Hats off to the 9-year-old reporter who broke a major news story this week
Hilde Kate Lysiak is the latest proof that Generation Z is the future — she has tenacity, media know-how, and the strength to stand up to her critics, all at only 9 years old. Hilde recently beat out seasoned reporters in her hometown of Selinsgrove, PA, and broke news of a murder story, via her publication Orange Street News, this past weekend before any of the ~grown ups~ got the scoop. She’s basically a modern-day Harriet the Spy, if you ask us.
One of her trusted sources (yeah — she has those) gave her a tip that something had gone down on Ninth Street in her area, and she hustled over there to check it out. Her source’s tip was confirmed, due to the heavy police activity on Ninth, and she started jotting down notes, speaking with neighbors, and recording everything she could with her camera — y’know, reporting!
Before writing her full-length feature story on what turned out to be a murder, she posted a short scoop online: “BREAKING! Elderly Couple With Severe Injuries Found On Ninth Street!” before any other news sources had the chance. This is what we in the biz call breaking the story, and it’s something most reporters would kill (pun intended) to do. She ended the post, “THIS IS A BREAKING STORY. PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR UPDATES.”
But Hilde actually received some backlash on her Facebook page after the post went live, some people were concerned she was too young to be reporting on such grisly topics. Others told her not to report until all the facts were in, even though she was there to see what was happening for herself — that’s what reporting is! And others still, of course, told her to go home and play with her dolls. However, Hilde took it in stride, and responded with a video on her website titled “OSN Publisher Responds to Critics!” She read some of the Facebook comments out loud, and then responded with a succinct and powerful message.
She really knows how to keep calm under pressure, a key trait for any journalist.
It turns out, journalism is basically what Hilde was born to do. Her father is a former reporter for the New York Daily News, and she grew up visiting the newsroom with him. Her passion for journalism was obviously inspired by these early visits, and she is now is the sole editor and publisher of the Orange Street News, which states in the header, “The ONLY Newspaper Devoted to Selinsgrove! VANDALISM ON YOUR BLOCK? THE OSN WILL INVESTIGATE!”
Hilde is ON IT.
