Media students from Parkland, Florida are telling their story their own way, and are swearing off sticking a camera into a grieving person’s face. They are taking this experience and putting it into their skills as journalists.

The media students were recording during the lockdown and taking pictures, they have also taken pictures of the things students have done to share the importance of stricter gun control laws to share their own story with a documentary. “Their first project will be a documentary. It will focus mainly on the activism that sprouted from the shooting,” said reporter Steve Hartman.

The students even recorded their broadcasting teacher, Eric Garner during the lockdown, he said it was a little disconcerting having his students video tape him. “They know what they’re doing behind camera. They know what they’re doing in front of the camera and it’s impressive,” Garner said.

The students shared that they swore off sticking a camera in the face of a grieving person because, “When you’re looking into the face of a friend you know, and they’re crying, and you want to take a picture of them because you know it’s an amazing shot to get, you know, you see the recognition in their eyes, it’s so much harder to do it then, and I think that’s something that every journalist should recognize that that could be my friend.”  

“Treat everyone like you know them,” said one of the students.