Over the last week, I have received an outpouring of positive comments about this publication returning to print—a general feeling of optimism and hope for a healthy future in the press. Not only were readers excited to see that this university has a printed publication, but they were relieved to know that there are ‘journalistic watchdogs’ on campus once again.
While the first edition was a milestone for our team, we are nowhere near our full potential. My hope is that we will continue to grow and become a viable news source within the community once again.
Newspapers are kept alive by their reader’s faith and dedication, but they are fueled by passionate voices. This means that we are going to need to work together as readers and a devoted publication. We want to hear from you about the problems, the milestones, the inspirations in your lives. Our team is a small army of 12 people, six of which are staff writers. Our reach into the community is only as far as our class schedules allow. Until we can gather more writers, we need your help to pinpoint the topics that the community needs to hear about. Email us, call us, stop us on the street. We want to know what you want to read.
We also want to read and publish what you write! Let’s turn this ‘letter FROM the editor’ into a ‘letter TO the editor.’ Tell me “the good, the bad, and the ugly.” I want to know it all because there is no better way to learn and grow.
If you have an opinion, news tip, or hot topic that you want to be shared, reach out to me at sastanley1@catamount.wcu.edu or westerncarolinian@email.wcu.edu.
Once again, thank you for picking up this paper and reading this far. The Western Carolinian team thanks you, and I, Sara Stanley, thank you!