The struggle for press freedom continues at Black colleges.
If The Meter at Tennessee State University and The Hilltop at Howard University are indicators, student newspapers at historically Black colleges and universities have taken giant strides since 2000, when Black Issues In Higher Education found many Black campus papers struggling and inadequate.
“All the News Doesn’t Make It to Print” (Feb. 17, 2000) described the woeful state of HBCU student publications: administrative problems, a lack of resources, limited technology and little or no training of students and advisers. Many of the papers were published only two or three times a year, and only a handful were available online.
Today, The Hilltop is published five days a week. And even with the accelerated production schedule, the staff has produced in-depth stories, including a critical examination of Howard University Hospital’s emergency care. The Meter, which was published every two weeks in 2000, later became weekly and plans to move to a twice-a-week publication this fall. It began featuring streaming video on its Web site last spring and won “Best Weekly Newspaper” and “Best Online Newspaper” at the HBCU Student Newspaper Contest this year.
And there are other signs of progress. Florida A&M University’s student paper, The Famuan, has gone from weekly to three times a week during the last three years. FAMU’s journalism school also publishes Journey, an award-winning student magazine. Southern University’s Southern Digest is published twice a week and is beginning a magazine this fall.
All of these school papers have active Web sites that are updated as news breaks on their campuses, preparing the student journalists for the newsrooms they will work in as professionals.
“An increase in the students’ enthusiasm about journalism,” is responsible for much of The Meter’s success, says Pamela E. Foster, faculty adviser and an assistant professor of mass communication. She suggests that The Meter’s journalists feel an obligation to inform other students about events in the university and the community.
