A year at the helm of a newspaper…Not to be confused with a Public Relations Brochure.
The Following is a copy of a an editorial published in 'The Rotunda'
It has officially been a year this week since I was part of the tandem selected to replace Emily Grove as editors-in-chief of The Rotunda. Now, a year later, the cycle has renewed. An election for the future editor-in-chief and managing editor of this paper were held last week, and I now find myself in the home stretch of my time here and at Longwood.
I have two editorials left before April 8, when next year’s staff begins their work on this publication, so I figure maybe it’s time to ruffle some feathers. … Just kidding. But a year as editor-in-chief has opened my eyes to many things in this world and inside the little bubble we call a college campus.
I have surely watched a simple campus publication blossom into a constant source of information and reporting in the past year. Many things happen on this campus, good and bad, empowering and embarrassing, uplifting and troubling. However, it’s all real, and it’s satisfying to say this paper now has and should continue to cover them all. There have been stories of tragedy, like the sudden death of Todd Miller, stories of interest, like the budget cuts the university continues to undergo, stories of heroism like Tim Cochrane being honored for his actions in saving fellow classmates during a fire in 2006, and stories of concern like the hazing allegations and conviction of Longwood fraternity Alpha Chi Rho (AXP).
Now in transition, I would have to encourage the new leadership, what will remain of the staff and those who choose to join the staff to continue that work. There is no doubt the past year has left an impression around campus. To most, hopefully, it would be a sense of pride in the fact that the campus paper serves them to the upmost of its ability, to others a more negative view that highlights wariness and uncertainty in the students’ work, or jadedness at past mistakes.
In any case, however, hopefully there has been a level of respect developed. There will and have been mistakes made though all that time, but those who choose to view the work by this staff in a negative way should know that the stories won’t stop being written.
Positive responses will come and go with any publication. Negative responses (I have learned in my time) are often only a testament to the meaning of the work being done. Unfortunately, unlike the last PR brochure you picked up, there hasn’t been all praise all the time in each week’s Rotunda. In order to go into that territory the staff has to be able to absorb criticism of its own, but it’s not for a lack of work or not caring. Often it’s for doing the job right. When I began my time as co-editor-in-chief last spring I remember realizing that response to the publication had been mostly flowery praise in the semester before I took the job. Now e-mails, calls and responses arrive with the classic first line saying that the work the paper does is appreciated before the all too infamous “but” is inserted.
It didn’t take me long to realize that every “but” is another compliment for the paper. No longer are people mesmerized by color or layout features, they have come to expect that quality. It’s now about the content of the messages, and that’s how it should be. There are now expectations for The Rotunda staff to provide coverage and to report to the campus everything that the staff has the ability to. There is no doubt the staff at the newspaper has come to realize this over the past year.
It’s been interesting to see the reactions of different campus organizations. Some have embraced the latest push for quality journalism on campus. To them much appreciation must be awarded, because working for a campus newspaper is the best experience one can ever get for the “real world.” I have found that my work at The Rotunda has left me more prepared to deal with the real world than I would even have to be to work in the field. For that I am grateful.
There are exceptions to the rule above, however. Whether it be because of perceived mistakes or opinions about coverage, it can be expected that not everyone in a community can be pleased. In response to those who choose to make the job more difficult and not cooperate though, the staff should only heed the call to do the job better, investigate harder and look deeper, but don’t give in to any of those who try to close the doors or shut you out. It’s a shame when students and faculty alike in the campus community, who are seen as being in leadership positions at a higher education institution, don’t trust others with the responsibility of speaking with the newspaper. Even students who are placed in leadership positions that give them the responsibility of looking after fellow classmates’ well-being sometimes are held from talking with the campus media. In some cases these people have even been directly instructed not to cooperate.
Have the past and will the future journalists at this publication get it right every time? Certainly not. Are journalists opinions strong and sometimes controversial? That’s for sure. But the future of our world dwells, in a small part, on this campus. That has always been my understanding as to why teaching and working at a place like Longwood could be so rewarding. Yet, it is higher education, and education more than implies learning. So if there is no longer the desire among some to see student journalists learn then perhaps the time has come for those to evaluate why they are employed in higher education.
Shutting doors on student-journalists’ access to information or not cooperating with the student journalist for fear of a mistake in wording or negative coverage isn’t going to save an organization or a job. Those things have a way of working themselves out regardless of the student newspaper. But what it will do is hold back a student journalist from learning. There are no perks to the job at The Rotunda. The staff works hard to inform a campus without being granted any class credit, volunteer hours or any other type of payback except pure experience. There are no vendettas, no opportunities to get ahead by being intentionally inflammatory here. That’s why the campus newspaper is possibly the last remaining beauty of pure journalism in America. Professional work is what the staff of The Rotunda aspires to and will continue to hold themselves too, but there must continue to be learning in order to do it.
The stories from this paper will hopefully continue to be real and important to this campus in the future. For most, this staff has and will continue to do great work being a mouthpiece for every last person on this campus who needs a voice. Some will appreciate and others will focus on the negative.
The key is that in this transition there is no discouragement, because if the past year has taught me anything it is that this service is invaluable to the Longwood campus.
So, a friendly reminder to the rest of campus, whether it is those who see value and choose to work with the future staff through the good times and the rough ones, or those who choose to continue to shy away as campus coverage has become more “real,” The Rotunda won’t waiver from the job at hand. Long after I am no longer a part of the process in two weeks, this publication should and will always do the work above and beyond to investigate and report the information to those on this campus who need to hear it.
