this year, I incorporated our policies and guidelines into our Instagram highlights, where any concerns can be taken directly to me or my advisor. Since our censorship threat two years ago, I have had an even deeper appreciation for journalism and emphasized integrity in writing—no matter the opinion, everyone’s voices should be shared in our publication.
"The owners of this website are not compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. We write for our own purposes. However, we may be influenced by our background, occupation, religion, political affiliation or experience. The views and opinions expressed on this website are purely the staffs. If we claim or appear to be experts on a certain topic or product or service area, we will only endorse products or services that we believe, based on our expertise, are worthy of such endorsement. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider.
This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content will always be identified."
As seen, our disclosure policy outlines how any opinions stated are our own, and importantly, are valid due to our different backgrounds and personal experiences. As a staff, we don’t have the same opinions, and I edit stories about topics I don’t have a strong interest in. Still, I know that having a variety of viewpoints and topics addressed makes our publication stronger.
As seen in the Ethics section, identifying our content as news, features, or opinions prevents confusion from our audience as to whether a piece has been editorialized or not. News will report facts, while opinion stories will share the writer's personal beliefs and justification.
Disclosure Policy
Privacy Policy
Editorial Policy
"It is important to keep in mind that all comments are public information. Do not post yours or other people’s personal information including phone numbers, addresses, credit card numbers, passwords, or government IDs. Content involving students under the age of 18 are particularly sensitive. If any of these guidelines are violated the comment will be immediately removed and may be refereed to authorities.
If you have anymore questions regarding our privacy policy please contact us at hagertyjourn@gmail.com"
Having a privacy policy on our website protects both our reporting and our staffers. We have never had any viewer share the personal information of staffers, but if this were to happen, we can point to our privacy policy as documentation of what is and is not appropriate to share online---especially for a staff made primarily of minors.
We do not regularly get negative feedback, but I have had multiple encounters with strongly opinionated students on our Instagram. Earlier this year, I wrote a story reporting on the recent nickname and bathroom rules implemented by our school board's interpretation of a state bill. Our Instagram received multiple hateful comments and messages from students calling the story "woke" or disgraceful.
"Hagerty Journalism is a student-produced website in which the student editors make all content decisions. The newspaper belongs to the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, the National Scholastic Press Association and the Florida Scholastic Press Association.
Opinions expressed within the newspaper do not represent the staff’s views as a whole, the views of Seminole County Public Schools or Hagerty High School’s administration and staff.
Comments are expected to adhere to our standards and to be respectful and constructive. As such, we do not permit the use of profanity, foul language, personal attacks, or the use of language that might be interpreted as libelous.
For more questions on our editorial policy please contact the site editor at hagertyjourn@gmail.com"
Each photo showcases some comments we have received on stories from this year alone (all reporting on Florida legislation regarding nicknames, restroom usage, permission slips, etc.) In the top photo, the first comment was removed since the user was speaking in reference to my staff, but the second comment was left untouched as the user shared their opinion on the overall topic, not the writer or staff. The comment on the bottom screenshot (left by the same user as the top comment) was also removed due to his statement, again, being about my staff and multiple instances of trolling.
While the top comment is somewhat derogatory, we left the comment alone as the user made no mention of my staff, our work, or our publication as a whole. Simply expressing one's opinion, whether it be in agreeance or defiance of the story's, is completely acceptable---if we can use the platform
to share our viewpoints, our readers should be afforded the same right to opinion.
Although this may seem obvious to many, we must acknowledge that opinions shared in our publication do not represent our staff as a whole (except for our special edition staff editorials) or our school administration and county board to protect the speech of both our staff and administrators.
Naming sources
With recent Florida laws restricting the use of nicknames, it is important that we follow this ruling in our writing and coverage. When quoting a speaker in my stories, or editing my staffers' pieces, I make sure to look out for potential nicknames that we may be unaware of. For example, in my news story covering SCPS' interpretation of the law, I referred to my friend, who goes by CJ to all, as his legal name, Christie, in order to follow our school board's guidelines. In the past our staff would ask in interviews what the subject's preferred name and pronouns were, now, we stick to using their legal name. Although students are permitted to call each other by nicknames, potential censorship of stories is not worth the risk, so while I may disagree with the rule, it is responsible to follow the conduct.
