A Teen Reporter Searched for His Community in the Epstein Files. Adults Freaked Out.

A Teen Reporter Searched for His Community in the Epstein Files. Adults Freaked Out.

July 24, 2026 at 03:30PM

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Every adult who purports to care about a free press should read at least one story about the frustrating hurdles and bad-faith nitpicking confronted by student journalists (and their advisors). Earlier this year, a young reporter for the Redwood High School Bark found a few local references in the US Department of Justice’s public files concerning Jeffrey Epstein, the sex offender who died in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. Soon, the high school faced legal threats, and administrators grew concerned that students had published inaccurate information. Ara Rosenthal tells the story of the steady, diligent young journalists who weathered the worries and pressures of the adults around them—and kept their story intact.

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from Longreads https://longreads.com/2026/07/24/redwood-high-school-bark-epstein-journalism/
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