Want your student newspaper's stories read by people around the world? Make sure your Web site is included in Google News.
That was one piece of advice Josh Cohen, business product manager for Google News, had Thursday for students and advisers attending the Associated Collegiate Press National College Newspaper Convention in San Francisco this week.
"Make sure it's easy for us to crawl the page," he said.
You can check if your newspaper's Web site is already included in Google News by going to this page. If your site isn't included you can recommend it for inclusion here.
Google News aggregates headlines from more than 4,500 English-language news sources worldwide, including many college newspapers.
And if you don't already use Google News alerts for your reporting, start now. It's a great way to keep up to speed on what's going on.
You can, for example, register a Google alert for your college or university. Whenever your school (or whatever word or phrase you specify) is in the news, you'll get an email from Google. You can register for Google alerts to come weekly, daily or as it happens.
To keep up with news on college newspapers, for example, I have daily Google alerts on "college newspaper," "campus newspaper" and "student newspaper." They help me monitor what's going on in the world of college media.
You can create a Google alert here.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Campus Press Update
The Campus Press, the University of Colorado-Boulder student newspaper that caused a stir with a column that called for a war between Asians and whites, has suspended its opinion section pending approval of an opinions policy.
In a statement on its Web site, the newspaper said it is "in the process of organizing an open, public forum to address diversity sensitivity in our news coverage in which we invite students to voice the direction they think the publication should go. The Campus Press staff is rewriting the publication's ethics policy, which will include addressing diversity issues in our coverage."
In addition, "The Campus Press Web site will be redesigned to clearly separate our opinions from our other sections, and a disclaimer will be added to every published opinion from here after."
In a letter to the campus community posted on the newspaper's Web site Friday, Opinions Section Editor Amanda Pehrson reflected on a community meeting held Wednesday to discuss the column and racism on the campus.
"I still believe that we can use the recent events as a means to move forward," she wrote.
Meanwhile, Max Karson, the student who wrote the controversial column, published a guest column in the Daily Camera, the community paper in Boulder, on Friday defending himself and expressing his frustration at the reaction to his piece.
“Sometimes it’s necessary to offend in order to provoke thought about difficult subjects,” Karson wrote. “For example, in my ‘Asians’ piece, I poked fun at Asian stereotypes for the purpose of mocking racist white people who never bother to understand or even consider Asian cultures and race relations at the University of Colorado."
He goes on to say, "My job as a journalist is to create that open dialogue by amplifying the voices of students -- even students with racist or other hateful ideas that I disagree with."
In a statement on its Web site, the newspaper said it is "in the process of organizing an open, public forum to address diversity sensitivity in our news coverage in which we invite students to voice the direction they think the publication should go. The Campus Press staff is rewriting the publication's ethics policy, which will include addressing diversity issues in our coverage."
In addition, "The Campus Press Web site will be redesigned to clearly separate our opinions from our other sections, and a disclaimer will be added to every published opinion from here after."
In a letter to the campus community posted on the newspaper's Web site Friday, Opinions Section Editor Amanda Pehrson reflected on a community meeting held Wednesday to discuss the column and racism on the campus.
"I still believe that we can use the recent events as a means to move forward," she wrote.
Meanwhile, Max Karson, the student who wrote the controversial column, published a guest column in the Daily Camera, the community paper in Boulder, on Friday defending himself and expressing his frustration at the reaction to his piece.
“Sometimes it’s necessary to offend in order to provoke thought about difficult subjects,” Karson wrote. “For example, in my ‘Asians’ piece, I poked fun at Asian stereotypes for the purpose of mocking racist white people who never bother to understand or even consider Asian cultures and race relations at the University of Colorado."
He goes on to say, "My job as a journalist is to create that open dialogue by amplifying the voices of students -- even students with racist or other hateful ideas that I disagree with."
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Localize this: LA Times questions rape stats
The Los Angeles Times ran a fascinating opinion piece Sunday challenging the oft-quoted statistic that between one-fifth and one-quarter of young women will be raped by the time they graduate college.
Whether you buy the story by Heather Mac Donald or not, it's one virtually any college newspaper could localize.
"If the one-in-four statistic is correct, campus rape represents a crime wave of unprecedented proportions," the article says. "No felony, much less one as serious as rape, has a victimization rate remotely approaching 20% or 25%, even over many years."
MacDonald's conclusion: The rape crisis doesn't exist.
