Letter from the Editor

Twenty students, seven days, 5,500 miles and about three hours of sleep a night. With a story as big as the international economic crisis, it takes all of that and more to begin to cover it.

Under the name of the Global Media Initiative of San Jose State University, we hit the ground running the moment we scuttled to our London hotel and zipped open our bags and suitcases.

The assignment: a worsening global economy. The timeframe: two and a half days in both London and Paris. And from the hard work and organized chaos that ensued, these are the highlights:

•Andrew Martinez’ flagship magazine-style piece, “Fallen Idols,” is a well-crafted portrait of the overlying financial turmoil both England and France face.

•Ya-an Chan shows us how a sick economy has yet to infect these two countries’ socialized style of medicine — but will soon.

•Brielle Washington’s reporting on immigration in both London and Paris is an eye-opener to those who were unaware of the rising rifts between races and classes in these cosmopolitan cities.

Not every piece came out as planned. Some came out even better:

•Harvey Rañola, after having two stories fall through in London, stumbled on a nascent charity dedicated to helping educate children in Third-World countries. It was stories like this that conveyed a sense of hope and optimism in such a depressing topic.

•John Ellis contacted some organizations before we touched down across the pond, but the stories he found in the people begging on the streets were more compelling than any official’s statement could convey.

•When Heather Nacht thought her original story wasn’t going anywhere, we came across a news item about the possibility of an alcohol tax in London. She hit the pubs and got some great reactions from the locals. And after arriving in Paris, she sprang on a tip that the recession is convincing more French to drinking boxed wine. Both pieces are great entertaining reads.

We also wanted to flex our multimedia muscles on this trip:

•Alexandra Ruiz-Huidobro, Shiva Zahirfar and Christian Garrucho, who are in broadcast, print and photojournalism respectively, heard about a group of teachers protesting the French government. The three converged their talents and went to work, gathering quotes, footage, information and photos from the demonstration outside the Hotel de Ville in Paris.

•Photographer Joe Proudman crafted a multimedia slideshow after discovering that the Dominion Theatre, normally home to the London musical “We Will Rock You,” also played host to a lively church service every Sunday.

This journey helped shape our experiences, and now we are better equipped to cover those stories in the future that will help shape yours.

– Suzanne Yada, Managing Editor