BREAKING NEWS
Homecoming dance cancellation coverage lacks context
CBS NY commits correctable errors in depicting students as stuck on screens
A SPECIAL INVESTIGATIVE REPORT BY THE CRIMSON COURIER
BY ROBERT DEVLIN III
In its coverage of the cancellation of Wall High School’s homecoming dance, CBS News New York associated the axing of the event with students’ perceived lack of sociability, painting not only the students of Wall, but of a generation, in a negative light.
Following CBS News New York’s report, dozens of users flooded the Wall Township Locals Facebook group, trashing students for their apparent disinterest in attending a school dance or socializing with others. Clips of the report went viral with millions of views alone on TikTok. At least one other major news organization devoted coverage to the dance’s cancellation.
Despite the perception, however, Wall students are active in school events, which data backs up. Senior Frankie DaSilva, angered by how himself and classmates are being portrayed, said he feels that it doesn’t define Wall’s student body.
“I think that blaming the low attendance on social media is unjust and it’s getting old,” he said. “I feel that social media is being used as a scapegoat way too often.”
Despite opening its televised report with a statement of “There will be no homecoming king or queen in Wall Township this weekend,” CBS New York actually included an interview with Wall’s Homecoming Queen Maddie Peterson. She shares in the frustration caused by CBS New York’s lack of attention to detail, adding that she thinks her title could have provided vital context to the story.
“I had seen (Elizabeth Byrnes) and (Ava Iglesias) standing with this lady. She didn’t have a camera crew. I asked them what they were doing,” Peterson said. “All of a sudden, I was being interviewed.”
“I said I was actually on the homecoming court,” Peterson went on. “Right at the end, she said ‘congratulations on being on the homecoming court.’ The dance was cancelled, but she knew I was on the court.”
“And at the end, she did get us to spell out our names,” added Peterson of the interview conducted in the school parking lot.
The Crimson Courier has officially requested a correction from CBS News. Its corrections policy does not allow for the misspelling of a student’s last name. CBS erroneously identified Wall senior Joey Ambrozy with an i at the end of his name.
Principal Mr. Kevin Davis issued a statement to The Crimson Courier addressing misconceptions the news network’s reporting has caused.
“We have four other dances that are very well-attended: Navy Ball, junior prom, senior prom and Dames Ball,” he said. “Nearly 50 percent of our students are involved with athletics here at Wall and even more are involved in clubs or other activities.”
More students attended the Wall senior prom, 305, than were in the Class of 2025. The year before that 293 students were on hand. The last two junior proms have boasted attendance figures of 235 and 237 students, respectively. Through the years Wall has even held a mistletoe ball and even a Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) dance.
Dating back to 1999, The Crimson Courier can confirm only four homecoming dances have been held. There has been a homecoming court elected each year, however, with a king and queen, usually crowned at the homecoming football game.
University of Notre Dame sophomore and Wall graduate Chris Dailey, who is credited with helping to bring about the dance’s return in 2023, also recognized the lack of tradition behind the dance but noted attendance at other school events remained consistently high during his time at Wall.
“They [CBS New York] were acting like this was a 100-year tradition that was suddenly taken away. When I was watching a rerun of the segment, I saw the reference to being no kings or queens in Wall and I was like ‘That’s not true at all. That went into bringing it back.’”
Dailey added that always having a homecoming court made the dance feel like a necessity, which inspired him, alongside several other students, to bring the dance back.
“I just always felt like if there’s a king and queen, there should be a dance as well,” Dailey said. “We wanted another fun event.”
More than 500 students attended the 2023 homecoming dance, followed by more than 300 last year.
*Odessa Kiesche as well as other staff members contributed to this report.
In its coverage of the cancellation of Wall High School’s homecoming dance, CBS News New York associated the axing of the event with students’ perceived lack of sociability, painting not only the students of Wall, but of a generation, in a negative light.
Following CBS News New York’s report, dozens of users flooded the Wall Township Locals Facebook group, trashing students for their apparent disinterest in attending a school dance or socializing with others. Clips of the report went viral with millions of views alone on TikTok. At least one other major news organization devoted coverage to the dance’s cancellation.
Despite the perception, however, Wall students are active in school events, which data backs up. Senior Frankie DaSilva, angered by how himself and classmates are being portrayed, said he feels that it doesn’t define Wall’s student body.
