Justin Ching: Reporter

Long hours at school don’t come without stress. The STEM-filled schedules common throughout Lincoln students’ days often result in a great deal of pressure. For senior Justin Ching, working as a reporter on the Cardinal Times was a welcome change to his IB classes.

For Ching, the Cardinal Times offered him a place to write freely and to have fun while doing so.

“Writing for the Cardinal Times has been the first time I have written creatively since eighth grade,” said Ching. “Not the academic essay sort of thing. I am most proud of my satire/humor pieces. They were the most fun to write and had the most positive response from other students.”

When Ching isn’t putting in the hours studying for his strenuous classes, he enjoys playing soccer, and was even named 2018 PIL defensive player of the year, and has been on Lincoln’s varsity team for 3 years.

“Soccer is something that I have al- ways enjoyed, and it can definitely help relieve stress from my day. And it’s also just something that can distract me from other things.”

With all that he’s experienced, Ching knows the program well through both its positive and negative aspects and was willing to offer advice.

“The Cardinal Times has made a conscious effort to include more ethnically diverse perspectives and photos. While I can understand pushing diversity in other situations, it seems a bit forced to change media coverage,” he said.

Ching reinforced the importance of proofreading one’s writing.

“I would advise others interested in journalism just to learn how to write. I see grammatical errors even in the New York Times or Wall Street Journal, so issues with words aren’t uncommon,” said Ching.

Ching does not yet know how his journalism experience will be used later in life, but the Cardinal Times has broadened the scope of his education.

“That’s really the point of going to school. Eventually, some of the skills or knowledge we gain will end up being useful to us.”