Report, report, report.

Report and talk to people in your community.

This message is clear in most every chapter of "Writing Opinion for Impact." The book advocates talking to every day people who can tell you what's on their mind. This will give you ideas and sources that you can't get while sitting in front of a computer all day.

In class on Tuesday, Mr. Gaspeny mentioned a columnist who, when out of ideas as to what to write about, would jump on the subway and head to the poorest area in town. I'm guessing that this habit lead him to some pretty interesting stories.

I love the fact that this book advocates reporting. One of the Campus Chronicle staff writers, Bryan Rothamel, did just that and broke a major story in the Chronicle before any major media outlet. He started out by going to the mall. While he was making a purchase, the cashier noticed his HPU attire and said, "Oh, so you go to High Point. Did you know they bought the mall?"

This single sentence lead Bryan to investigating this story which broke in the Chronicle Jan. 31. The News and Record, the High Point Enterprise and local television stations didn't run the story until Feb. 11.

Of course, the claim that the cashier made only turned out to be a rumor. But it was a rumor that Bryan investigated and cleared up for the student body.

And he started by talking to a cashier.