By Paritosh Bhole
The Prowler Editor-in-Chief
Watch the pilot episode of the Prowler Podcast at the link below:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fPWCMXQkr6o1JiA7GJ4iaL-AEwSe2nYO/view?usp=sharing
The Prowler, the student newspaper of Bridgewater-Raritan High School, recorded its inaugural pilot episode of the Prowler Podcast, a new multimedia initiative meant to expand and innovate school coverage.
The first episode was recorded during Unit Lunch on Friday, December 12, and will be sent out to several district outlets.
The podcast featured a team of editors and a staff writer from The Prowler’s journalist team: junior Sri Kakarla, a junior Editor-in-Chief for The Prowler; junior Prakhya Bavanari, the social media manager for the paper; and junior Dimah Alhamami, a staff writer. The three were excited to be a part of the new project.
During the filming on December 12, the three students took their microphones within BRTV’s (Bridgewater-Raritan High School’s news broadcast club) recording studio. The podcast episode featured a variety of topics and recent school news events, including the Theatre Arts department's production of The Outsiders and a spotlight on the Speech and Debate team's recent success.
[caption id="attachment_5229" align="aligncenter" width="506"] The podcast episode covered a number of school topics, from the Theatre Arts production of "The Outsiders" to the Speech & Debate team.[/caption]
After the recording session was complete, members of the BRTV crew, along with BRTV Advisor Scott Linzer, assisted in trimming the footage and preparing it for publication on The Prowler’s site and the school district's media outlets.
Dimah Alhamami, the staff writer on the podcast panel, addressed her favorite part of the recording session.
“Working as a team with my fellow club members and friends and learning the process behind podcasting was really memorable,” Alhamami said.
Prakhya Bavanari, an editor on the podcasting team, discussed her experience as part of the project.
“Being part of the recording experience was really exciting and a little nervous at first, but as it went on, I felt more confident and calm. It was interesting to see how the podcast was set up with the mics and screen systems, and I really felt proud knowing that I was contributing to something others would hear and find helpful!” Bavanari said.
Sri Kakarla, one of the featured speakers on the podcast, spoke about what she hopes to see in future episodes.
[caption id="attachment_5230" align="alignright" width="330"] The Prowler looks forward to expanding news coverage to new mediums.[/caption]
“I hope future Prowler Podcast episodes continue to spotlight a wide range of student voices and experiences, especially stories that don’t always get told. I’d love to see more conversations that connect what’s happening at our school to larger cultural, social, and academic topics, while still keeping the episodes engaging and relatable for students,” Kakarla said.
The Prowler expects to continue to release more podcast episodes in the future, either on a bi-monthly or monthly basis. Episodes will be focused on programs all across campus, from culture clubs to sports updates.