Disappearing Ink: A Grownup Story of a Teen Newspaper MeemanPod

In this episode, we sit down with Keona Gardner a long-time journalist turned communications professional. Keona began her journalism journey with the Teen Appeal in its first year of existence back in 1997. She credits the TA for giving her the skills and experiences that sent her to the University of Missouri J-school, which eventually led to more than 15 years in newspapers.

Season two of the Disappearing Ink podcast launches April 30. This season we sat down with six women whose lives were forever changed by their experiences at the Teen Appeal. From long-time journalists to award winning authors, these six women have lead successful careers and it all began with the high school newspapers in Memphis.

In this episode, Brandi tells the story of three former Teen Appeal coordinators: Chuck Holiday (2001-2003), Dr. Dianne Bragg (2003-2006), and Elle Perry (2013-2015). Each discusses the challenges and triumphs they and their students experienced covering news in Memphis and Shelby County Schools. From training students at the summer journalism camp to pushing back on school officials threatening to silence student journalists, the TA coordinators worked to ensure all students were mentored and supported during their time at the newspaper.

Dr. Marcus Matthews, an administrator for Shelby County Schools, was one of the first students on the Teen Appeal staff in 1997. Matthews, who wrote the TA's tag line "Giving Truth to Memphis Youth", talks about his experiences with the high school newspaper and how those experiences led to a journalism career and then eventually a doctorate degree in education and his current role with Shelby County Schools. In addition to his experience in the early years of the newspaper, Matthews also served as coordinator for the Teen Appeal for five years from 2007 to 2012.

In this episode, Ben Cory Jones—writer, producer and show runner for popular shows like HBO's Insecure, Boomerang, Underground and Hand to God—talks about the impact of Teen Appeal on his life and career. Jones chats about the how the TA not only gave him journalism experience covering stories in his high school, but the TA also gave him an outlet to find his "people" and mentors who would help propel him to a successful writing career in Hollywood.

In the first episode of Disappearing Ink, Otis Sanford, the former deputy managing editor of the Commercial Appeal, and Dr. David Arant, the chair of the Department of Journalism and Strategic Media at the University of Memphis, discuss the early days of the Teen Appeal newspaper. As the liaison between the Commercial Appeal and Teen Appeal, Sanford played a crucial role in printing and distributing almost 20,000 copies of the high school newspaper to every student in Memphis City Schools. At the same time, Arant and the journalism faculty at UofM worked tirelessly to establish a space and structure within the Meeman Journalism Building to train and host high school journalists.