Roxanne Fleischer
Co-News Editor
On Thursday November 20, as the bus pulled in front of a museum in Washington, D.C., 36 journalism students could see the first amendment etched into a 74-foot-tall marble wall. They were at the Newseum.Professor Terry Dalton took his three journalism classes, (Media Ethics, Introduction to Journalism, and a FYS class, Journalism in the 21st century: the real story,) to the Newseum that claims to be, “the world’s most interactive museum, where five centuries of news history meets up-to-the-second technology on America’s Main Street.”
“It is a wonderful place for students and others to be informed, educated, and entertained about the news media, whether it be through films, exhibits, videos, or artifacts,” said Dalton.
“The Newseum is a powerful reminder that while newspapers may not last forever, journalism will never disappear,” Dalton said.
The Newseum has six different levels that hold 14 major galleries and 15 theatres. There is also a changing exhibits gallery that is currently, “G-Men and Journalists: Top News Stories of the FBI’s First Century.” Susie Riddle, who is taking two of Dalton’s classes, said that the FBI exhibit was her favorite.
“I learned about the past of reporting and the extraordinary lengths reporters go to,” she said.
When the students first arrived at the Newseum, they watched a short 4-D film that gave a short history on reporting. Jessie Paskowski, who is currently in Dalton’s Introduction to Journalism Class, said that the films were, “educational and fun to watch?I was learning in a different way which made it more interesting then just reading out of a book.”
Paskowski said her favorite exhibits were the 9-11 the Pulitzer Prize Photographs galleries. “It was somewhat emotional going through both exhibits and watching the videos,” she said.
Dalton also commented on the photo gallery, adding that there were “some of the most poignant photography that you will see anywhere.”
Overall, both students and Professor Dalton were pleased with the field trip. “I was hoping that they would appreciate the many great things about journalism in this country?I shudder to think of what this country would be like without journalists looking out for the public by being watchdogs of government, big business, and the powerful in general.”