Q - Millard North High School

May 10. 2011opinions 430252015105Unfair expectations, satirespur sponsor’s resignationAfter April 1st MN 99News was suspendeddue to the sponsor’sresignation. However,the cause of theresignation goes furtherthan satire.4035Staff EditorialA simple gaze of TVlistings or a couple clickson the computer, and oneis immersed in the politicalcomedy of the modernworld. It is easier now tojoin in on what some viewas an American rite.Even the politiciansthemselves join in. However,is it appropriate for ahigh school news programto do the same?Before forming anopinion, it is important topresent the facts pertainingto the situation.TheGas BeatdownHave gas prices affected your summervacation plans?32YesFirst, MN 99 news wasnot cancelled. It was suspendedbecause the sponsor,English teacher SandraDrummond, resigned.However, the incidenton April 1 st did contributeto her resignation. Theincidentinvolvedtwo anchorswhoparodiedRon Burgundyand SarahPalin.No* Based on a survey of fifty people“We have two very different demographics.Some teachers wanta stoic reading of the announcements,while students want entertainment.”Sandra DrummondFormer Broadcast Club SponsorThe parodies, accordingto Drummond, wentbeyond the planned readingof the announcementsin character.Yet, if the news wasnot cancelled, why wouldthe sponsor resign?According to the formersponsor, it has a lot todo with expectations of the18broadcast.“We have two verydifferent demographics.Some teachers wanta stoic reading of the announcements,while studentswant entertainment.However, the broadcast isfor the kids not the teachers,”Drummond said.Regardless, in the futurethe staff should tonedown the political overtones.There is a place andtime for political satire,and news broadcastsshould not be one of them.That is not to say the“No, they helpus learn, butthey’re unnecessary,”Cody Moon, 9“No, summershould be atime forrelaxing,”Tyra deRozairo, 9“No, it’s ourtime off. Aftera long schoolyear, we needa break,”MattMcClane, 12“It depends,some classesit might be,but for others,not,”TamekiaMoore, 10Student ShoutOutDo you think summerhomework is beneficial?“No, mostpeople areworking or onvacation anddon’t havetime.”KatieClaassen, 9broadcast cannot be entertaining,but membersshould keep the integrityof the broadcast in mind.Which should be to informthe students.On the flip side, staffmembers need to understandthat the broadcastis intended for students.Everyone is entitled tohis or her own opinion,but staff members shouldrecognize the function ofthe news and the serviceit provides.This includes understandingthat the broadcastis made by inexperiencedjournalists and, therefore,expectations should be realistic.In the future thebroadcast should be moreprofessional, but staffmembers need to be morerealistic with their expectations.“No, they aretime consumingandstudents willforget to do it.”Sara Atkins,11lizziejohnsonRead it& Weepeditor-in-chiefWhy saywhy?I haven’t always known what I wanted to bewhen I grew up. Trust me, I went through phasewhere I wanted to be a ballerina slash firefighterslash karate kid slash pop star who lived on Pluto—that is until Pluto was demoted, then I settledfor Venus. Then again, I still kind of wish thatcould be my ultimate career choice.The unimaginative adults tried to squeezethe idea out of me by constantly asking, “Whatdo you want to be when you grow up?” insteadof simply letting me decide. That’s why, when Idecided I wanted to be a journalist, I did not tell asoul because I was positive someone was going totalk me out of it.When I came to Millard North and dived intothe journalism department, all I really focused onwere the basics. The “who”, “what”, “when”, and“where”, but I completely sidestepped the mostimportant question: the why? In journalism, it’simpossible to tell a story without it. However,now that I’m finally being forced to leave my oystershell, I’m realizing it’s a question that couldpertain to pretty much anything.We could sit for hours and skim the surfaceof these past four years, reminisce about Fridaynight football games and homework and teachersand sacrifice, but we would be forgetting toask ourselves the most important question: Why?Why did we make the decisions, some of themstupid, some spectacular, that we did? Why wasthis string of events so memorable? Guaranteed,the answer will be different for everyone, but thatdoesn’t make our answers any less valuable.We remember the football games not for theactual game, but for the friends that surroundedus at them, chanting with raw voices. For jumpingthe fence and claiming ownership of the teamwith taped helmets. We remember the homeworkbecause procrastination was our middle name—the four hours spent on Facebook and the onehour we dedicated to doing the actual homework,senioritis at it’s finest. We remember the teachersbecause of the unending help with chemical formulas,grammar conjugations, required readingsand, let’s be honest, food days. We remember thesacrifices, quitting one club to invest our passionin another, turning down our dream university fora campus we could actually afford. We are goingto remember high school not just because of theusual stereotypical events, but for the momentsthat helped to shape our four years—the stress,the sacrifices, the support systems.Whether we’re heading down the interstateto Lincoln or to a different state (to the Universityof Missouri at Columbia, for me), it so importantthat we keep asking ourselves, “Why?” not just toremember, but to move forward, to keep diggingbelow the surface.As Albert Einsten once said, because you alwayssound better when someone famous agreeswith you, “Learn from yesterday, live for today,hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not tostop questioning.”Millard North editor-in-chief. lizziejohnsonfront editor.bridgetvanbeaumontnews editor.nithyarajagopalanopinions editor. lizziejohnsonfocus editor.elisha-kimdesmanglesfeatures editors. elizabethgraffelizabethmoranentertainment editor. bridgetvanbeaumontHOOFBEATHoofbeat staff will publish nine issues of the paper at MillardNorth High School. Type is set with the use of Macintoshcomputers. Printing is done by White Wolf Printing, Sheldorr,IA. Hoofbeat is a member of the Nebraska High School PressAssociation and National High School Press Association.Hoofbeat exists for the express purpose of student informationand learning. Advertising will be sold at $7 per column inchor by special quarter, half, or full page rates. Information canbe obtained by calling 715-1404. All uncredited editorialsexpress the view of the Hoofbeat staff. All columns expressthe subjective opinions of the writer.sports editor.illustrator.photographers.staff writers.emilyseymourkellybasterinpolitokellybastnickbeaulieuad manager.advisor.principal.justindeffenbacherjamesgeigerbrentgriffithselizabethgrothpeacekanu-asiegbukaylalakejennireillycaseywaughnnataliewheelererinpolitosarahcushmanbrianbegley