“I think that blaming the low attendance on social media is unjust and it’s getting old,” he said. “I feel that social media is being used as a scapegoat way too often.”
Despite opening its televised report with a statement of “There will be no homecoming king or queen in Wall Township this weekend,” CBS New York actually included an interview with Wall’s Homecoming Queen Maddie Peterson. She shares in the frustration caused by CBS New York’s lack of attention to detail, adding that she thinks her title could have provided vital context to the story.
“I had seen (Elizabeth Byrnes) and (Ava Iglesias) standing with this lady. She didn’t have a camera crew. I asked them what they were doing,” Peterson said. “All of a sudden, I was being interviewed.”
“I said I was actually on the homecoming court,” Peterson went on. “Right at the end, she said ‘congratulations on being on the homecoming court.’ The dance was cancelled, but she knew I was on the court.”
“And at the end, she did get us to spell out our names,” added Peterson of the interview conducted in the school parking lot.
The Crimson Courier has officially requested a correction from CBS News. Its corrections policy does not allow for the misspelling of a student’s last name. CBS erroneously identified Wall senior Joey Ambrozy with an i at the end of his name.
Principal Mr. Kevin Davis issued a statement to The Crimson Courier addressing misconceptions the news network’s reporting has caused.
“We have four other dances that are very well-attended: Navy Ball, junior prom, senior prom and Dames Ball,” he said. “Nearly 50 percent of our students are involved with athletics here at Wall and even more are involved in clubs or other activities.”
More students attended the Wall senior prom, 305, than were in the Class of 2025. The year before that 293 students were on hand. The last two junior proms have boasted attendance figures of 235 and 237 students, respectively. Through the years Wall has even held a mistletoe ball and even a Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) dance.
Dating back to 1999, The Crimson Courier can confirm only four homecoming dances have been held. There has been a homecoming court elected each year, however, with a king and queen, usually crowned at the homecoming football game.
University of Notre Dame sophomore and Wall graduate Chris Dailey, who is credited with helping to bring about the dance’s return in 2023, also recognized the lack of tradition behind the dance but noted attendance at other school events remained consistently high during his time at Wall.
“They [CBS New York] were acting like this was a 100-year tradition that was suddenly taken away. When I was watching a rerun of the segment, I saw the reference to being no kings or queens in Wall and I was like ‘That’s not true at all. That went into bringing it back.’”
Dailey added that always having a homecoming court made the dance feel like a necessity, which inspired him, alongside several other students, to bring the dance back.
“I just always felt like if there’s a king and queen, there should be a dance as well,” Dailey said. “We wanted another fun event.”
More than 500 students attended the 2023 homecoming dance, followed by more than 300 last year.
*Odessa Kiesche as well as other staff members contributed to this report.
The 2025 Wall High School homecoming court, including king Rudra Patel and queen Maddie Peterson.
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The Crimson Courier Staff
Deputy Editor-in-Chief - Declan Denton
Deputy Assistant Editor-in-Chief - Robert Devlin III
Faculty Advisor - Mr. Ketelaar
Reporters - Ryan H. Abogobal, Elizabeth Brown, Sofia Cisneros, Calliope Hough, Odessa Kiesche, Olivier H. Langeveld, James O'Hara, Sarah Risko, Frankie J. Silvestri, Adrianna V. Taliercio.
The Crimson Courier is a production of the Wall High School Journalism program.
Correction Policy
The Crimson Courier ungrudgingly corrects its errors for the sake of accuracy. To request a correction in an article, please contact Mr. Ketelaar via email ([email protected]) or mailbox 78.
Please include the following in your correction request:
Deputy Editor-in-Chief - Declan Denton
Deputy Assistant Editor-in-Chief - Robert Devlin III
Faculty Advisor - Mr. Ketelaar
Reporters - Ryan H. Abogobal, Elizabeth Brown, Sofia Cisneros, Calliope Hough, Odessa Kiesche, Olivier H. Langeveld, James O'Hara, Sarah Risko, Frankie J. Silvestri, Adrianna V. Taliercio.
The Crimson Courier is a production of the Wall High School Journalism program.
Correction Policy
The Crimson Courier ungrudgingly corrects its errors for the sake of accuracy. To request a correction in an article, please contact Mr. Ketelaar via email ([email protected]) or mailbox 78.
Please include the following in your correction request:
- Article name
- Reporter's name
- Line(s) of misinformation
- Correct information