An acquaintance recently asked me what I would look back upon as the best and worst parts of my undergraduate life at the University of Virginia. After thinking for a moment, I realized the answer to each component of the question was the same: The Cavalier Daily. The two years I spent as executive editor and editor-in-chief of this 123-year-old student newspaper were both the most enriching and trying parts of my collegiate existence, but I walk away from the experience with the firm conviction that I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Many people don’t realize that The Cavalier Daily is more than just an extracurricular activity: It is a student-run business. The five students on the managing board are charged with running the paper’s financial, legal and editorial affairs, and there are no professionals, faculty or other “adults” at the newspaper to offer assistance. That means The Cavalier Daily’s student leaders endure a number of heavy burdens normally reserved for men and women with years or decades of professional work experience. Just like leaders at any other business, The Cavalier Daily’s managing board must resolve internal conflicts, fulfill organizational obligations to creditors and contractors, and address criticism and even legal threats if mistakes are made or merely perceived by the public.
And then there are the unpredictable crises that are not in the job description. During my two years on the managing board, for example, I was forced to defend myself and my fellow editors from other student leaders who falsely asserted that our constitutionally protected exercise of editorial speech was an affront to the University’s honor system. Another time, I had to devise an ad hoc method for publishing the newspaper when our server was stricken with the Blue Screen of Death at 9 o’clock on a production night. And when our courier suddenly quit on us one evening, I even had to drive an hour to our printing press after finishing production at 2 a.m., pick up copies of the newspaper, drive back to Charlottesville, and deliver The Cavalier Daily around Grounds with the help of a few dedicated staffers — and then go to class.
The trials I faced as a leader of The Cavalier Daily were far more significant than any I experienced as a student under the University’s protective umbrella. Yet as frustrating as these moments sometimes were, I will cherish my time on the managing board because it gave me the chance to make a genuine difference in my community. I will remember the surreal night I spent at the Rotunda covering a leadership crisis that will forever be etched in University history, as well as the next night spent in an editor’s living room uploading a cache of Board of Visitors emails that influenced the outcome of that crisis. And I will always be proud that it was my colleagues and I who succeeded at transforming The Cavalier Daily from a traditional newspaper into an innovative digital media enterprise with a redesigned website, the largest Twitter following among Charlottesville publications, and ultimately the boldest restructuring plan in the organization’s history.
I can’t end this column without acknowledging that my two years of leadership at The Cavalier Daily were not an individual effort. Rather, they were possible because of the collective support of many kind and talented people. I am thankful for the countless friends and family members who understood when I could not attend events or gatherings because I was inundated with work; I have enjoyed making up for lost time with many of you in these final months before graduation. I also had the good fortune of developing strong personal and professional relationships with colleagues and business partners while at The Cavalier Daily. I am especially grateful to my friends on the past two managing boards who taught me so much and always served as a source of inspiration. To Anna, in particular: Your confidence has pushed me to achieve more than I ever thought possible, and I hope our time at The Cavalier Daily will be just the first of many more adventures we take together.
Finally, the people who are most responsible for my accomplishments at The Cavalier Daily are those who never received a byline in this newspaper: my brother, mother, and father. Brian, you are a tremendous friend, and I know that if you come to U.Va. you will undoubtedly end up on The Cavalier Daily front page for doing something amazing. Mom and Dad, you are the wisest and most selfless people I know. Thank you for always being there to offer support and advice when I need it, which has been quite often during the past few years. I am so grateful that I have your example to strive toward in both my personal and professional life.
Although the past four years at The Cavalier Daily — and especially the past two on the managing board — have been remarkably profound for me, I look forward to the future. Because as much as this feels like the end, I know it is really the beginning: of a career, of the many relationships I will carry forward from The Cavalier Daily, and of a lifelong dedication to supporting this newspaper.
Matt Cameron was The Cavalier Daily’s 123rd editor-in-chief and 122nd executive editor.
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