REAL NEWS: Hoboken Student Named to ‘Scholastic News Kids Press Corps’

(ABOVE: Photo by Mimi Park)

It’s a tough time for the media—trust us, we know…

We’re the enemy, we’re fake, we’re biased, we’re just plain awful.

Frankly, we could use a fresh outlook. To that end, the award-winning Scholastic News Kids Press Corps welcomed 24 new and 15 returning Kid Reporters, ages 10 to 14, from across the United States and around the world.

“Our Kid Reporters play a pivotal role in bringing age-appropriate stories to their peers,” said Suzanne McCabe, Editor of the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps. “We’re looking forward to adding the voices of young journalists from across the globe to the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps this year. Learning about issues that children in other countries face is a great way for readers of Scholastic News® Online and Scholastic News magazines to broaden their understanding of the world.”

Scholastic News Kids Press Corps editors selected this year’s Kid Reporters after reviewing more than 300 entries. Among the applicants was Hoboken resident and 6th Grader Ava Park-Matt, who looks forward to serving in her new role

We had a chance to chat with Ava, to find out what she’ll be covering and how she’ll be covering it.

hMAG: What’s your beat? 

Ava Park-Matt: “We don’t really have a beat except for stories that are in our community.

I worry about our environment and animals. Since we live on the Hudson River and my dad has a sailboat, my family volunteers to do things to help keep our waterways clean. I’m hoping to do a story on the Billion Oyster Project. 

I also have two dogs and a cat and I volunteer to help the Liberty Humane Society, so I’d like to report on Bark in the Park. My first assignment is the Storm Drain Project that the Green Team did in Hoboken.

I’d like to show other kids that they can help make the world a better place and have fun doing it.

It would also be cool to cover entertainment stories like Broadway and movies openings and maybe interview some celebrities.

h: What do you plan on doing with the experience you gain as a Kid Reporter?

APM: I like to write a lot and this will help me become a better writer. I’m working on my first novel now. I like to travel a lot so maybe becoming a travel writer would be fun.

h: What do you think are the biggest issues facing journalists today, and how would you like to see them addressed?

APM: Uh. I’m only 11. Maybe make sure that people know the difference between what are real stories and which ones are made-up. Lots of people think that what they read on the internet is real news when a lot of it is just made-up.

Only 11, but she’s already leaps and bounds ahead of most media consumers…

We look forward to great things from Ava!