To localize the story, student newspapers could run MacDonald's theory by campus police officials, women's studies and criminology professors, college women's and feminist groups and campus rape crisis centers.
It's almost certain to be a well-read, much discussed story.
Whether you buy the story by Heather Mac Donald or not, it's one virtually any college newspaper could localize.
"If the one-in-four statistic is correct, campus rape represents a crime wave of unprecedented proportions," the article says. "No felony, much less one as serious as rape, has a victimization rate remotely approaching 20% or 25%, even over many years."
MacDonald's conclusion: The rape crisis doesn't exist.
To localize the story, student newspapers could run MacDonald's theory by campus police officials, women's studies and criminology professors, college women's and feminist groups and campus rape crisis centers.
It's almost certain to be a well-read, much discussed story.
Student editors take readers behind the scenes
The Campus Press, the student newspaper at the University of Colorado-Boulder that started a firestorm by printing a column that satirically called for a war between whites and Asians, ran a news story Monday explaining how the controversial column came to be published. (See earlier post for background.)
The story, written by staff writers Rob Ryan and George Plaven, lays out step-by-step what happened, including comments from editors who felt they were left out of the process. It's an interesting approach to dealing with a public relations fiasco at a student newspaper. Generally student and professional newspapers just deal with their errors in an editorial or opinion column and with news stories about reaction.
The article is the lead story on the newspaper's Web site, right under an invitation to readers to write a letter to the editor about the controversial column.
Also in the paper this week is a letter signed by nine editors who were not involved in the decision to run the column and who thought it was wrong.
"Many of us -- we do not speak on behalf of the entire Campus Press staff -- disagreed with the publishing of the opinion," the editors wrote in a opinion piece entitled "A letter from some different editors." "It was a mistake and we do not stand behind the decision to publish the opinion."
The letter and the article offer readers a glimpse behind the scenes of the newspaper, providing transparency at a difficult time for the newspaper staff.
What do you think of the way The Campus Press dealt with the fallout from the column? Post a comment here.
The story, written by staff writers Rob Ryan and George Plaven, lays out step-by-step what happened, including comments from editors who felt they were left out of the process. It's an interesting approach to dealing with a public relations fiasco at a student newspaper. Generally student and professional newspapers just deal with their errors in an editorial or opinion column and with news stories about reaction.
The article is the lead story on the newspaper's Web site, right under an invitation to readers to write a letter to the editor about the controversial column.
Also in the paper this week is a letter signed by nine editors who were not involved in the decision to run the column and who thought it was wrong.
"Many of us -- we do not speak on behalf of the entire Campus Press staff -- disagreed with the publishing of the opinion," the editors wrote in a opinion piece entitled "A letter from some different editors." "It was a mistake and we do not stand behind the decision to publish the opinion."
The letter and the article offer readers a glimpse behind the scenes of the newspaper, providing transparency at a difficult time for the newspaper staff.
What do you think of the way The Campus Press dealt with the fallout from the column? Post a comment here.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Controversial column sparks outcry, call for training
The staff of The Campus Press, the student newspaper at the University of Colorado-Boulder, will undergo diversity training, improve coverage of diverse communities and meet other measures outlined Thursday by university officials in response to a column published Monday that satirically called for "war" on Asians and Asian-Americans.
In the column, entitled "If it's War Asians Want," writer Max Karson said Asians hate whites. "They hate us all. And I say it's time we started hating them back. That's right-no more 'tolerance.' No more 'cultural sensitivity.' No more 'Mr. Pretend-I'm-Not-Racist.' It's time for war."
Though presumably meant as satire, the column stirred a firestorm of controversy that prompted community meetings and a resolution by the student government.
On Thursday, the student Legislative Council at the university unanimously passed a resolution formally opposing the column and another controversial opinion piece, "No hablo ingles," that ran the day before. On Friday, community and campus members met to discuss the article and ways to fight racism.
The chancellor of the University of Colorado-Boulder, the dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication and the editors of the student newspaper all issued apologies for Karson's column.
"The column was a poor attempt at social satire laden with offensive references, stereotypes and hateful language," University of Colorado Chancellor G.P. "Bud" Peterson said in a statement. "It was not properly labeled as either satire or commentary, and readers were left with the impression that the author spoke for the collective staff and leadership of the Campus Press, and perhaps even the University of Colorado."
In their apology, the editors of The Campus Press noted that the column offended many people.
