OPEN LETTER To: Buffalo Common Council (Education committee)
From: Patrick H Freeman
Re: Creation of a Student operated Digital Media group reporting on Buffalo Public School activities
Patrick H Freeman
I am writing you this letter to recommend that the Buffalo Public Schools incorporate, digital media-based journalism program that would be run by students covering all student activities. Some of the best talents in the world come from our youth right here in the city of Buffalo, but they are no longer getting adequate coverage from traditional media outlets. It has become apparent that the best way to solve this problem in the most fiscally responsible way is to incorporate a digital media platform, dedicated to covering the outstanding achievements of our youth by our students that might have an interest in becoming journalists.
This program would utilize the Apollo media center as the hub of this city-wide program, dedicated to highlighting the achievements of the students of Buffalo New York, from sports to the arts. Students will cover themselves and learn to write about the activities that take place in the city of Buffalo. The environment of media coverage has so drastically changed that an idea like this is a no brainer, since the sources for this program are already available. The Apollo media center will serve as the media production hub training young students in how to cover sports, and various other activities that are no longer receiving the publicity that they once received.
This program can be city wide at the high school level, incorporating students from each school to create digital media contribution from each school. Teachers and area reporters can be utilized as advisors in assisting students with production and writing columns related to events at each school. The Apollo media center would become the central production hub in putting the digital media operation into action. Students would produce their own programs reporting on activities in the city from sports, plays, and other positive functions highlighting our young people. Students would also be responsible for maintaining media platforms with written and video content.
Most of the equipment necessary to create this entity already is here along with the fact that the cell phone gives any individual the ability to broadcast and report a story instantly. cc. Mayor Sean Ryan Buffalo Common Council Buffalo Board of Education