Wall High School journalism students ask CBS New York to correct homecoming report; superintendent praises their work

Peter Kaylor, an English teacher and journalism adviser, and members of the Wall High School student newsroom told the board they published an investigative report pushing back against what they called inaccuracies in coverage by CBS New York.

Kaylor said CBS stated “there will be no homecoming king or queen in Wall Township this weekend,” misspelled a student’s name, and included other errors. He said the student newsroom submitted evidence — photographic and anecdotal — showing the story overstated the significance of the cancellation and that the station’s reporter had acknowledged the student’s candidacy on camera. “If a major metropolitan TV station cannot accurately report the news, can its assertion that wall students are antisocial and addicted to screens be believed?” Kaylor asked the board.

Superintendent Dr. Hannerhan publicly thanked the journalism students and their teacher for “taking such a proactive role in challenging the erroneous reporting,” saying their work sets “an amazing example for our student journalists.” The superintendent encouraged the students’ continued work and noted the district will celebrate the journalism program.

The students’ request to CBS for a formal correction was described at the meeting; the board did not report a correction from the station during the session. The superintendent also thanked the Crimson Courier for publicizing their investigative report on crimsoncourier.com.

Next steps: the Crimson Courier will continue its reporting; the district said it will recognize the students’ work publicly.