"Karson's opinion is satire and is a commentary on racism at CU published in our opinion section, not presented as fact or incitement, and not published to intentionally incite controversy. We apologize for any ambiguity of the satire that may have been misconstrued."
In a statement released Thursday, Paul S. Voakes, dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Colorado-Boulder, lays out an action plan agreed upon by campus administrators and student editors:
"I’d like to reiterate that The Campus Press is the School’s teaching publication, and I believe the events of this week have provided all of us ... with a wealth of “teachable moments,” Voakes said in the statement. "I’m confident that the current crop of editors has begun to develop a new, more nuanced understanding of the delicate balance between absolute free speech and journalistic social responsibility."
Karson, the student who wrote the column, is no stranger to controversy; in 2007 he was arrested and barred from classes after saying in class that he could understand why the gunman at Virginia Tech would shoot fellow students, according to news reports. He also wrote a controversial newsletter called The Yeti, according to a 2006 article in The Daily Camera.
In the column, entitled "If it's War Asians Want," writer Max Karson said Asians hate whites. "They hate us all. And I say it's time we started hating them back. That's right-no more 'tolerance.' No more 'cultural sensitivity.' No more 'Mr. Pretend-I'm-Not-Racist.' It's time for war."Though presumably meant as satire, the column stirred a firestorm of controversy that prompted community meetings and a resolution by the student government.
On Thursday, the student Legislative Council at the university unanimously passed a resolution formally opposing the column and another controversial opinion piece, "No hablo ingles," that ran the day before. On Friday, community and campus members met to discuss the article and ways to fight racism.
The chancellor of the University of Colorado-Boulder, the dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication and the editors of the student newspaper all issued apologies for Karson's column.
"The column was a poor attempt at social satire laden with offensive references, stereotypes and hateful language," University of Colorado Chancellor G.P. "Bud" Peterson said in a statement. "It was not properly labeled as either satire or commentary, and readers were left with the impression that the author spoke for the collective staff and leadership of the Campus Press, and perhaps even the University of Colorado."
In their apology, the editors of The Campus Press noted that the column offended many people.
"Karson's opinion is satire and is a commentary on racism at CU published in our opinion section, not presented as fact or incitement, and not published to intentionally incite controversy. We apologize for any ambiguity of the satire that may have been misconstrued."
In a statement released Thursday, Paul S. Voakes, dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Colorado-Boulder, lays out an action plan agreed upon by campus administrators and student editors:
* Beginning immediately, The Campus Press will provide enhanced coverage on the campus controversy the paper has sparked, which will include an open forum for commentary on the issue, for as many days as are warranted by ongoing reader interest.
* The Campus Press will work with SJMC Diversity Coordinator Dave Martinez to establish a Student Diversity Advisory Board, composed of non-journalism-majors who represent a broad swath of interests on the campus. The board’s purpose will be to provide editors with regular feedback from students with a diversity of backgrounds.
* The Campus Press will invite a number of student organizations to meet face-to-face with the editors, to discuss any specific concerns.
* The Campus Press will adopt an Opinions Policy, with standards and procedures for determining the acceptability of opinion columns or other reader-generated content.
* The Campus Press will schedule a series of diversity awareness workshops for the entire staff, in concert with the Office of Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement, and with participation of professional journalists of color.
* The Campus Press will schedule a series of workshops for opinion writing and editing, to be presented by experienced professional opinion editors.
"I’d like to reiterate that The Campus Press is the School’s teaching publication, and I believe the events of this week have provided all of us ... with a wealth of “teachable moments,” Voakes said in the statement. "I’m confident that the current crop of editors has begun to develop a new, more nuanced understanding of the delicate balance between absolute free speech and journalistic social responsibility."
Karson, the student who wrote the column, is no stranger to controversy; in 2007 he was arrested and barred from classes after saying in class that he could understand why the gunman at Virginia Tech would shoot fellow students, according to news reports. He also wrote a controversial newsletter called The Yeti, according to a 2006 article in The Daily Camera.
Friday, February 22, 2008
February Story of the Month
OK, so we've fallen down on the job of selecting Stories of the Month. We're resurrecting the feature to showcase The Daily Bruin's "The Underground Students" series on undocumented students in higher education. The series offers a sensitive and nuanced look at undocumented students struggling to survive and get an education at UCLA.
