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Story AND Newsmaker of the Year: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Tweet Share on Facebook February 5, 2008 Comment (1)Because this contest was apparently terribly designed, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been crowned both story and newsmaker of 2007. Oops! Congrats, though, to Mahmoud, who was unable to accept his award in person.
So what was the big deal again? A quick recap of what happened: Ahmadinejad is invited to speak at Columbia University. Many, many people don't like it. He arrives. Protesters arrive. The media arrives. Circus commences. Circus leaves. Students left to pick up the pieces.
With all the hoopla, what's a student journalist to do when competing for face time with the likes of the New York Times and even U.S.News & World Report? If you're Columbia's Bwog blog, you send reporters into the fray and they text message like crazy.
With limited press access, the Bwog's enterprising correspondents watched the Iranian president's speech with the masses and texted an editor on the outside, who was busy compiling and blogging away, says then coeditor Katie Reedy. The strategy worked: Site traffic almost doubled from the weeks preceding the big event, and by preparing ahead of time for the "[expletive] show," they were able to ensure that their site never crashed. "It was quite the spectacle."
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UC-Berkeley Tree Sitters Win Nonstory of the Year
Tweet Share on Facebook February 5, 2008 Comment (5)It's been well over a year (some would say "forever"), and the legal battles rage on for tree sitters and administrators at UC-Berkeley. As the Daily Cal fastidiously covers the story, we're all left to wonder: Does anyone else on campus think this story is as important as the student newspaper makes it out to be? The answer, in short: Not really.
"It's not in the zeitgeist right now," says Will Kane—the most recent reporter on the tree-sitter beat. Kane admits he does his best not to think about it all the time ("No, I don't dream about the tree sitters") and that the average students don't discuss the latest news in the hippie saga. But then again, when something exciting does happen (falling poop, a naked photo shoot, or maybe some actual progress in the courtroom), Kane insists students on campus do care—perhaps something we cynical East Coasters may not get about the whole Berkeley protesting thing.
As for the activists who continue to live the aerie life, is there an end in sight? "They say they're there for as long as it takes the university to take them down," Kane says. It's a good thing Kane is currently a sophomore: Looks like this won't be over anytime soon.
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A Year in the Life of Mark Zuckerberg
Tweet Share on Facebook February 5, 2008 CommentMark Zuckerberg had a very exciting 2007. True, he didn't win Paper Trail's Newsmaker of the Year award (second place to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad isn't bad), but between legal troubles galore and a new BFF named Bill Gates, he sure kept busy. For your reading pleasure, the Zucky 2007 timeline:
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Chuck Norris and Oprah Propel Sujay Kumar to Top Columnist Spot
Tweet Share on Facebook February 5, 2008 CommentConsidering I can't think of anyone who is deciding to vote between Sen. Barack Obama and Gov. Mike Huckabee, the pertinence of Kumar's "Should you be casting a vote for Chuck Norris or Oprah Winfrey?" column is nearly as questionable as the Texas Ranger catapulting the Arkansas governor into relevance in the first place. A pithy—and slightly angry—Facebook group probably helped Kumar in our polls, but so did passable writing skills and a thorough knowledge of current pop culture.
A Paper Trail Awards acceptance post from the scribe himself:
My fondest memory of the U.S. News & World Report, is reading the annual "America's Best Colleges." As a wide-eyed senior in high school, the list that ranked national colleges and universities instilled in me a sense of confidence and hope for the coming years. Then I was rejected by most of those illustrious institutions of higher learning. As Tom Cruise said in Risky Business, "Looks like the University of Illinois!" But if given the chance, I wouldn't change anything.
Anyway, of course I'd like to thank anyone who voted for me, but more importantly I'd like to thank anyone who takes the time to read what I write. This one's for my family, my friends, my editor, and the die-hards that still may be voting for me, clicking away, unaware that the polls have closed.
If you've read this far, the expectations I had for the size of my readership have been exceeded, and for that, I thank you.
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Best Alternative Media Outlet: University of Michigan: On the Record
Tweet Share on Facebook February 5, 2008 CommentThe race to the top was both strange and exhilarating, but the Michigan OTR blog—with puppy promises and a huge potential readership to draw from—handily beat out this year's competition.
The blog's success has coincided with its sometimes controversial, but mostly hilarious, profiling of the prolific campus fraternity and sorority scene, culminating in the "Michigan Greek Mythology: The List" post that rocked the Wolverine world. This "completely arbitrary" list of the best and worst frats and sororities was so buzzworthy, it prompted the school newspaper to investigate who the anonymous "Johnny Quest" was. Turns out, it was one of their own, senior Paul Tassi. Whoopsie!
Even Adam Horwitz—the blog's other editor—has only kind words for the work of Johnny Quest. "I'm honored to just do what I do, even if it's in his shadow," Horwitz says. As for the puppies? Stop by Paul's apartment in Ann Arbor. "We'll go shopping together," he says.
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San Jose State Bans Blood Drives
Tweet Share on Facebook February 4, 2008 Comment (9)San Jose State University has banned blood drives on campus because of the FDA's long-standing policy barring gay men from donating blood, the Spartan Daily reports. The school's president says the FDA's restrictions violate SJSU's nondiscrimination policy. "I recognize the importance of giving blood and we know that universities are a significant source of blood," he wrote in an E-mail sent to faculty, staff, students, and alumni. "Our hope is that the FDA will revisit its deferral policy in a timely manner, and we may soon be able to hold blood drives on this campus again."
Critics are calling the move "terribly misguided," saying blood drives on the San Jose campus bring in an estimated 1,000 pints a year. High school and college campuses also account for about 20 percent of all donated blood, and blood drives are often where students develop the habit of becoming lifelong donors.
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Best of College Journalism Results Are In
Tweet Share on Facebook February 1, 2008 CommentThe contest is over. The results are in. Stop telling your friends, family, and computer programs to vote.
The competition was fierce, and even kind of nasty at times, but thanks to everyone who participated anyway. You all have reaffirmed my belief in human obsession. Check back next week for more detailed reportage on the year's winners.
Story of the Year
"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaks at Columbia University. Protests ensue."
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Harvard Dining Services Find Used Needles
Tweet Share on Facebook February 1, 2008 CommentAmong dirty dishes and utensils, Harvard dining workers have been finding used hypodermic needles on trays sent to the kitchen, the Harvard Crimson reports. Officials suspect the needles are probably not being left maliciously but most likely are left over from insulin shots. In response, the school has set up a sharp objects disposal receptacle and encouraged workers to wear cutproof gloves. "People work here, OK?" said one dishwasher. "I don't know what they think. So why do they send [the needles] here? They don't care for us?"
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The Undie Run Epidemic
Tweet Share on Facebook February 1, 2008 Comment (2)At least three more schools think it's a good idea to organize a large mass of people to run around half-naked. Drexel University and University of Pennsylvania students are planning to team up on a 2-mile seminude run, with the clothes shed going to an appropriate charity, the Triangle reports. Meanwhile a Boston University student hopes to emulate nearby Tufts's Naked Quad Run—but not as naked. "I just hope no one takes it too far," says the BU event organizer.