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| MARGARET
MYERS/Daily LSA senior Erin Marsh, the editorial page editor and summer editor in chief, pastes pages before they go to print later in the night. The Daily is entirely student-run and receives no funding from the University. |
But for more than 175 students, the Daily is a chance to learn about the exciting business of journalism while working every academic day to produce a meaningful and informative publication, something that takes a wide array of talents and a diverse staff.
Daily staffers work as reporters and editors for the arts, editorial, news and sports sections; they take photographs and produce graphics; they create the Daily's online edition and make sure our copy is clean; and they physically produce the newspaper on our advanced desktop publishing system, from the computer to the printing press. And that is only half of it.
In addition to the Daily's editorial side of the paper, there is the business side, which manages the almost $1.3 million annual operating budget. Selling advertising, planning special sections, managing credit and finance and designing ads for our numerous clients are just a few of the roles business staff members fulfill on a daily basis. In a fast-paced, fun environment, these staffers learn what it is like to operate a substantial business on their own.
And, contrary to what many believe, the Daily receives no University funding. In order to ensure editorial independence, the Daily is supported entirely through the advertising it sells, which means the paper relies on students to produce, maintain and support its every effort. The Daily's student editors have final say on content and provide the paper with guidelines and policies to guide it in future years.
As far as college newspapers go, The Michigan Daily has both a unique arrangement and a top-tier reputation -- both of which work to make it one of the best collegiate newspapers in the country. Staff members last year took 19 Gold Circle Awards to the Columbia Scholastic Press AssociationŐs annual contest -- close to twice the number of awards presented to any other publication.
In addition to having the No. 1 photograph in the nation last year and the No. 2 news story, staff members took more than half the sports writing awards and the paper was named the third-best designed paper in the country. We constantly strive to pass our experiences on to each and every student who walks through our doors at 420 Maynard St.
And joining the staff is as easy as that -- students just have to come to the office and show an interest in working. In order to work for the Daily, students must meet each section's minimum requirements, which usually means writing a story about once a week and working short production shifts. And every student can start immediately. Daily staff members and editors are students in the College of Engineering and the Business School, in addition to LSA.
Students do not have to be English majors or plan a career in journalism in order to work at the Daily; some of our most successful staff members in recent history include pre-med students, Business School students and student who planned to go to law school. And without a journalism program at the University, the Daily is an excellent way to learn about the basics while producing an informative and interesting publication.
The Daily is a newspaper for the students, and in that light the daily offers commentary on the most prominent issues in the community, on topics ranging from national and international events to campus government and Ann Arbor. The Daily also has a daily letters section, which allows individuals in the University community to tell campus what they think. Via e-mail, at daily.letters@umich.edu, or by stopping by with a letter, each student can comment about the campus or about us.
To join an interesting group of students in their pursuit to inform the campus and learn from each other, and to be part of a 106-year tradition, all you have to do is walk through our front door or call us at 76-DAILY.
There is a place for you.
09-03-97
should be sent to: daily.letters@umich.edu | should be sent to: online.daily@umich.edu |