The series includes:
-- Two audio slideshows by Jessica Chou and Alene Tchekmedyian, Part I and Part II
and these stories and photos by Jessica Chou:
-- Deportation of father leaves son challenges
UCLA student has to run family business, pay taxes, take care of brother between classes
-- Struggling with noncitizen status
Hardships of being an undocumented immigrant force student to work long hours to finish school
-- Living the green card dream
Attaining legal citizen status opens educational, vocational doors for UCLA alumna
-- Student sees beyond immigration status
Check it out. We'll try to get an interview with Jessica Chou next week.
Share your thoughts about The Underground Students package by posting a comment here.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Video shows Northern Star staff at work
Danielle Guerra of The Northwest Herald in Illinois has put together a nice video on how The Northern Star covered the Valentine's Day shootings.Guerra interviewed Northern Star Editor in Chief John Puterbaugh, Online Editor Justin Smith, adviser Jim Killam and other staffers.
"I was so impressed by how the Northern Star covered the NIU shooting I made a video story about them on Friday, the day after the shootings," Guerra said in an e-mail message to me. "This might help other students learn what the scope of a student newspaper is in a time like this."
Show it to your staff.
For College Media Advisers: Avoiding Burnout
Advising student publications can be challenging, exhilarating and fun. It can also be repetitive, time consuming and exhausting. Let’s face it, the staff may be new each year, but the problems get old after awhile--the inevitable reporter-editor squabbles, the embarrassing typos, the ups and downs of advertising revenue, the complaints from faculty who claim they were misquoted. And how many times can you explain the difference between its and it’s without wanting to scream?
If you feel you’re stuck in the doldrums of teaching and advising, here are some tips for reigniting the flame:
• Get involved. Organizations of journalism educators provide support, camaraderie and -- let’s face it -- opportunities to vent. Join the board or chair a committee for College Media Advisers, Society of Professional Journalists, National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association, your state student media organization or one of the ethnic media organizations, such as National Association of Black Journalists or National Association of Hispanic Journalists. If there isn’t a group to meet your interests, consider forming your own. When California was lacking a state student media organization, a bunch of us advisers got together and created one. It was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun, and we created a enduring network of colleagues.
• Set themes. For each semester or term create a theme for what you and your staff will focus on. Maybe you’ll decide to emphasize design one semester, planning special training workshops and inviting guest speakers to address your staff. Another semester you may highlight multimedia or investigative reporting or breaking news or computer-assisted reporting. Make sure your themes are in line with the interests of your staff. Establish goals related to your theme, such as “Organize three multimedia workshops for the staff” or “Train the whole staff in InDesign CS3.” Encourage your editors to come up with their own goals, such as “Post a breaking news story at least four times a week” or “Publish two investigative stories.”
•Attend professional meetings. Conferences and conventions are a great way to recharge your batteries and “meet other people who share your challenges, struggles, frustrations, and also just as importantly successes,” says Mathew Cantore, adjunct instructor and co-adviser to The Hudsonian at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, N.Y. “Hearing from other people, in person, the same things you're going through is worth its weight in gold when it comes to avoiding burnout.” If you’re tired of going to the same conventions year after year, skip those and spend your travel money on a different professional meeting. You’ll meet new people and expand your professional connections.
• Network with the pros. Speaking of conferences, don’t limit yourself to gatherings of journalism educators; sign up for a meeting with the pros. Most organizations of news professionals – Society of Professional Journalists, National Press Photographers Association, American Society of Journalists and Authors, Radio-Television News Directors Association, state publishers associations – welcome journalism educators to their meetings. These offer opportunities to keep up with changes in the industry, meet potential guest speakers for your classes and break out of your usual circle of acquaintances.
• Retool. There’s nothing like learning something new to invigorate a career and with all the recent changes in journalism there’s a lot of new stuff to learn. Go teach yourself podcasting, video editing or design. Or take a course at your university or from a professional organization. The Center for Innovation in College Media, the Knight Digital Media Center, The Media Center at the American Press Institute, and The Poynter Institute all offer training opportunities for journalism educators. The Poynter Institute’s News University offers free and low-cost online courses in everything from Telling Stories with Sound and Writing Headlines for the Web to Handling Race and Ethnicity and Math for Journalists.
• Watch your colleagues teach. We all get into ruts, teaching the same things the same way, semester after semester. To break out of that groove, go see how someone else teaches. Make arrangements to spend a day or two shadowing a colleague at another school. Watch how that person teaches classes, critiques the paper, meets with students. Ask for copies of contracts, employment forms, assessment forms and other materials. Chances are, you’ll come back brimming with new ideas.