Click image to enlarge.
Credits and referrals
Sometimes when writing a story, especially those covering global events, I try to incorporate quotes and information from reliable sources and publications, such as the New York Times. When referring to other publications in research, I always write credit to the original publication and hyperlink the story in my post. As shown in the first image, I referenced a piece from the NYT's story in my opinion piece on wildfires in Maui. Furthermore, I included a hyperlink to the NYT story, offering another resource for viewers to access.
Click images to enlarge.
Attribution
We almost always use original photos and illustrations for our publications, with the exception of reviews. When finding photos to use for their reviews, staffers did not understand the difference between a photo from an official website and one from a random web address. To fix this problem, we reviewed image sourcing through in-class presentations. In addition, we doubled down on checking image credits on both our website and print. As seen to the right, the photo has been attributed to the original website of distribution.
While photos are more common, we also must attribute music from our videos and podcasts to the original publishers. This can be done in videos as text at the end of the video, and is always required to go in the description of videos and podcasts. Not only is this a fair and honest practice, but it is required under copyright laws to do so. If this is not followed, our media could be removed, so we must make sure to always credit outside resources for photos and audio.
Bylines
Just as the nickname rules of our county apply to the students in our stories, these laws apply to our staff as well. One of my staffers who is transgender is not able to use his preferred name on bylines for our print or website since he was not given permission by his guardian. While our staff always refers to him by his preferred name and pronouns, we legally cannot publish his work under this name. This is upsetting, but to be a responsible journalist we must follow the law, even if we don't agree with it. Obeying the law and his family's wishes minimizes harm to both our publication and to the staffer.
Ethics
Ethics in reporting
As a journalist, it is not only important to be accurate in reporting, but ethical. For my stories on difficult topics, such as Remembering Chuck Haibel, I will discuss with my editors and adviser to find the best way to cover the story respectfully. For this, I asked his family for permission to write the story before beginning the report. They permitted the story to be written but asked that no photos be taken of those grieving at his Celebration of Life ceremony. I respected their wishes, taking photos of the memorial set up at the event rather than those in attendance.
Anonymity
A more common dilemma I run into in stories is the use of anonymity. For stories, such as my report on state bills impacting transgender students, Head in the clouds, or The pros of pronouns, anonymous sources are appropriate due to the topic's sensitivity and potential threats or negativity the students involved may receive. However, for stories such as campus news, anonymity (in most cases) is not needed. This year, I had a staffer try to use an anonymous source in a news story on our campus' new coffee bar---a topic that would not be ethical to have an anonymous source for. Anonymity should be used to protect the privacy and safety of students to minimize harm to others, not as an easy tool to find sources. I explained to the staffer why this was unethical and he found a new student to quote for the story.
Source diversity
In any coverage, it is also important to represent different viewpoints within a topic. Using sources from only one background, race, gender, sexuality, political belief, or any other characteristic skews the story toward that one opinion, even if it is unintentional. As a journalist, I have to be accurate and honest in all my reporting, and so does my staff. To combat this, I advise all staffers to use sources from different grades and backgrounds in every story no matter the topic. For example, I talked to nine students and teachers for my story on campus diversity, all coming from different backgrounds and grades. This did not only improve the ethicality in my reporting, but the accuracy in my depiction of campus diversity and demographics.
Editing ethically
Editing can be rough. A story is turned in the night before it is due and the piece is a mess. It may be quicker, and easier, for me to rewrite the story, but I have a responsibility as editor to do my best to train and lead my staff. When giving edits, I always leave guided suggestions rather than rewrite staffers' stories. By using the comment tool on Google Docs, I can easily give feedback on stories, leading my writers in the right direction while preserving their words and creative liberty. This teaches my staffers how to improve their writing while still being independent in their own work.
For the story on the right, my online editor was writing an opinion on the effects of antisemitism on campus---a serious and sensitive topic. Instead of re-writing her words, which could be misinterpreted, I explained how she should reframe her point in a more effective and considerate way.
