The most exciting aspect of this week started with a young reporter who came into the City Paper offices on Tuesday. My boss had a young lady shadowing him for the day, who from what I recall is an incoming freshman journalism student at a Boston university. It was neat to meet and briefly speak with her. 

I overheard my boss tell her the weekly editorial meeting was soon and that she was welcome to join, so I asked if I could join. Sure enough, I made my way into the meeting. 

It was pretty fascinating to watch, and I was actually surprised by how it went. I expected there to be much more spitballing, arguing, and experimenting, but it actually went incredibly smoothly and breezily. I talked to my boss afterward, and he explained to me that the reason it wasn’t very contentious or complicated is that the City Paper is largely section-run. That spitballing, arguing and experimenting exists, but mostly within each section. The meetings are mostly there to make sure the sections don’t overlap, and that the usage of the limited space is done correctly. 

I also attended a poetry reading at a venue in Oakland called Hemingway’s Cafe. It was a poetry reading. I expected the reading to be attended by trendy 20-somethings but the audience actually looked more like that of a church,  which I found interesting. This was an idea I pitched because a friend of mine wanted me to go. 

Not a very intensive week but a good one.