Cherylynn Tsushima

Confession: I miss The Berkeley Beacon

I miss putting together the paper on Wednesday nights in the basement (read: dungeon) of Piano Row. I miss Monday night staff meetings and critiques with Ric. I miss the uber-motivated and hard-working editors, writers, and photographers. I miss picking up the paper every Thursday morning. I miss dancing to the latest guilty pleasure when everyone takes a five minute (in)sanity break. I miss being known as PC (aka Politically Correct)…okay, not so much that one. I miss trying to think of raunchy titles for NIBs. I miss taking photos and editing them down to find the most dynamic image to accompany a story. I miss the weekly miracle of helping a newspaper come into being and knowing it was based on the work of my fellow Emersonians.

I still feel an insane surge of pride for my college newspaper. I was so impressed when they rolled out their new HTML5 website. It makes me happy that even after I’ve graduated, my photographs get used. (Yeah, archives.) For present Beaconites, I hope you know that this alumni is proud to see that the legacy of accurate reporting, distinct visuals, perfect AP Style, and innovative work continues.

Reasons I Will Miss Emerson: Reason 2

Reason 2: Wednesday nights in the Dungeon aka The Berkeley Beacon Office.

When I was a small and scared freshman, I made my way down to the Beacon office the week after Orientation.  There was a crowd of students and I felt like an insignificant guppy in a very large sea of former high school editor-in-chiefs.  I had never worked for my high school’s newspaper because we didn’t have one.  But I was an eager beaver and I wanted to write for The Berkeley Beacon, so there I was with my little Moleskine and a pen.  I picked up a story about the volunteer fair for the Lifestyle section.  After an extensive round of edits, I had the pleasure of seeing my name in print.  I was hooked.  Eventually, I started taking photographs for the Beacon and realized I was much more passionate about photojournalism than being a reporter.

As the semesters went by, I eventually became assistant photography editor, then co-photography editor, then photography editor, and now a managing editor.  It’s been a lot of hours, but it’s been worth it.  We have two more issues before I’m done and it’s strange to think that I won’t be spending my Wednesday nights in this basement office filled with intelligent and hard-working individuals.  I’m going to miss it. 

I know this paper has flaws- from typos, to grammatical errors, to incorrect attributions and the like, but I also know how dedicated the staff is.  I know how hard each person works and how thankless the job can be.  I’m also thankful for the opportunities the newspaper has given me.  If it wasn’t for the Beacon, I don’t know when I would have realized that photojournalism is the place for me.  I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to go to conferences in Austin, Phoenix, and Los Angeles to learn more about journalism from professionals and my peers at other college newspapers.  I could probably write an entire paper about how helpful the Beacon has been in preparing me for the professional world, but you’ve probably heard it before. What it all boils down to, is the fact that I am proud to have been a part of this organization and I’m going to miss it.