We got the beat!

Here at the Phoenix, we are constantly striving to improve our news coverage and bring GSU the most relevant, interesting, and useful news.
As part of the evolution of the Phoenix, we are seeking beat writers. Some of you may be wondering, what is a beat writer? A beat writer is a writer who covers a specific topic or issue. Beat reporting allows the writer to develop a deeper understanding of a topic. We feel that having beat writers will create better news content for our readers. Students who cover a beat for the Phoenix will benefit most of all, as they will gain knowledge and expertise on the topics they cover. As GSU students prepare to enter the real world, having expertise on a particular topic can help them in their job search.
Some of you may be wondering, what kinds of students are we looking for as beat writers? The answer is, any student who is interested! The beats that we are looking to cover are varied and encompass a wide variety of backgrounds. If you’ve never written for a newspaper before that is okay! We are seeking students with strong writing skills, or an interest in learning to improve
their writing skills, and those students can come from any background or major. This opportunity is open to all GSU students.
If you are an interested student, you may be wondering what types of beats we are looking for writers to cover. Here is a list of the beats we are seeking writers for:
*Campus news & events
*Local news (i.e. University Park & surrounding area)
*Theater (i.e. events at the Center for Performing Arts)
*Sports (i.e. news on new GSU sports clubs, as well as events at the Recreation and Fitness Center)
*GSU success stories (i.e. current students, alum, faculty)
*Technology
*Politics
*Finance
*Health, nutrition & fitness
*Arts & Entertainment
*Science
*Business
*Restaurant reviews
Students who are interested in covering a beat for the Phoenix should email a writing sample of 250 words pertaining to the topic they are interested in covering to Melissa Hall, Phoenix Editor-in-Chief, at phoenix@govst.edu with the subject line: Beat Writer. The writing sample should be sent as an attached Microsoft Word document. Also, in the body of the email, please give a brief statement (three to five sentences) as to why you are interested in covering a specific beat for the Phoenix, and make sure to include your contact information.
If there is a topic not listed here that you think should be covered, or would like to see covered, please get in touch with me and let me know! Here at the Phoenix we are always open to new ideas and suggestions.