Holding brainstorm sessions allows the entire class to stay informed on current school, local and national news. As stated in our staff manual, The Dispatch staff strives for accuracy, integrity, completeness, and careful research in our publication. All facts presented in our work must be verifiable by at least two sources, and all quotes are subject to verification by the editors and/or advisor.
New Voices
Only 16 states have passed legislation to protect student journalists, and Texas is not one of them. New Voices works to challenge the 1988 Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier Supreme Court decision that restricts student journalists' rights to free speech. Censorship by administration is very common in schools all across the nation, and I believe that it is important to challenge this ruling in order to promote free speech for all student journalists
I first heard about New Voices freshman year when my editor Mars brought it up to me. Inspired by the cause, I worked with Mars to create a video for the campaign. As an advocate for First Amendment rights, I believe that no student journalist should be censored for honest and ethical journalism.
Mission Statement
The Dispatch is the official student newspaper of James Bowie High School. 3500 copies are published and distributed for free six times a year, generally once per six weeks for the school’s students, staff and community.
• The Dispatch is an open forum for student expression. The Dispatch is not reviewed by school administration prior to distribution, and the adviser will not act as a censor.¹ Content represents the views of the student staff and not school or district officials.
• The Dispatch works to avoid bias and/or favoritism. We strive to make our coverage and content meaningful, timely, and interesting to our readers.² Our articles reflect our genuine objective of reporting news and will be held to a high standard of quality.
• We make every effort to avoid printing libel, obscenities, innuendo and material that threatens to disrupt the learning process or is an invasion of privacy.³ We avoid electronic manipulation that alters the truth of a photograph without indicating that the photograph is an illustration.
• Staff editorials represent the opinion of the editorial board arrived at by discussion and will not be bylined. Bylined articles are the opinion of the individual writer and do not necessarily⁴ reflect the views of The Dispatch staff or administration as a whole.
• The Dispatch welcomes reader input.⁵ Please send any letters, articles, comments or corrections to bowie.journalism@gmail.com, call (512) 841-4184, mail them to 4103 W. Slaughter Lane, Austin, TX 78749 or drop them off in room F-214 with adviser Michael Reeves or any editor.
Letters must be signed, and emailed letters will require verification before publication. We will not necessarily publish all letters received and reserve the right to edit for length and clarity.
• The Dispatch is an open forum for student expression. The Dispatch is not reviewed by school administration prior to distribution, and the adviser will not act as a censor.¹ Content represents the views of the student staff and not school or district officials.
• The Dispatch works to avoid bias and/or favoritism. We strive to make our coverage and content meaningful, timely, and interesting to our readers.² Our articles reflect our genuine objective of reporting news and will be held to a high standard of quality.
• We make every effort to avoid printing libel, obscenities, innuendo and material that threatens to disrupt the learning process or is an invasion of privacy.³ We avoid electronic manipulation that alters the truth of a photograph without indicating that the photograph is an illustration.
• Staff editorials represent the opinion of the editorial board arrived at by discussion and will not be bylined. Bylined articles are the opinion of the individual writer and do not necessarily⁴ reflect the views of The Dispatch staff or administration as a whole.
• The Dispatch welcomes reader input.⁵ Please send any letters, articles, comments or corrections to bowie.journalism@gmail.com, call (512) 841-4184, mail them to 4103 W. Slaughter Lane, Austin, TX 78749 or drop them off in room F-214 with adviser Michael Reeves or any editor.
Letters must be signed, and emailed letters will require verification before publication. We will not necessarily publish all letters received and reserve the right to edit for length and clarity.
1) As a student publication, we prioritize freedom of speech and expression for ethical and honest journalism.
2) We work to avoid bias by interviewing a diverse group of students with varying opinions and ideas. For example, in this story I did on a protest against Roe V. Wade, I ensured that we interviewed students who were both in support of and against the new legislation. Each story we publish remains timely and of interest to our student population.
3) We strive to remain truthful in each and every work. Every image that has been altered in ways other than simply color and lighting correction is labeled as a photo illustration.
4) With proper facts and reasoning, staff members are welcome to write opinion pieces on any issues or events that are important to them. These stories are always labeled as commentary and reflect the views of the writer, not necessarily the entire staff.
5) Reader input is always welcome, especially in regard to pressing and current events. Recently I published a letter written by our school's GSA alliance in regard to the misuse of our school's new gender-neutral bathrooms. I believe that it is important and crucial to give a voice to those who are less represented in media.