AS THE University's primary news source, The Cavalier Daily plays an important role in the community. Though run by students, it is a real newspaper that must cope with the very real consequences of mistakes. The Cavalier Daily is an independent publication, in that it receives no funds from the University -- it pays rent to occupy its spacious pad in the basement of Newcomb Hall -- and it is overseen only by its Managing Board, five students elected to manage the literary, graphical and financial content of the newspaper. The staff, with the exception of the ads team, is unpaid, either by financial or class-credit means. They come to write, take photos, edit, design layouts or the Web site on a purely volunteer basis. This is, of course, a drastically different set-up than a traditional newsroom. It can lead to bouts of high turnover and low morale, but it can also demonstrate a remarkable level of dedication and resolve. The folks making this paper are learning while doing, but they are nonetheless responsible for slip-ups. Working for The Cavalier Daily can be a very stressful yet extremely rewarding undertaking.
I speak from experience, I must disclose. I spent many hours as a undergraduate in the bowels of Newcomb Hall, eventually serving as Managing Editor. I know what it's like to be wielding the kind of power and responsibility these folks now hold. However, I am returning to the University three years later as a graduate student, and that provides me with enough mental and geographical distance to take on fairly the critical role of ombudsman. After graduating in 2000, I traveled a fair amount, backpacking through Europe and driving across the United States. I spent two years at National Geographic Television & Film before making my trek back to C'ville to work on my Master's degree.
That brings me to now, where I am back writing for The Cavalier Daily, only this time, it's not necessarily for but about The Cavalier Daily. The Cavalier Daily is wise to employ an ombudsman, a writer who serves as a critic of the paper and a resource for its readers. I invite readers to contact me via e-mail at ombud@cavalierdaily.com. Comments sent to me are not synonymous with letters to the editor: They will not be printed in such a form, though they can often provide a basis for columns. I look forward to reading your thoughts. That should be enough introduction, so let's get on with the show...
The Cavalier Daily started off the academic year with a Saturday issue tailored to folks moving to Grounds for the first time. The front page story -- a long piece on the new kids on the block, the Class of 2007 -- is hardly breaking news (and this issue is not necessarily designed to do so), but it gives a good picture of what goes into getting acclimated, both from the perspective of first years and the staff that witnesses this barrage annually. Additional advice came in the issue in the form of a lead editorial, a few opinion columns and an upperclassmen-on-the-street feature with photos and sentence-long quips for newbies.
Tuesday's ad-free Gridiron supplement was a fantastic overview of all things Virginia football, with a striking cover, many well-written features, great photos and a creative and relatively easy-to-follow layout. Gridiron editor J.D. Moss and his team of writers, photographers and production staff did an excellent job compiling and presenting information on a variety of teams. Substantial features on Cavs such as Wali Lundy, Matt Schaub and Al Groh helped to orient new folks to the home team. The only gripe with the supplement is almost negligible: The use of no capitals is okay as a style if employed throughout headlines, cutlines, etc., but on occasion caps are used anyway. The biggest rule of style is to be consistent. That notwithstanding, congratulations to Moss and his team for a job very well done. Coverage like this outside the norm is hard to do, but often can be the best resources a newspaper provides its readers.
Regular production began with classes Wednesday and continues throughout the school year (The Cavalier Daily is "daily" Monday through Friday with the exception of school breaks). A three-part series on illegal file-sharing gave a good run-down of the nuances of this sticky debate. Riley McDonald examined the situation from many views including the recording industry's perspective, the file-sharing sites themselves, as well as the alternatives that have resulted. McDonald's series was researched well and featured University students to provide perspective. Placement of this series was a bit off in that it was twice holding the lead (top-right) spot on the front page, which should be reserved for breaking and not serial news.
The Cavalier Daily found its way to distribution spots all around Grounds on Friday morning despite Thursday's powerful thunderstorm that blacked out much of the area for many hours. The Cavalier Daily offices experienced intermittent bouts of power loss, but managed to work through it and get the paper out. However, a mention of the storm and its havoc in Friday's issue would have been beneficial for those students that experienced lengthy power losses (some didn't have juice until Friday afternoon).
All in all, The Cavalier Daily began the new school year with a solid week. What do you think? Do you have any questions or concerns about coverage? Let me know at ombud@cavalierdaily.com.
(Emily Kane can be reached at ombud@cavalierdaily.com.)
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