LOS ALAMITOS, CA — Los Alamitos High School’s journalism class is now producing bi-weekly broadcast episodes called Griffin Gazette Live. Their broadcasts promote recently published stories from the Griffin Gazette and give students TV news experience. A motivated group of writers decided to create this group to challenge themselves and open the opportunity for varieties of journalism within Los Al. 

How was the broadcast journalism group created?

The idea for this new broadcast journalism group originated from the passionate senior Owen Silverman, the executive producer, writer, and editor of Griffin Gazette Live. Silverman explained the unusual beginnings to his idea, which stemmed from his viewing of the movie “Nightcrawler“ after observing Jake Gyllenhaal’s take on broadcast.

“Seeing other people and what they can create through their own broadcast journalism groups inspired me to bring it to the school,” Silverman said.

With this fresh proposal of an unexplored facet of journalism and the help of the film classes at Los Al, a dedicated team of students was assembled and Griffin Gazette Live was born.

What is the purpose of Griffin Gazette Live?

Ultimately, the goal of Griffin Gazette Live is to provide Griffins with a source of steady news surrounding timely events on campus and throughout the world. In a teen culture where news is not regarded as highly as it once was, Griffin Gazette Live is trying to reinstate the interest and emphasize the importance of being aware of news outside of Los Al.

“The broadcast group is trying to make a source of news for people in Los Al and outside of Los Al, so that they can stay informed,” Silverman said. “We take what we think are the most important articles written and then we report about them because we want more people to see what we’re talking about and really get that emotion from us while we’re in front of the camera.”

How does Griffin Gazette Live differ from Los Al’s other source of visual information, Griffin News?

While Griffin News is produced by Los Al’s film classes and includes a similar structure to Griffin Gazette Live, the two media forms have many differences. While Griffin News’ purpose is strictly to convey the activities and trends within Los Al, Griffin Gazette presents a wider scope of interest, including current events in world news.

“We’ve talked about topics that can stretch across different states, such AP classes and other stuff that might affect more people beyond our school,” Silverman said.

However, Griffin Gazette Live would not be possible without the immense help of various Griffin News members eagerly sharing their information and time to aid in the growth of this new project.

Moreover, the introduction of broadcast journalism to Los Al has also provided film students with new opportunities to grow their film skills and engage in an avenue not previously discovered.

“It was definitely a new opportunity for me and something I haven’t tackled before. [This is a] different application of film, and these broadcasts are just another avenue that I get to pursue,” said Johnny Flaim, Griffin Gazette Live’s director.

What challenges has the introduction of broadcast journalism presented?

With the introduction of this new project, there have also been numerous struggles along the way. From figuring out the correct facial expressions and tone of voice to have on camera, to playing with editing software in order to get the perfect background, creating Griffin Gazette Live has been no easy feat.

Additionally, the broadcast journalism group has to deal with the difficulties of choosing which articles to feature in the episodes and how to display the information in an engaging way. However, the students working on this project are dedicated to constantly improving aspects of the episodes such as changing editing styles and discovering more efficient methods of creating their media.

Make sure to tune into Griffin Gazette Live, where you get the news you need to know!