While change can sometimes be slow at the tradition-driven University of Texas, when new is needed, it has a way of finding itself onto the 40 Acres.

That’s certainly been the case with the student journalism scene over the past few years. While student journalism staples like The Daily Texan, TSTV and KVRX Radio have remained, new publications like The Odyssey, The Horn and ORANGE Magazine have emerged out of necessity, to provide a check on older publications, additional opportunity and expanded coverage. 

I’ve had the opportunity to work for the Texan, The Odyssey, The Horn and ORANGE. What I’ve observed is that while having more publications does take away from the older in some ways, as student talent is now more spread out, the benefits of the additional journalistic opportunities greatly outweigh the negatives. I feel this way for many reasons.

First and foremost, with these new publications, there is finally a check on the old. While that may not seem like a big deal initially, when you think about how powerful journalism is, the importance of that check becomes abundantly clear. Journalism has the power to persuade people and affect public opinion in a very strong way. The Daily Texan is heavily integrated into the operations of the university, falling under the purview of the Moody College of Communication, and being closely associated with Student Government. Conflict arising there is very possible, along with in any other part of the university. Having another daily source for UT news, in The Horn, helps to control that, because if one newspaper decides not to cover an issue or to cover it poorly, there is another there to cover it as well.  

Second, these new publications provide opportunity for students to get involved in journalism that just didn't exist before. With the high amount of interest in the new publications, it’s become clear that in today’s world, UT students want the opportunity to be a part of student journalism in very high numbers. ORANGE boasts a staff now of roughly 100, The Horn of roughly 50 and The Odyssey of about a dozen. That’s a number of students that likely wouldn’t have been able to get involved in student journalism without these new publications, as the staff numbers for the older publications have not decreased as a result of the new publications emerging.  

Third, and my final point, is the increased information on the university that these new publications are able to provide. With more publications working to produce UT-centric content, the university community can be better informed, better held accountable, better communicated, and, as a result, better off altogether. The Odyssey is the biggest example of this. For the first time during my four years at UT, Greek life is beginning to get the detailed coverage that it deserves, with the large role it plays in University of Texas affairs.  

For those that are having trouble with seeing the value in UT’s rapidly growing journalism scene, I urge you to consider these points and all the good it is doing for the university community. I give a big ‘Hook ‘Em Horns’ to UT’s growing student journalism scene, wishing it the best and continued growth for years to come! \m/