Thompson advocating for thrifting, bilingual programs through work in journalism

Coppell High School junior Juliana Thompson is a second-year member of KCBY and passionate about creating unbiased, high-quality news. Recently, she submitted a mini documentary titled Impact of Your Clothing to the University Interscholastic League (UIL) Film Festival that examined the consequences of fast fashion and is currently working on reestablishing KCBY Español.

Why did you join KCBY?

I have always been really interested in journalism, but larger than that, I watched the shows since I was in middle school and I fell in love with the format. It always seemed like so much fun to put in all your energy into working with a crew and putting segments together to create this nice, high-quality show. It was something I wanted to be a part of.

Why is scholastic journalism important?

We are learning from a young age what unbiased news is. We are learning the importance of being informed, not only about your country and your city, but also within your immediate community and school.

What do you enjoy most about being a journalist?

With KCBY specifically, I enjoy that I get to work with multiple aspects. We get to write a script, contact people, talk to people, film and edit. It really changes week to week, because sometimes I love writing the most and sometimes I love editing segments. Honestly, I love every step of the process.

What are some skills you have learned through KCBY? 

Just being part of a crew has taught me a lot of broader life skills like working as part of a team. It can very easily fall apart and a lot of things will fall through the cracks if we do not stay organized and communicate with each other constantly. We really do have really short turnarounds and it is stressful at times, but it has definitely paid off a lot, and I have seen how it has helped me in other classes and other parts of my life.

What is the segment you are most proud of creating?

What I’m most proud of is a segment that I created recently and submitted to the University Interscholastic League (UIL) Film Festival. It was called The Impact of Your Clothing and it was a mini-documentary. I discussed the fast fashion industry and the negative impacts of it, and why I decided to stop purchasing new clothing and now try to buy everything secondhand. I really loved how I could focus on something I was really passionate about.

Why is KCBY Español important? 

I speak Spanish, and it’s really important we reach as wide of an audience as possible, especially being in Dallas, because there are a lot of Latino people here. There are so many cultures in this school, and we should take advantage of that and share stories in every format possible. It really pushed me with my Spanish because it challenged me to have to tell a story in a different format and work on my writing in a different language.

How does journalism impact your life?

I want to continue studying journalism in college. It is what I am most passionate about. Delivering news in an unbiased way is such an important part of society, and [although] some people say it’s a dying field and there aren’t really jobs, there’s always going to be a need for journalism in some format. Even if the traditional journalist who reports on live television doesn’t exist in 20 years, journalism is always going to exist. I don’t know if I’m going to study journalism specifically, but communications is what I am most passionate about.

Has your outlook on journalism changed after you joined KCBY?

When I was little, I thought being a journalist was just reading a teleprompter, and I didn’t realize how you are truly involved in every single step of the process. It’s not just being in front of the camera, it’s about making connections and having to work quickly. Being in the program has taught me a lot about every single aspect of it, and I still have a lot to learn, but it has pushed me to work on my strengths and weaknesses.

Follow Avani Kashyap @AvaniKashyap03 and @CHSCampusNews on Twitter.