A reflection of a year at The Reporter

As a reflection of the last year at our campus, we have to look at the achievements of our campus newspaper, the Reporter. 

Since its establishment nearly 100 years ago in 1926, the Reporter has been advocating for the student’s voice at least twice a week, covering events, people and moments that are important for students. 

Last year, the Reporter was given adequate funding from the Student Government and were able to see a steep increase in quality content, design and overall production of our newspaper. 

The newsroom has been able to function as it is supposed to. We have writers following up on big stories that otherwise would go unnoticed. 

An example of these important stories that have been pushed to the public eye is a student who was confined to a wheelchair and was left in her dorm room during a fire alarm. From the publishing of that story, significant impacts have been made, including actions from the Student Government and even upper administration. 

Another example of this is the hot button issue of accessibility on campus. This was especially brought to light with the complaint brought to the university regarding non-compliance to the Americans with Disabilities Act with the newly installed MavPODs. 

Of these stories, many of them have gone on to get picked up by larger news media organizations including the Mankato Free Press and KEYC. 

In addition to large issues as mentioned above, The Reporter has published story after story highlighting the amazing work that students on campus do. 

This year, the Reporter was honored with 13 awards from the Minnesota Newspaper Association for it’s coverage of MSU’s campus. For context, that is 9 more awards than were taken home the previous year.

Whether it is planning or partaking in extravagant events like homecoming, or participating in tough conversations with guest speakers, students have had ample opportunity to grow as people, and the Reporter has been there every step of the way. 

A college newspaper run by students is vital to the health of a campus, as it provides a voice to the student population, and allows for grievances to be voiced in a public fashion. 

The laboratory-like structure of a student-run newspaper allows people to learn in an environment that is not as high stakes as in the real world. 

The actual experience that students receive while working at the Reporter is among some of the greatest on campus. Writers, photographers and editors all get professional experience to use on a resume, all while creating high quality content in a space designed for creativity.

It is no question that the industry of newsgathering is becoming more and more divisive, after all, we do live in the era of “fake news”. That is why it is so important to allow future journalists to build their skills prior to even leaving college.