The Pennsylvania State University Schreyer Honors College
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THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHREYER HONORS COLLEGE DEPARTMENT OF JOURNALISM The Coronavirus Pandemic’s Impact on Student-Run News Outlets MADDIE AIKEN SPRING 2021 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a baccalaureate degree in Digital and Print Journalism with honors in Journalism Reviewed and approved* by the following: Russell Eshleman Associate Teaching Professor of Journalism Head, Department of Journalism Thesis Supervisor Patrick Plaisance Don W. Davis Professor in Ethics Honors Adviser * Electronic approvals are on file. i ABSTRACT Operating a student-run news outlet is no easy task. In a typical year, the students who worked at these outlets juggled breaking news, social media platforms, a print product and an ever-changing media landscape with the day-to-day regularities of college life. Now, however, journalists at student-run outlets can no longer just focus on ledes, leadership and lectures. The coronavirus pandemic has added a new layer to student journalism, complicating everything from a staff’s reporting and editing to interpersonal dynamics. As student-run outlets feel the brunt of the pandemic, the leaders of these outlets face difficult decisions in navigating their staffs through a global phenomenon that modern journalism has never experienced. The past year has brought changes — both positive and negative — to student-run outlets across the country. The pandemic has uprooted “normal” expectations for a staff’s reporting and editing, morale and mental health, and digital and print approaches. This thesis illustrates how student news outlets have adapted to the pandemic — as well as student journalists’ tenacity to continue reporting the news amid weighty circumstances. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... iii Chapter 1 Introduction ................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 2 Reporting during a Historical Time ............................................................ 7 Chapter 3 By the Numbers ........................................................................................... 21 Chapter 4 Innovation.................................................................................................... 25 Chapter 5 Mental Health .............................................................................................. 30 Chapter 6 Leading a Staff ............................................................................................ 34 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................ 39 iii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Daily Tar Heel editorial ........................................................................................... 9 Figure 2: Lantern protest statement ......................................................................................... 13 Figure 3: Diamondback "DBK En Español" section. .............................................................. 15 Figure 4: Pitt News election front page. .................................................................................. 16 Figure 5: Pageview comparison ............................................................................................... 21 Figure 6: Weekly print comparison ......................................................................................... 22 Figure 7: Staff size comparison ............................................................................................... 23 Figure 8: Recruitment comparison .......................................................................................... 24 Figure 9: Michigan Daily data-driven story ............................................................................ 26 Figure 10: Diamondback coronavirus dashboard .................................................................... 27 Figure 11: Daily Tar Heel year-in-review newspaper. ............................................................ 37 1 Chapter 1 Introduction Many student-run news outlets were already facing an uphill battle going into 2020. Print numbers and advertising revenue were down for organizations across the country. As students tried to find ways to make the news profitable, they also faced growing hostility toward the media landscape. In March, the coronavirus pandemic swept across the United States, changing life as Americans knew it. About a month later, student-run newspapers chose their editors and business managers for the upcoming academic year. Most were trained on how to answer emails from angry sources or resolve inner-staff conflicts. Now, they also had to learn how to lead their staffs into the next academic year amid a global pandemic. Over a year later, student-run outlets have changed — and College Media Association President Christopher Whitley said in some ways, he doesn’t think student media will ever be the same. The pandemic has propelled student-run outlets toward website and social media innovation, according to Whitley. However, he said it has also cost many outlets their print products and revenue, and many students their mental health. In many communities, student-run news outlets are one of the only, if not the only, source of journalism. This past year has demonstrated the necessity of student-run outlets to share 2 information in communities, according to Whitley — who described college media as an “important voice in America.” Here are eight important voices of college media in America. These editors-in-chief spent their tenures learning, innovating and coping in a pandemic. ● Casey Darnell, The Daily Orange editor-in-chief (May 2020-May 2021) ● Daisy Grant, The Diamondback editor-in-chief (April 2020-April 2021) ● Claire Hao, The Michigan Daily editor-in-chief (Jan. 2021-Dec. 2021) ● Diti Kohli, The Berkeley Beacon editor-in-chief (July 2020-Dec. 2020) ● Maria Leontaras, The Observer editor-in-chief (March 2020-March 2021) ● Jon Moss, The Pitt News editor-in-chief (April 2020-April 2021) ● Anna Pogarcic, The Daily Tar Heel editor-in-chief (April 2020-April 2021) ● Sam Raudins, The Lantern editor-in-chief (May 2020-May 2021) The publications that these editors work at vary in everything from staff size to audience size. These outlets demonstrate the diversity of student media publication structure, as well as the different types of college communities that student-run outlets serve. Here is a summary of the eight outlets these editors work for, and the communities that these outlets serve*. • The Daily Orange o At Syracuse University, a private university o Serves an undergraduate population of 15,275 and a local population of 142,327 in Syracuse, New York (“Figures, Facts and Rankings;” “Population estimates, Syracuse, New York”) o Independent from the university 3 o Staff size: 50 o Total pageviews June 1, 2020-Feb. 28, 2021: 3,216,465 o Primarily remote operations during the pandemic • The Diamondback o At the University of Maryland, College Park, a public land-grant university o Serves an undergraduate population of 30,875 and a local population of 32,163 in College Park, Maryland (“Facts and Figures;” “Population estimates, College Park, Maryland”) o Independent from the university o Staff size: 100 o Total pageviews June 1, 2020-Feb. 28, 2021: 2,371,081 o Primarily remote operations during the pandemic • The Michigan Daily o At the University of Michigan, a public university o Serves an undergraduate population of 31,266 and a local population of 119,980 in Ann Arbor, Michigan (“Facts & Figures;” “Population estimates, Ann Arbor, Michigan”) o Independent from the university o Staff size: 455 o Total pageviews June 1, 2020-Feb. 28, 2021: 4,955,195 o Primarily remote operations during the pandemic • The Berkeley Beacon o At Emerson College, a private college 4 o Serves an undergraduate population of 5,411 and a local population of 692,600 in Boston, Massachusetts (Gerber; “Population estimates, Boston, Massachusetts”) o Independent from the college o Staff size: 30 o Total pageviews June 1, 2020-Feb. 28, 2021: 516,939 o Primarily remote operations during the pandemic • The Observer o At the University of Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s College and Holy Cross College, which are three private colleges o Serves an undergraduate population of 11,757 across all three schools, and a local population of 5,973 in Notre Dame, Indiana (“University of Notre Dame;” “Saint Mary’s College;” “About Holy Cross;” “Population estimates, Notre Dame, Indiana”) o Independent from the colleges o Staff size: 175 o Total pageviews June 1, 2020-Feb. 28, 2021: 2,333,892 o Partially in-person, partially remote operations during the pandemic • The Pitt News o At the University of Pittsburgh, a state-related public university o Serves an undergraduate population of 19,200 and a local population of 300,286 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (“University of Pittsburgh — Pittsburgh campus;” “Population estimates, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania”) o Not independent from the university 5 o Staff size: 170 o Total pageviews June 1, 2020-Feb. 28, 2021: 2,340,930 o Primarily remote operations during the pandemic • The Daily Tar Heel o At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a public university o Serves an undergraduate population of 19,117 and a local population of 64,051 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina (“Carolina By The Numbers;” “Population estimates, Chapel Hill, North Carolina”) o Independent from the university