Mirror Indy’s kid correspondents
This summer, four young Indianapolis reporters grabbed their notebooks, stepped in front of the camera and started asking questions about the things happening around them.
They explored stories connected to their own neighborhoods and interests – from youth basketball and a favorite local park to data centers and their impact on the community. Along the way, they interviewed city leaders, coaches, activists, athletes and neighbors, while learning how real local journalism comes together.
Get to know our kid correspondents, see what they worked on this summer and watch their stories come to life.
In this first episode, get to know the kids and find out what they reported on this summer. Simon is exploring the impact of data centers on the Eastside. Braxton is reporting on youth basketball and the Oddbreakers on the west side. Evie and Caden are investigating the long construction project at Canterbury Park.
In this second episode, the kids take their reporting to the Indiana State Fair to ask people about their favorite fair food, activities and favorite rides.
In this third episode, Caden and Evie their reporting to Canterbury Park. They want to know what’s going on with the park? Why has it been closed for so long and who is involved in making the park available again.
Meet the kids
My name is Braxton, I’m 11 years old, and I’m excited to start sixth grade this year! I cover the west side of Indy, and I’m a huge sports fan and athlete. My free time is usually filled with church and sports. I play travel baseball, football, and basketball.
Last year, I had the opportunity to create a new role at my school and become a student sportscaster. I absolutely loved it, and it made me even more excited about a future career in journalism.
I’m excited to be a kid correspondent because I get to explore my city, meet new people, and tell cool unique stories.
My name is Caden and I’m 11 years old. I’m in sixth grade and I live on the north side of Indianapolis.
I really care about communities being a positive place for everyone and sometimes, that doesn’t happen. When that doesn’t happen, it’s important that we make changes for the better.
Hi, my name is Evie, and I am 10 years old. I live on the north side of Indianapolis. I love to read and write. I’ve also been a gymnast since the age of six. I understand hard vocabulary and challenging math, and I love writing articles.
I wanted to do Mirror Indy because I believed in a future for stories. I want people all over Indianapolis to feel important. Maybe they are mentioned in an article or a video — either way, it feels good to be heard.
Not just for others, but for myself too. I wanted to show my curiosity. And how cool is it to publish an article!? I’ve never had a job before, and I don’t think most kids have either. But this is no casual job. It’s also fun, and I’ve gotten to experience a lot.
But I have to give all the credit to my boss, Liza. I have had so much fun working with her, and even though she’s the only boss I’ve ever had she’s also the best.
I am glad I finally know what it’s like to be a journalist. And it is incredible.
My name is Simon. I’m 15 years old. I’m a sophomore at Herron High school. I love theater and musical theater and act in my schools shows.
I live on the east side of Indianapolis and I am covering data centers because I am interested in how they may affect cities.
I love the east side because of the sense of community and the connected trails. I’m excited to work with Mirror Indy because I have loved journalism my whole life and getting to work as one professionally while also being able to cover local stories has been a dream.
