Jacob Gill, Senior at South Sioux City High School, is the winner of the 2023 High School Mock Trial Student News Reporter Contest held during the Judge Lyle Strom High School Mock Trial Program State Championship in Lincoln.

The winner was announced on the evening of December 11 by Justice Jeff Funke at the Mock Trial Recognition Banquet at the Cornhusker Marriott Hotel. The contest was added to the Nebraska State Bar Foundation’s High School Mock Trial competition in 2018.

During the evening award presentations, Funke mentioned that the Student News Reporter Contest adds realism, depth, and excitement to the annual Mock Trial competition.

“The competition was absolutely a blast,” said Gill after receiving his award. He enjoyed all aspects of the event, “From taking notes in the First Round State Mock Trial, to having a session with the best reporters in Nebraska, to finally writing a news article about the trial; This was such a fun competition!”

Looking to his future, Gill hopes to teach public speaking and communications or become a news reporter.  Before launching his career, he plans to attend the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, majoring in secondary education with minors in communications and political science. 

In all, six students competed in the 2023 Reporter Contest; each was a member of an alternate team for their school. The students observed their school’s morning mock trial session and later met with Lancaster County Court Judge Laurie Yardley and media mentors, Bayley Bischof, Assignment Manager & Senior Reporter at Channel 1011, and Chris Dunker, news reporter at the Lincoln Journal Star.

During the mentoring session, Yardley reminded the students that “opening and closing statements are not facts,” warning students that they do not want to get derailed by the theories presented. She noted that she routinely instructs jury members to trust their memories and that if their recollection of facts is different from what the attorneys are saying they should rely on their recall of facts. She also instructed them to listen to the cross-examination noting that, if they don’t listen, they are not going to get the full picture. She reinforced the instruction saying, “It's better if you listen to both the direct and cross of a witness to get the full picture of what was said.”

In addressing story structure, Dunker reviewed the student’s conversation about the overarching themes of the trial, adding, “But I would encourage you to think about the most important thing that you heard, and use that as the entrance point to your story. Then you can build around it.”  Following that Bischof reminded students about objectivity saying, “Make sure you're taking your own opinions out of the story, because your opinions are irrelevant in your writing.”

During the mentoring session, students asked about general story construction, writing headlines, and creating interesting stories for the public.

In the Student News Reporter Contest, students are given two hours to write a 500- to 600-word news story with a headline based on the Mock Trial session each attended. Students were encouraged to take detailed notes during the proceedings but were not allowed to use recording equipment or computers. Their entries were judged on content, fairness, completeness, writing mechanics, and style by Dave Schroeder, News Director at KRVN Radio and Roseann Shannon, retired News Director at Channel 7 Omaha.

Contest structure and materials were developed through the Nebraska State Bar Foundation’s Bench Media Committee. Supporting the contest is the Nebraska Supreme Court through the Public Information Office.

The writing contest recognizes the importance of accurate, balanced, and thorough reporting by the news media, crucial elements of reporting on the judicial process. 

See photo of Jacob Gill in the Dakota County Star: Top Mock Trial Reporter