• Make time to read. Ever feel like those stacks of student papers to grade mean you can’t do more than scan the morning newspaper and flip through the latest issue of People magazine while you’re on the treadmill at the gym? Resist! Make sure you always have a book for fun, whether it’s the latest Sue Grafton mystery or a 19th century Russian novel. It may take two months to finish, but you should always have a book on your bedside table.
• Keep a feedback file. Jane Pope, director of student publications at the University of Tennessee, keeps files of thank-you notes and letters she receives from students and alumni who worked on student publications. When she’s feeling down, she rereads some of the letters. “Hearing feedback in the students' ‘voices’ and knowing they took time out of their schedules to express gratitude for their experience always gives me a great lift,” says Pope, now in her 35th year at the university and her 22nd advising student publications.
• Don’t just teach journalism, do it. Sure, you’re busy, but try to find time to work as a journalist, even if it’s just during summer and winter breaks. Peddle your services as a freelance writer, photographer, editor or online producer. See if you can write a regular column or occasional op-ed piece for your local newspaper. Offer to work a night or weekend shift at a newspaper, television station or news Web site or see if you can line up a summer “internship.” Working in the field will not only keep you fresh, it will give you entertaining stories to tell your students.
• Take a break. One of the great things about working in academia is the opportunities for getting out of it for awhile. See if you can arrange a professional exchange with a professor in another state or country. Look into taking a sabbatical or leave. Apply for a Fulbright. Taking a vacation from the job you once loved may be the best way of rekindling that romance.
This piece was originally published in The Community College Journalist, the magazine of the Community College Journalism Association.
If you feel you’re stuck in the doldrums of teaching and advising, here are some tips for reigniting the flame:
• Get involved. Organizations of journalism educators provide support, camaraderie and -- let’s face it -- opportunities to vent. Join the board or chair a committee for College Media Advisers, Society of Professional Journalists, National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association, your state student media organization or one of the ethnic media organizations, such as National Association of Black Journalists or National Association of Hispanic Journalists. If there isn’t a group to meet your interests, consider forming your own. When California was lacking a state student media organization, a bunch of us advisers got together and created one. It was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun, and we created a enduring network of colleagues.
• Set themes. For each semester or term create a theme for what you and your staff will focus on. Maybe you’ll decide to emphasize design one semester, planning special training workshops and inviting guest speakers to address your staff. Another semester you may highlight multimedia or investigative reporting or breaking news or computer-assisted reporting. Make sure your themes are in line with the interests of your staff. Establish goals related to your theme, such as “Organize three multimedia workshops for the staff” or “Train the whole staff in InDesign CS3.” Encourage your editors to come up with their own goals, such as “Post a breaking news story at least four times a week” or “Publish two investigative stories.”
•Attend professional meetings. Conferences and conventions are a great way to recharge your batteries and “meet other people who share your challenges, struggles, frustrations, and also just as importantly successes,” says Mathew Cantore, adjunct instructor and co-adviser to The Hudsonian at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, N.Y. “Hearing from other people, in person, the same things you're going through is worth its weight in gold when it comes to avoiding burnout.” If you’re tired of going to the same conventions year after year, skip those and spend your travel money on a different professional meeting. You’ll meet new people and expand your professional connections.
• Network with the pros. Speaking of conferences, don’t limit yourself to gatherings of journalism educators; sign up for a meeting with the pros. Most organizations of news professionals – Society of Professional Journalists, National Press Photographers Association, American Society of Journalists and Authors, Radio-Television News Directors Association, state publishers associations – welcome journalism educators to their meetings. These offer opportunities to keep up with changes in the industry, meet potential guest speakers for your classes and break out of your usual circle of acquaintances.
• Retool. There’s nothing like learning something new to invigorate a career and with all the recent changes in journalism there’s a lot of new stuff to learn. Go teach yourself podcasting, video editing or design. Or take a course at your university or from a professional organization. The Center for Innovation in College Media, the Knight Digital Media Center, The Media Center at the American Press Institute, and The Poynter Institute all offer training opportunities for journalism educators. The Poynter Institute’s News University offers free and low-cost online courses in everything from Telling Stories with Sound and Writing Headlines for the Web to Handling Race and Ethnicity and Math for Journalists.