Categorization
While the content of a story is important, the categorization can be even more vital. What if an opinion story is labeled as news? We cannot have our audience misled into thinking an editorialized piece should be accepted as concrete fact. To prevent this, we categorize all stories as news, features, opinions, or sports, this way our viewers can easily tell what stories are reliable sources of information, and which are singular opinions. Even though some opinion pieces may contain necessary background information and news to make the opinion grounded and sensical, these must still be categorized as opinion pieces.
The photo to the right shows one of my Fired Up pieces, where I reported on recent allegations by Gov. DeSantis against a local private school. While I had to give the readers the necessary background information on the situation, it was still categorized as an opinion since I shared my personal views on the situation to maintain honesty and responsibility.
Photography credits
As our staff is well-integrated with our school's yearbook, we often share photos from school-wide events for publication. However, photo credits may sometimes be overlooked. It was brought to my attention by a yearbook photographer that one of our print issues credited his photos as being taken by another staffer, a small, but still unacceptable mistake. I immediately had a staff discussion about double-checking photo credits before publishing stories for either the website or print.
Not only do we need fairness in our reporting, but in crediting other journalists. By using our journalism program's shared AppTech, we can now see which photographers have taken photos at each event to prevent future mistakes. To name another photographer, writer, or give any credit to a piece of work done by someone else is unethical and undermines our job as journalists---to remain transparent and maintain factuality and truth.
News Literacy
Open discussions
At the beginning of each week, our staff will circle up to go over our plans and assignments for the week ahead. During this time, we often discuss current events, whether local, national, or global, to see how we can connect these stories back to our campus. By having open conversations with my staff on difficult issues, we have been able to cover larger events such as the Israel and Palestinian war or controversial state legislation. This not only improves our writing and reporting, but encourages our campus to read more on current events outside of the Oviedo area.
Outside of the classroom, our staff utilizes the app GroupMe to stay in communication. Here, I send links to trending news stories and topics discussed in class, or those that could potentially be turned into stories. In the screenshot shown, I sent the link to a story written about former president Donald Trump's civil court trial. Encouraging my staffers to read on current events (from reliable news sites) provides them the ability to expand their understanding on complicated issues and see real-life examples of proper quick-turn writing.
Interpretation of legislation
There is no shortage of new bills in Florida, and certainly no shortage of updated policies by our county school board. When reporting on legislation, I have read many transcripts from the Florida Department of Education. In order to accurately write about these rulings, I have to fully understand their implications and effects as well.
For my opinion piece on House Bill 1069, I, of course, had to read the bill. Understanding the explicit versus implicit effects of the bill not only helped me form my own opinion on the issue, but accurately report to readers. As pictures, I used the pull quote feature on SNO to highlight language from the bills that directly correlated to my points.
Click the image to read the story.
Additionally, if my staffers report on an event in relation to legislation or any other documentation, I require understanding of the document to ensure my staffer's story is accurate and ready to post. The screenshot to the left shows a comment I left on a story about our county's interpretation of a Florida bill. SCPS interpreted that the bill required all instructional materials (movies, YouTube clips, etc.) to be pre-approved by our principal and media specialist. It was important to explain that the bill itself does not state a ban on movies and media, but that the county's interpretation of the vague wording caused the school-wide ban.
Fired Up column
For my opinions column, Fired Up, I focus on national and global events and connect their effects to our area and campus. Besides the fact that I enjoy writing on difficult subject matters, I love the research aspect of drafting these pieces. Not only do I learn more about current events, but I aim to use the column to spark interest in my peers on how global decisions and events can impact our community.
To the left, I have pictured a section of my Fired Up on allegations Gov. DeSantis made against a local private school. In order to write this story, I had to read Orlando Sentinel articles and research on other platforms. In order to have a concrete opinion on his actions, I first had to have a concrete understanding of the event. I hyperlinked the sources and other articles cited so that viewers could read other reports on the topic. Providing easy access to other reliable sources for viewers not only makes my story more credible, but encourages readers to enhance their own understanding on the topic.
Literacy Week social media posts
As a co-president of Quill and Scroll Honor Society, our administration asked me to participate in our annual Literacy Week celebration. I created an Instagram post to share on both our journalism program's social media and the honor society's page, which focused on what news literacy is and why it is important to our society. Through these posts, I was able to educate our followers on how they can identify reliable news and effectively communicate with others on important subjects.
Click through to see the post created for @hagertyjourn and @hagertyquillandscroll.
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