It has officially been a year this week since I was part of the tandem selected to replace Emily Grove as editors-in-chief of The Rotunda. Now, a year later, the cycle has renewed. An election for the future editor-in-chief and managing editor of this paper were held last week, and I now find myself in the home stretch of my time here and at Longwood.
I have two editorials left before April 8, when next year’s staff begins their work on this publication, so I figure maybe it’s time to ruffle some feathers. … Just kidding. But a year as editor-in-chief has opened my eyes to many things in this world and inside the little bubble we call a college campus.
I have surely watched a simple campus publication blossom into a constant source of information and reporting in the past year. Many things happen on this campus, good and bad, empowering and embarrassing, uplifting and troubling. However, it’s all real, and it’s satisfying to say this paper now has and should continue to cover them all. There have been stories of tragedy, like the sudden death of Todd Miller, stories of interest, like the budget cuts the university continues to undergo, stories of heroism like Tim Cochrane being honored for his actions in saving fellow classmates during a fire in 2006, and stories of concern like the hazing allegations and conviction of Longwood fraternity Alpha Chi Rho (AXP).
Now in transition, I would have to encourage the new leadership, what will remain of the staff and those who choose to join the staff to continue that work. There is no doubt the past year has left an impression around campus. To most, hopefully, it would be a sense of pride in the fact that the campus paper serves them to the upmost of its ability, to others a more negative view that highlights wariness and uncertainty in the students’ work, or jadedness at past mistakes.
In any case, however, hopefully there has been a level of respect developed. There will and have been mistakes made though all that time, but those who choose to view the work by this staff in a negative way should know that the stories won’t stop being written.
Positive responses will come and go with any publication. Negative responses (I have learned in my time) are often only a testament to the meaning of the work being done. Unfortunately, unlike the last PR brochure you picked up, there hasn’t been all praise all the time in each week’s Rotunda. In order to go into that territory the staff has to be able to absorb criticism of its own, but it’s not for a lack of work or not caring. Often it’s for doing the job right. When I began my time as co-editor-in-chief last spring I remember realizing that response to the publication had been mostly flowery praise in the semester before I took the job. Now e-mails, calls and responses arrive with the classic first line saying that the work the paper does is appreciated before the all too infamous “but” is inserted.
It didn’t take me long to realize that every “but” is another compliment for the paper. No longer are people mesmerized by color or layout features, they have come to expect that quality. It’s now about the content of the messages, and that’s how it should be. There are now expectations for The Rotunda staff to provide coverage and to report to the campus everything that the staff has the ability to. There is no doubt the staff at the newspaper has come to realize this over the past year.
It’s been interesting to see the reactions of different campus organizations. Some have embraced the latest push for quality journalism on campus. To them much appreciation must be awarded, because working for a campus newspaper is the best experience one can ever get for the “real world.” I have found that my work at The Rotunda has left me more prepared to deal with the real world than I would even have to be to work in the field. For that I am grateful.
There are exceptions to the rule above, however. Whether it be because of perceived mistakes or opinions about coverage, it can be expected that not everyone in a community can be pleased. In response to those who choose to make the job more difficult and not cooperate though, the staff should only heed the call to do the job better, investigate harder and look deeper, but don’t give in to any of those who try to close the doors or shut you out. It’s a shame when students and faculty alike in the campus community, who are seen as being in leadership positions at a higher education institution, don’t trust others with the responsibility of speaking with the newspaper. Even students who are placed in leadership positions that give them the responsibility of looking after fellow classmates’ well-being sometimes are held from talking with the campus media. In some cases these people have even been directly instructed not to cooperate.
Have the past and will the future journalists at this publication get it right every time? Certainly not. Are journalists opinions strong and sometimes controversial? That’s for sure. But the future of our world dwells, in a small part, on this campus. That has always been my understanding as to why teaching and working at a place like Longwood could be so rewarding. Yet, it is higher education, and education more than implies learning. So if there is no longer the desire among some to see student journalists learn then perhaps the time has come for those to evaluate why they are employed in higher education.
Shutting doors on student-journalists’ access to information or not cooperating with the student journalist for fear of a mistake in wording or negative coverage isn’t going to save an organization or a job. Those things have a way of working themselves out regardless of the student newspaper. But what it will do is hold back a student journalist from learning. There are no perks to the job at The Rotunda. The staff works hard to inform a campus without being granted any class credit, volunteer hours or any other type of payback except pure experience. There are no vendettas, no opportunities to get ahead by being intentionally inflammatory here. That’s why the campus newspaper is possibly the last remaining beauty of pure journalism in America. Professional work is what the staff of The Rotunda aspires to and will continue to hold themselves too, but there must continue to be learning in order to do it.
The stories from this paper will hopefully continue to be real and important to this campus in the future. For most, this staff has and will continue to do great work being a mouthpiece for every last person on this campus who needs a voice. Some will appreciate and others will focus on the negative.
The key is that in this transition there is no discouragement, because if the past year has taught me anything it is that this service is invaluable to the Longwood campus.
So, a friendly reminder to the rest of campus, whether it is those who see value and choose to work with the future staff through the good times and the rough ones, or those who choose to continue to shy away as campus coverage has become more “real,” The Rotunda won’t waiver from the job at hand. Long after I am no longer a part of the process in two weeks, this publication should and will always do the work above and beyond to investigate and report the information to those on this campus who need to hear it.
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