Showcase Northern California college journalism
My long memory makes it easy to recall that this student and I were discussing terminology about transgender people after our regular, Thursday class period on Sept. 28, 2017 when he noted aloud how much he enjoyed pursuing LGBT stories. “When I write them,” he said of such stories, “I’m learning about LGBT people and … Continue reading Songs of a Man’s Life
By Maci Lee Martell San Francisco is known for its wealth of creative souls. Most artists in the city dream of seeing their paintings on display in an upscale gallery, or playing indie rock music for a sold-out crowd at The Fillmore. But Toni Maloon is not like most artists. For 61-year-old Maloon, creative pursuits … Continue reading The Doyenne of Ukulele Design
By Lance Tisuela Vas Kiniris is a charismatic, unreserved product of the San Francisco Bay Area, with a passion for progress and immersion. He serves as director of the Fillmore Merchants Association and secretary of the San Francisco Council of District Merchants Associations. “I tend to look forward all the time, I’m not one to … Continue reading An Unofficial Mayor of The Fillmore
When tackling their crime assignments, my students quickly realized that crime stories weren’t limited to covering homicides or other violence. Often, a great story is about the first responders themselves. This student leveraged a relative’s connection into securing interviews with longtime firefighters. By Marissa Perry SAN RAMON - Individuals who are in the line of … Continue reading Firefighting — Not Just a Job But Also a Calling
By Ashley Loaeza In a quiet block of Mount Diablo Street in Concord, just a few blocks from the downtown area, sits a little gem unknown to many: A tiny, one-story home painted green and yellow surrounded by plants of all sorts, bordered by a green picket fence that is hard to miss. Aside from … Continue reading Guardian of Concord’s Art World
During an interview to complete her story assignment, this student found herself being interviewed by the subject, an up-and-coming chef, about her social media projects that he had seen. Maybe they had mutual interest to collaborate? Or, maybe the chef knew someone with a work opportunity for her. She told me about all this—blushing a … Continue reading From Soup to Nuts: There’s Nary a Beef About This Chef
For their profile assignments, I asked my students to, if feasible before our unforgiving deadline, pursue two additional interviews beyond the person who was their subject. The purpose was for them to gain more experience in asking their neighborhood beat sources about how and why certain individuals were newsworthy. What impact did the profile subject … Continue reading More Than A Pretty Face — Entertaining Audiences For A Cause
San Francisco’s Chinatown bills itself as the largest district of its kind outside of Asia and the most established in North America. But not every merchant is of Chinese ancestry. Even though people from the Indian subcontinent are considered Asian-American per U.S. Census, the definition of Asian-American in daily discourse and life remains fluid: By … Continue reading A Different Perspective in Chinatown
Reporting with Lydia Lum 