This past week, one of our editors noticed three older men, assumedly faculty members, having a lively conversation in Jazzman’s Cafe over the latest issue of The Mirror. According to this editor, they were discussing the idea that they hadn’t heard many facts reported in our coverage of the University’s projected budget prior to reading the story.
Another event that happened this past week was the bi-annual advisory board for The Mirror, in which a panel of faculty and professionals of various backgrounds gathered to offer direction for the future of this newspaper. Topics discussed were mainly geared toward how to make it easier for students to both voice their opinions and connect with those presented in the paper.
So what do these two events have in common? They both illustrate the pressing need for this publication to embody its name to the fullest degree – to become a clear reflection of everyone at Fairfield University.
What do we aim to do? Well, we honestly went into our positions blind and immediately found ourselves adjusting to our leadership roles over not one section of the newspaper, but all sections of the newspaper. We’ve floundered. We’ve whined. We’ve aired our grievances behind the doors of the Mirror office. It’s been over a month since the switch, and we’ve settled with our responsibilities. Here’s our laundry list:
We felt like The Mirror needed a facelift. So far, changes were made to the front page and a couple of inside pages. Like what you see? Please let us know, because sometimes, we feel like we’re dealing with crickets out there. We appreciate that you read the paper (and this editorial!), but we would like it even more if we can hear from you.
Also, in this day and age, newspapers must have sustainable online and print versions. We at The Mirror recognize that the website needs a lot of updating. The editors are imagining a universal place where videos and photos can be shared by anyone, anytime. Think Facebook, but without the whiny status updates.
We also want to read more from you, so we are planning on inserting online web discussions where students can state well-supported opinions. We cannot act as the eyes and ears of the campus – we try to, but it’s you that we want.
We cherish the fact that we have the support of Dr. Tommy Xie, a very supportive adviser, and a group of dedicated editors who want to make The Mirror into one of the best collegiate publications out there. While we are getting down to the last issue – next week’s issue – we are all already planning for the next one. How exciting!
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