Class paper

It's time for the weekly meeting and at least 18 of the 25 members constituting an editorial team have assembled to brainstorm on topics...

It8217;s time for the weekly meeting and at least 18 of the 25 members constituting an editorial team have assembled to brainstorm on topics, stories, visuals and design for the next issue of their journal. Rijuta Lamba, the editor, believes that the focus of the next issue should be disability. After all, there8217;s very little information available on the various types of disabilities and people usually associate it solely with physical handicap and autism, she argues with her colleagues.

Nothing extraordinary about this editorial meeting but for the fact that all the 8216;editors8217;, 8216;reporters8217; and 8216;visualisers8217; are students of class IX and XI.

They are working on The Yamuna, a magazine8212;as one of them describes it8212;for the children and by the children. What8217;s noteworthy is the fact that the topics that this quarterly magazine focuses on are not really regular kids stuff. From food security to the role of the media, these young adults take serious views on issues that concern society and take out a journal that8217;s packed with new thoughts and new ideas.

The next issue is due in January, but with their examination scheduled for December, there8217;s not much time left.

Started in 2003, The Yamuna is part of a media literacy project started by the Gandhi Smriti. The aim is to develop a critical understanding of the media among children and young adults. Every year, one student from class XI is chosen to become the editor. Though Delhi contributes the maximum number of student-journalists working on the magazine, there are child-reporters in far flung areas of the country8212;from Guwahati in Assam to Koraput in Orissa to Belgaum in Karnataka to Solan in Himachal Pradesh8212; who contribute stories for the journal. At times, outstation reporters write in their mother tongue and the editorial team has to get it translated into English. But the real challenge, as Rijuta puts it, is to coordinate online with reporters based at Mexico City and Kathmandu who come up with news and views from their parts of the world.

While for class IX student Isha, the magazine is an opportunity to write, for Pearl it is an opportunity to interact with people from diverse background. If Himanshi associates the thrill of meeting celebrities like Mike Pandey with the magazine, for Akhilesh, it provides a platform to contribute to society8212;even if it8217;s in small measure, he says.

Every working Saturday, the group meets to discuss the nitty-gritty as well as to allot duties and assignments. Every aspect, from the way a particular story should be written to illustrations or photographs accompanying it, from the masthead to the standalone graphics, are thrashed out. As Keshava puts it, 8220;The sheer exposure that The Yamuna has provided all of us is phenomenal.8221; Adds Seema, 8220;Periodic interactions with children from Mexico City and Kathmandu as well as from the tribal belt of the country have opened a new world for me.8221;

Story continues below this ad

Of course, some of them want to become journalists when they grow up, but for now they are happy with their own newspaper and confident that their views on the media and other burning issues can be the first step towards change.