• Watch your colleagues teach. We all get into ruts, teaching the same things the same way, semester after semester. To break out of that groove, go see how someone else teaches. Make arrangements to spend a day or two shadowing a colleague at another school. Watch how that person teaches classes, critiques the paper, meets with students. Ask for copies of contracts, employment forms, assessment forms and other materials. Chances are, you’ll come back brimming with new ideas.
• Make time to read. Ever feel like those stacks of student papers to grade mean you can’t do more than scan the morning newspaper and flip through the latest issue of People magazine while you’re on the treadmill at the gym? Resist! Make sure you always have a book for fun, whether it’s the latest Sue Grafton mystery or a 19th century Russian novel. It may take two months to finish, but you should always have a book on your bedside table.
• Keep a feedback file. Jane Pope, director of student publications at the University of Tennessee, keeps files of thank-you notes and letters she receives from students and alumni who worked on student publications. When she’s feeling down, she rereads some of the letters. “Hearing feedback in the students' ‘voices’ and knowing they took time out of their schedules to express gratitude for their experience always gives me a great lift,” says Pope, now in her 35th year at the university and her 22nd advising student publications.
• Don’t just teach journalism, do it. Sure, you’re busy, but try to find time to work as a journalist, even if it’s just during summer and winter breaks. Peddle your services as a freelance writer, photographer, editor or online producer. See if you can write a regular column or occasional op-ed piece for your local newspaper. Offer to work a night or weekend shift at a newspaper, television station or news Web site or see if you can line up a summer “internship.” Working in the field will not only keep you fresh, it will give you entertaining stories to tell your students.
• Take a break. One of the great things about working in academia is the opportunities for getting out of it for awhile. See if you can arrange a professional exchange with a professor in another state or country. Look into taking a sabbatical or leave. Apply for a Fulbright. Taking a vacation from the job you once loved may be the best way of rekindling that romance.
This piece was originally published in The Community College Journalist, the magazine of the Community College Journalism Association.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Northern Star helps readers find what they need
One of the things that most impresses me about the Northern Star's coverage of the Valentine's Day shootings is the way the paper has laid out its home page. The coverage is deep and there is lots of information but by listing stories and resources under categories, the Web site helps readers find exactly what they are looking for.
"The latest" in the top right hand corner guides readers to news of the most recent developments, as well as important university resources, such as the Northern Illinois University's list of counseling services and the official university memorial page. Readers who want to participate in a vigil can find one easily from a list under the latest developments. And if you want to find earlier stories, they're all there on the home page in the "coverage archive."
News not related the shootings -- entertainment, sports, other campus coverage -- is still on the home page, but you have to scroll down to find it.
Student newspapers that find themselves in the middle of a news avalanche would do well to follow the Northern Star's lead.
The paper should also get high marks for the thoroughness and timeliness of its coverage. The Northern Star proved itself this week to be a truly professional-quality news organization that served readers near and far.
"The latest" in the top right hand corner guides readers to news of the most recent developments, as well as important university resources, such as the Northern Illinois University's list of counseling services and the official university memorial page. Readers who want to participate in a vigil can find one easily from a list under the latest developments. And if you want to find earlier stories, they're all there on the home page in the "coverage archive."
News not related the shootings -- entertainment, sports, other campus coverage -- is still on the home page, but you have to scroll down to find it.
Student newspapers that find themselves in the middle of a news avalanche would do well to follow the Northern Star's lead.
The paper should also get high marks for the thoroughness and timeliness of its coverage. The Northern Star proved itself this week to be a truly professional-quality news organization that served readers near and far.
Friday, February 15, 2008
When a student paper becomes part of the news
When a major news event, like yesterday's shootings at Northern Illinois University, hits a college campus, the student newspaper often becomes part of the story. Here are some articles about the Northern Star, NIU's student newspaper:
* The Herald News
* Arlington Heights Post
* CBS2 Chicago
Here's a column from a NIU alum who worked for the Northern Star and now writes for The Gazette in Iowa City.
And here's how the Collegiate Times, the student newspaper at Virginia Tech, editorialized about the Northern Illinois University shootings. Last April a man gunned down 32 people and then took his own life at the Blacksburg, Va. campus.
* The Herald News
* Arlington Heights Post
* CBS2 Chicago
Here's a column from a NIU alum who worked for the Northern Star and now writes for The Gazette in Iowa City.
And here's how the Collegiate Times, the student newspaper at Virginia Tech, editorialized about the Northern Illinois University shootings. Last April a man gunned down 32 people and then took his own life at the Blacksburg, Va. campus.
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