About

Welcome to the Viking Vibe – SBHS’ student-led newspaper site. Check here for your favorite story updates everyday!

Welcome to the new Viking Vibe!

I am excited and honored to be taking on the role of advisor for this paper, a publication that goes all the way back to the origins of South Brunswick High School. In some ways, I have been preparing for this role for decades. I started in journalism as a film critic for my high school newspaper and continued in journalism through college and my first post-graduate job in a variety of roles, from opinions columnist to sports writer to entertainment editor. And even after I switched careers, I have still been indirectly engaged with journalism, both in a brief stint as editor of an entertainment supplement to the Vibe and as an English teacher, where I get to see firsthand how many gifted writers and thinkers we have in the student body of SBHS.

Our publication’s new tagline is “Turning Every Page.” I adapted this from Robert Caro, one of the journalists I admire the most. In his book Working, Caro relates the advice that his first editor gave him: “Turn every page. Never assume anything.”

This line means a few things to me. First, it explains the ethos of our writers. We want to write from a place of expertise, which means that we research and observe as much as possible, do as many interviews as possible, and follow every lead and ongoing story. Whatever it takes to develop the stories that matter to the members of the SBHS community, we will do.

It is also a reminder that there are stories everywhere you look at SBHS, and we aim to cover them all. There are the major stories, like budget issues, redistricting and administrative turnover. There are the stories that make up the academics and culture of SBHS. There are stories about the world at large as it shapes us and stories about the politics and entertinement of the day. And then there are the stories that don’t seem like stories at all, everything from the origins of our fire drill procedures to the story behind the majestic sycamore tree in the faculty area courtyard (hint: it was once on the moon). There are stories everywhere you look, and one of our top goals is to find those stories and make them meaningful for our readers.

Finally, “turning every page” is an invitation to our readers: Turn every page (or to be exact, click every link).  As the former Viking Vibe motto goes: “The press belongs to everybody, even you.” Our top priority is the publication of pieces that are interesting, readable and written to the highest standards. We are hoping to publish new articles daily, so we hope that reading The Viking Vibe becomes part of your routine. And anybody can become a part of this paper: We would love to hear your comments on existing stories or your ideas for new ones. And if you have a story to tell about South Brunswick, we hope you consider joining our club (Classroom code: njyounkh) and writing your own articles.

While it has been occasionally overwhelming  to take over a new club, develop a new course, and launch a brand new site, I have had a lot of help. First and foremost, there is the Viking Vibe Board, the seven students whose stories you see below, and whose writing and editing you will be able to read every day on the new site. I am honored to be working with group of students as creative, energetic and committed as they are. And thank you to the rest of our club members and  journalism students as well. They are working hard to create their own articles, and they will be the future of the Vibe. I also want to thank Principal Peter Varela, English Supervisor Dan Brack, English Chair Shauna Schwartz, Librarian Lisa Manganello and Activities Coordinator Lauren Morris for their confidence in me and their support throughout all phases of this transition. Finally, I would also like to thank Mr. Andrew Loh, who ran the Vibe for over 20 years and has been supportive at every step of this process.

But enough from me–this site belongs to the students, and they will take the rest from here.

Mr. Peter Honig, Viking Vibe Advisor