By Sean Wetselaar
It’s pretty common knowledge for people that associate with journalism that the fine institution of The Eyeopener is a bit of a cult. We spend a lot of time thinking about, and working on the 15 or so pages that come before the Sudoku, which could win you a gift card.
So you’ll have to forgive me for spending a bit more time talking about what we do here.
The Eyeopener is run, as you’ve probably gathered by the list to the right of this column every week in print, by our masthead — all of the editors who produce and manage content for the paper. Those editors (including me!) were chosen by their peers, and our regular contributors, at an election last April. And in the world of Eyeopener elections, we’re approaching the midterm.
That means a few spots on our masthead are going to be open (we’ll tell you which ones in this section next week). My reasons for telling you about the inner-workings of the paper like this are two-fold. First, if you’re a journalist (but not necessarily a journalism student), then you could be joining the illustrious gang that produces the Eye.
If you’re not gunning to join our ranks, which is probably a tad more likely, then this still matters to you. Because no matter what happens on Nov. 27 when we elect new editors, there is going to be fresh blood in our office.
And there’s never been a better time to make sure those people produce content describing what matters to you. That’s important because you pay their paycheque. Every Ryerson student pays a levy of $18.40 per year to help keep our publication running. Help us make sure that your money isn’t wasted.
A lot of people believe that journalism happens in a vacuum. That people like me sit in our offices, dream up what ought
to matter to the masses and disseminate it. The motto in the venerable New York Times — “All the news that’s fit to print” — is a hangover from the days when maybe that was true.
But the truth is that we’re a long way from those days. News in this decade is perhaps more democratic than it has ever been. In a space where everyone has a platform to express themselves, it’s almost impossible for any journalist who cares to ignore their audience.
So, wonderful people of Ryerson, I’m writing this plea to you. If you ever look at our publication and think, “They don’t care about me. My issues should be in this paper,” then please come bitch us out.
Ultimately, this paper is a tool to serve you — all of you.
And I know that we can always do a better job. So help us out. Come by the office, call us, email us (I’m editor@theeyeopener.com), tweet at us — however you please.
Whatever you do, don’t remain silent. Your voice is important — help us make it heard.
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