Opinion > May 1, 2008

By This column represents the views of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board. |

As yet another school year comes to a close, we, members of the Editorial Board, are left reflecting on the Old Gold & Black’s purpose and meaning, taking the chance to ask ourselves why it is that we do what we do.

In this very issue, hours of work and cooperation from dozens of writers, photographers, cartoonists and editors have combined to put into fruition four sections covering a week’s worth of campus news, students’ opinions on a variety of issues, sports events and pop culture living.

Multiply that by every week we are in school and you get a large pile of newspapers that stacks up to hopefully at least a glimpse of what it’s like to be a student at Wake Forest University.

Working to put out a newspaper every week requires a good deal of effort on the part of many people. And just like undoubtedly is the case for many student organizations, not to mention simply being a student at the university, it’s not without a pretty formidable list of obstacles in striving to do things right.

Included in this list is the struggle against typos, passive voice and fuzzy pictures; the risk of being biased; the always present and nagging distraction of school work; the headaches from staring at the screen for too long, from the pressure of deadlines and from never-ending stories to write. There are the difficulties of trying to stay relevant and developing new techniques and layouts. Then there’s the neat opportunity of being criticized by students, teachers, student organizations and administrators; trying to get to the bottom of things when people don’t want to talk; and working with businesses that want to advertise. The list can go on for a while. We’ve got all of this to put up with, and all the while we hold the suspicion in the backs of our minds that maybe none of it really matters because students nowadays just don’t read the newspaper. So really, why do we do it?

To be quite honest, we do it because we sort of like it. We do it for ourselves, yes. Working for the newspaper gives us the chance to develop journalism skills, management skills, writing skills, people skills, team work skills etc., all of which are undergoing constant scrutiny and ultimately (hopefully) development. Also, being up in the office means that we can fairly easily stay ‘in the know’ on developments happening on campus.

The OGB is also an extra-curricular activity that has truly tangible results. Plus, there’s the paycheck too, we’ll admit.

But, you know what, there’s something else too. We work for the newspaper because we like to think that we are giving something back to the school. The OGB is just one of the many sources of information for people who are related to the university in some way.

Also, there’s the fact that the Old Gold & Black dates back to 1916 and subsequently is one of, if not the, oldest university traditions. Finally, student newspapers are a small piece of the university that prospective students and visitors can take with them; so we sort of play a role in public relations too.

During this Age of Information when newspapers are on the way out and the Internet is very in, we believe and hope that combining tradition and constant adaptation will keep us alive.

Our Web site has turned a corner in modernity and our newspaper continues to earn national recognition in annual Associated Collegiate Press conferences.

We’ll keep working, so keep reading Wake Forest!