This is your paper. Yeah, the one you’re holding in your hands, but also The Free Press in general, which you’ll be reading all year (we hope). What do you want in it?
That is a serious question that I am asking you, personally. Answer it at [email protected] or call me at 780-4084 (I’m at ext. 1).
Traditionally, the Letter from the Editor has been a place for the Executive Editor to sound off on an issue. I don’t know how interesting that is for your standard-issue reader, who hopefully has their own attitude toward the issues. I’m not going to sway anyone with my pithy verbiage and I only stand to look vain or stupid trying to do it.
Instead, I’m planning on using the space as a running journal on the issues we face as a staff.
That may sound narcissistic, and maybe it is, but I hope it will give people an idea of the work that goes into making The Free Press happen every week. Maybe it will get people interested in helping us out.
I was going to get started right away introducing the new board of editors, or Editorial Board, but our News Editor took the wind out of my sails on that one (see page 4). This is a serious group of intense and talented people. I’m humbled and honored to be their leader, or their shepherd, or whatever it is that I’m supposed to be. It’s going to be a great year for news in general, what with the elections in November and a general sense of political urgency here on campus and around the world.
We’ve tried to address as many of readers’ common complaints and suggestions as we could this year. That’s why there’s a horoscope now and a better crossword. We’re also tightening our focus on local issues in all sections of the paper. Check out Hoopleville Comics, which we’re printing now (page 21).
We’re trying to report more Gorham news. To that end, I’ve been bugging administration for office space on that campus. Despite our best effort to recruit Gorham writers, we have none and a department-funded position of Gorham Editor has been vacant for over a year. It’s a sad fact that a tiny minority of the people who get involved at The Free Press (and the other student organizations) live in Gorham. With about 10 precent of the school housed in the dorms there, that is a troubling indication of some serious brain damage going on out there.
Are the ugly wood panels cladding Dickey-Wood hall so numbing as to stunt any interest onemay have in his or her surroundings?
Is there some poisonous compound in the Gorham soil that makes four years of beer funnels and bong hits a satisfying affair?
Is Gorham a magical place where you never get bored shushing everyone while you shotgun your cheap beer, trying to predict the patrols of your suspicious RA? Is this your third year disguising suspicious smells with ingenious fan placement and Fabreeze dispensations? This is the impression I get, am I missing something? Are there actually interesting things going on in Gorham? If so, drop us a line.
That goes for any student group on campus that wants coverage. We can’t guarantee headlines, but if you do something noteworthy, we’ll cover it.
We’re pushing for news that actually applies to the average reader. We realize that stories about construction sites, board meetings and parking lots aren’t exactly lighter fluid for the kindling of our souls, or whatever. Our readership (you) deserves inquisitive and energetic reporting from your school paper (us). Again, this is a two-way road: if you see something that would make an interesting story, drop us a line. We want to make the website more interactive this year, and you can expect to find lots of options for feedback there soon. (For now, we are really busy, like, actually making a paper) In the meantime, send your emails to [email protected]. These are beamed directly into my sexy little PowerBook, on which I will read every single letter of your every email you write with an attention to detail you just wouldn’t believe. I am like an autistic kid over here, with these emails. You will not be ignored. You can also reach me, or any of the editors here, at 780-4084.
John Bronson can be
contacted at