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Editing, Leadership and Team Building

Each week, InFocus airs at least two packages produced by our reporters. Thus, the process of editing stories has to be done efficiently to guarantee we air the best possible show. As a leadership team, my two other Executive Producers and I make sure that all stories receive feedback and editing at multiple levels. Through a show calendar, I plan out which stories will be aired on which days to stay organized and ensure that all approved packages end up on the show.

A spreadsheet detailing each member of staff, their current status with their package, and what feedback has been given.

Keeping a calendar with information about all of our shows has helped me stay organized while deciding which packages to air.

This year, the executive producer team has started a system of live feedback. On the last week of the cycle, all staff members show their rough cuts in front of the class and receive feedback from around the classroom. Everyone is encouraged to share their suggestions with the reporter of the package, allowing for feedback that a smaller circle of eyes may not have thought of.

In addition to a show calendar and writing down editing status, our assignment calendar has helped us track everyone's progress on the current package cycle. Each cycle, there are multiple checkpoints, such as submitting proof of contacting a source, presenting an example of a-roll (interviews) and b-roll, and sharing a rough cut (first draft) and a final cut after feedback.

Every Wednesday, my fellow Executive Producers and I meet with our adviser before class to plan out the week. These morning meetings have served as a ritual to go over upcoming deadlines, staff members’ progress on their stories, what content we have for the upcoming week, and our class plans. In addition to “exec meetings,” we meet with our full team of managers a couple times a month. InFocus managers are responsible for different aspects of the publication like our website, equipment, livestreams, social media accounts, and planning class activities. As a whole team, we meet regularly so that managers can share the latest updates regarding their responsibilities and future plans.

Meeting notes for a manager meeting. Each manager position has clear objectives and goals to achieve for the next meeting.

At the start of each class period, we go over our class slides for the day. These slideshows include the daily agenda, upcoming deadlines, the show roles for filming (often with funny edits!) and a question of the day. Oftentimes these QOTDs include check-ins, asking staff members about their progress on their stories. However, to get the day started in a fun way, they usually contain thought-provoking questions such as “is a hotdog a sandwich?” (in my opinion, it is).

Our QOTDs have encouraged discussion and helped us learn more about the personalities of the InFocus staff.

Camp MAC Leadership

In addition to leading InFocus, during my junior year, I was selected to be on the leadership team for Camp MAC, Paly’s summer journalism camp. The previous summer, I had gained familiarity with the camp when I held a role as a camp counselor. Over the course of 6 months, myself and 5 other juniors from Paly publications planned the full operations of the week-long camp. This involved marketing the program in person and online, creating merchandise, monitoring registrations, recruiting and training counselors, budgeting for food and supplies, and much more. Personally, I was also responsible for setting up and maintaining our program on ActivityHero, an online website that manages camp registrations, overseeing the media team who captured footage throughout camp, communicating with campers' parents for attendance purposes, and conducting attendance during check-in and check-out.

The 2023 Camp Mac schedule, which listed all the activities and curriculum items for the whole week.

As a leadership team, we had to budget for food, merchandise, marketing, and other supplies.