Let’s face it. Professional newspapers around the world are failing to keep their business afloat, leaving aspiring journalists striving for a career that has dwindled in size and popularity over the last few years. What was once a household staple, brimming with information and news, has transitioned into something citizens rarely dane to glance at. According to Sarah Fischer, author of Axios Media Trends, one-third of U.S. newspapers are projected to be gone by 2024. Whether it be the lack of money, uninterested readers, or plummeting subscriptions, this situation is the resounding story of thousands of professional and student-journalism programs across the world.
Millions of reporters and photographers find their work hanging in the balance while they work their backs off to get accurate news to the front of every household’s door. Having an informed community helps make decisions rooted in fact and reality, and not falsifying news perpetuated by social media. Recently, The Claremont Courier, the official newspaper for Claremont and a pivotal cornerstone in the community, had to make the heart-wrenching decision to fire one of their longtime photographers, Steven Felschundneff. Peter Weinberger, the Courier’s Editor in Chief, explained in an article announcing the decision, “When times are difficult, weighing the needs of the individual with the needs of the company can be excruciating. And there are rarely any good answers.” Steven’s Felschundneff story is just one of the millions laid off by their newspapers who devoted their lives to journalism, but unfortunately paid the price of its ever decreasing popularity.
Claremont High School is home to its own successful student-journalism program with a 93 year history. Over the past few years, there has been a significant decline in the number of subscriptions for Wolfpacket. 10 years ago, our subscriptions ranged in the hundreds but have since steadily diminished to a measly small number of 30-40 subscriptions. In addition to a falling subscription rate, the City of Claremont’s Teen Committee redirected its $2,000 grant to the Wolfpacket years ago. After reaching out for an interview, the Wolfpacket has not received a response.
The Wolfpacket, just like any other elective or major club receives $900 from the school for their entire annual budget, from there, it is up to the elective itself to strategize ways to fund more money. For the Wolfpacket, the rest of the funds are generated through sparse ad revenue from local businesses who generally are not inclined to pay for a feature in a student-run newspaper, yet these ads alone cannot cover the total cost of printing.
Journalism at its core is in greater jeopardy than ever. Ensuring the ramifications are not permanent starts with helping the next generation of journalists: students. To put things simply, student newspapers like the Wolfpacket need more funding. While all electives are important, none of them reach the front doors or mailboxes of communities like the Wolfpacket does. The money does not just need to come from the school however. With more subscriptions and a stronger support for student news programs, our Wolfpacket can reach the same number of a couple hundred subscriptions to keep the legacy of journalism alive and breathing through the future generation of reporters.
As of right now the Wolfpacket is fundraising for the final two issues of the year. They have set a goal towards fundraising $5,000 which will go toward the $650 print cost of each issue and the additional $300 for the senior issue (an issue dedicated completely to the graduating class and their plans post high school), and setting up next year’s staff for a fruitful year. If you are interested in donating, please click this link:
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