For my article, I would like to focus on sustainable eating. I have noticed that the Pit and Benson don’t seem to compost and this seems to be a missed opportunity because there is a lot of food wasted. I would be interested to see if composting on Wake’s campus could be a possibility, and perhaps it could be incorporated into Campus Gardens. I would be interested to talk to the people who are in charge of dining services to find out if composting on campus would be a possibility. Additionally, I want to focus on the businesses that are serving students in Benson. They only serve food out of non reusable containers, which seems like a waste. Would it be possible to have reusable dishes? Does Wake know what their sustainability practices are or are they independent? If they are not environmentally conscious, is it possible to rent out those spaces to food companies that have the environment in their mission?

For my localization story I plan to write about the Democratic primary and the recent caucuses. I am interested to see how closely students at Wake are following the events. Particularly since our generation is supposed to be very political, I want to see if the average Wake student is interested/informed about the election and the candidates. For my interviews I will speak to people with different degrees of political engagement and different political alignments. I would be interested to talk to the president of the Democrat club and president of the Republican club on campus. I will also interview average students who are less involved in politics, including students who are not registered with either party. Even if they are not voting in the primaries, I want to know if they are following along with what is happening and to what degree they feel they are impacted by who the Democratic nominee will be.

Lisa Lerer leads with intros that are short and don’t give the reader much insight into what the article is about, so they are forced to keep reading.

“This could go on for a while.” is how she starts an article about the Democratic race.

“We’re down to the single digits.” is her lead for an article about Andrew Yang dropping out of the presidential race.

Lerer is able to draw you in with short, catchy sentences that force you to read more to find out what is going on.

She ends her articles in the same short way:

“His name? Donald J. Trump.” is how she ends the same article about the Democratic race.

From reading her articles, I have learned that a short, concise sentence can entice the reader and convince them to keep reading. I often have trouble determining how to write leads and conclusions, and Lerer has showed me a more ambiguous way of starting your article without giving everything away in the lead.

I also noted that the way she selects people to get quotes from are relevant to the story she is writing. For example, she quoted Chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party when writing about caucuses. When I wrote my speech story, I just quoted a random audience member, which provided different insight than quoting someone with a direct connection to the topic. From reading her articles, I have determined that a combination of quoting people connected to the topic and a random person is the most effective way to incorporate quotes.

For my story, I am planning to attend the event “A Conversation With Benjamin Crump,” which takes place Wednesday, February 12th at 6pm in Pugh Auditorium.

I am particularly interested in criminal justice and am considering law school, so I am interested to what Benjamin Crump, who has played a role in many famous cases, has to say about our criminal justice system.

Lisa Lerer was a lead reporter covering the 2016 presidential election and its aftermath and is now actively covering the 2020 race. She has been involved in researching how female-led activism is reshaping American politics, as well as Democratic resistance to the Trump administration. Her writing has appeared in Politico, Businessweek, Bloomberg News, The Atlantic, Fortune, and The Wall Street Journal to name a few.  She is based in D.C but also spends time in the New York newsroom.

One of my areas of interest in politics is the 2020 election, which I why I am choosing to follow Lisa Lerer. She is experienced at reporting on elections and the presidential race, since she covered the 2016 election. Additionally, the fact that she has research surrounding women and female led activism is of interest to me, especially since women were influential in the 2016 election. As a young woman myself, I am particularly excited to follow a female reporter.

Links to Articles

https://www.nytco.com/press/lisa-lerer-joins-the-politics-desk/