With great pleasure, I present to you this semester’s second copy of the Wheaton Wire. In this issue, you will find stories of artificial intelligence, inflation, water polo, and much more. I hope your October break was rejuvenating. I personally got COVID-19 for the second time but enjoyed the comforts of home in Maine. Being sick made me think about what campus was like when I first started here, with COVID-19 limiting our meetings to Zoom. The Wire covered stories much differently at the start of the pandemic. It is a privilege to watch this year’s team grow in person and throw themselves completely into the craft of journalism.
Recently, I was able to attend the SALT Institute for Documentary Studies’ 50th anniversary in Portland, Maine, where I schmoozed and ate good food but also heard some insightful words from successful journalists. There was something in particular that NPR reporter and Salt Alumn Emily Kwong said that stuck with me: “SALT is a form of attention given, and I think attention can feel elusive in this day in age. We have all these algorithms competing for our attention, manipulating our attention. It’s hard to be a person right now.” She continued, “You are worth paying attention to even if you are not a celebrity, but just because you are a person in a place.”
I think this mindset regarding attention is important to bring to college newspapers. We may not be able to keep up with what your social media feed deems attention worthy, but we can try our best to choose stories that may be overlooked. It is undeniable that part of journalism is attention giving and the art of choosing what is displayed. If you have any stories that you feel are worthy of attention, email thewheatonwire@gmail.com.
Madison Morin
Class of 2024
Wheaton Wire Editor-In-Chief