The following is part of a series of reposted journal entries made for a reporting class I am taking right now. They aren't particularly edited, or necessarily even interesting (though hopefully they are), but they do a pretty good job of expressing what I am doing right now. And, of course, they are pre-made content. Reader beware.
Journal Entry 3: Spot News
I got in contact with the Neighborhood Leader’s Council the other day, and found that they were having a quarterly meeting Downtown on 10th Street near the library, so I decided to attend. I stayed for only about 40 minutes, at which point I realized that my time could be better spent doing just about anything else. Not to say that it wasn’t informative going there, but once I realize how ineffective their bureaucracy was there wasn’t much more to gain from staying.
As I was leaving the building, I noticed that there were a couple of police cruisers flashing their lights in the parking lot across the street from me. Having my camera on me, I decided I’d pull it out and find out what was going on. It seemed that there were a group of red-shirted security guards, two cruisers, a bike cop, and one small forlorn figure.
As I took photos, I realized that this girl in question was clearly quite young, as well as clearly drunk and in handcuffs. Sensing good photos in the making, I wanted to get closer and get my flash going, because the light was quite dark. Yet, I couldn’t get myself to come near. This was not my first spot news, but I couldn’t justify further embarrassing the girl.
I continued shooting with my long lens, as the girl waited for her mother to take custody of her. After the girl had left, I spoke with the police, who said that she had been 14 years old and had been publicly intoxicated and resisted arrest. While the photos I took were of a much poorer quality than I could have got, I still think that I did the right thing. Though I’m sure I’ll argue that when my spot news assignment comes due in week eight.
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