In the “closed” signs in restaurant windows. In the commercials on TV that tell us “we are all in this together.” In the masked faces of fellow patrons at the grocery store. The COVID-19 virus’ impact is apparent everywhere we turn and has forced us to change how we live our lives.
John Brown University students, along with other students around the country, have had to adapt to remote class environments. Students of all disciplines and majors have been challenged to find a way to obtain the practical skills they need to graduate over Zoom calls and recorded classes. Communications students, who seek to interact with others for articles and broadcasts, have been impacted by social distancing regulations. As journalists, we rely on the thoughts and ideas of other people to report on our local community, the nation and the world. However, when campus is closed and we’re told to stay indoors far away from other people, our coverage of campus happenings and ability to have in-person interviews all but disappears.
Student journalists around the country are used to rigid deadlines and the chaotic banter of a newsroom on production nights. Even when we have the entire staff gathered together, we often work right to the deadline. In this remote working environment, the Threefold Advocate, as well as other student newspapers around the country, has had to rethink the ways we produce content and make it available for students to read.
That is why we are standing alongside communication students around the country who have been struggling to keep their student newsrooms afloat during this time. We are using #SaveStudentNewsrooms in solidarity with other student publications across the country. You can help support us by sharing this post or going online to http://advocate.jbu.edu/ to read the Threefold’s latest content. If you have any questions for us to find answers to, or if you would like to contribute to our site by writing an opinion piece about how COVID-19 has impacted you, email us at Advocate@jbu.edu.
We are grateful to see so many people standing together during this time, especially JBU students, as we are spread across the country and across the world. Your stories of encouragement, creativity and resilience remind us of what a great community we serve. Thank you for your support.
Photo courtesy of Fio Valle, The Nesher Staff