This is an unedited version of the online portfolio I submitted to the Journalism Education Association for the 2016 National Student Journalist of the Year competition, where I finished as one of six runners up out of 33 entries. If you're working on your portfolio for the contest, I hope this site helps you out; if you're curious about the work that helped me become a runner up, I hope you enjoy looking around.
Find my up-to-date portfolio at justinmcurto.weebly.com
Find my up-to-date portfolio at justinmcurto.weebly.com
I interviewed Gov. Sam Brownback after a rally Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio held in Overland Park before the Kansas caucuses. For my story about the rally, I asked Brownback why young voters should support Rubio. (By Karissa Schmidt)
I'm not a journalist because I'm a storyteller. I'm a journalist because I'm a learner.
That doesn't mean I don't like to tell stories — I love using words, photos, videos, graphics and other forms of media to inform, entertain, and provoke thought. More than that, though, I love to learn about what I'm covering. Once I find out some initial information, I usually end up hooked, to the point where I'm no longer asking questions solely for my reporting, but for my own interest in the subject.
I find my curiosity improving stories all the time, whether they're the stories I'm reporting on or the ones I give input on as an editor and a senior staff member. I don't just ask about the unique angles the staff can approach a story from, the information the staff needs to find out for that story and the ways we can present that information online and in print because I'm trying to be difficult. I'm sincerely invested in these stories, and I want to make sure the audience exposed to the stories can find them as interesting as I do.
I've been asking questions on Mill Valley News online and the JagWire newspaper at Mill Valley High School since my sophomore year, when I was a web editor for the JagWire. Last year, my curiosity as the JagWire's managing editor gave me more print experience and helped the JagWire win its first Pacemaker. Now, I'm one of the first editors-in-chief of Mill Valley News, where I find myself questioning how we can create the best content possible, and where that has led to Mill Valley News becoming a Pacemaker finalist for the fourth time in the past five years. In late February, I became the Kansas Student Journalist of the Year.
I hope you enjoy looking at some of the best journalism that my questions have led to. Feel free to get in touch with me as well.
That doesn't mean I don't like to tell stories — I love using words, photos, videos, graphics and other forms of media to inform, entertain, and provoke thought. More than that, though, I love to learn about what I'm covering. Once I find out some initial information, I usually end up hooked, to the point where I'm no longer asking questions solely for my reporting, but for my own interest in the subject.
I find my curiosity improving stories all the time, whether they're the stories I'm reporting on or the ones I give input on as an editor and a senior staff member. I don't just ask about the unique angles the staff can approach a story from, the information the staff needs to find out for that story and the ways we can present that information online and in print because I'm trying to be difficult. I'm sincerely invested in these stories, and I want to make sure the audience exposed to the stories can find them as interesting as I do.
I've been asking questions on Mill Valley News online and the JagWire newspaper at Mill Valley High School since my sophomore year, when I was a web editor for the JagWire. Last year, my curiosity as the JagWire's managing editor gave me more print experience and helped the JagWire win its first Pacemaker. Now, I'm one of the first editors-in-chief of Mill Valley News, where I find myself questioning how we can create the best content possible, and where that has led to Mill Valley News becoming a Pacemaker finalist for the fourth time in the past five years. In late February, I became the Kansas Student Journalist of the Year.
I hope you enjoy looking at some of the best journalism that my questions have led to. Feel free to get in touch with me as well.