Dear Readers,
In the preface to a history of the New York Times, Henry Steel Commager said, “Here is the living disproof of the old adage that nothing is as dead as yesterday’s newspaper…This is what really happened, reported by a free press to a free people. It is the raw material of history; it is the story of our own times.”
Though our audience is not as massive as the esteemed New York Times, the stories, and in essence the history, we write of our beloved school and its students is a humble privilege and burden we take upon ourselves as the UVU Review.
I once had a journalism professor say journalism is a public service. Just as a fireman fights the blazes of a burning building, to protect and rescue, a journalist seeks the truth and acts as a voice for the people, to speak their concern and injustice. It is also a journalist’s responsibility to inform, enlighten and even at times, entertain the audience they serve.
Though no man-made product is perfect, since their beginning on this continent, newspapers have been warriors on the side of the people. In true dramatic style, newspapers made their debut in America in 1690. The short lived publication was called “Publick Occurrences,” but upon first distribution, the publisher was immediately arrested and every copy found was destroyed, as it was printed without authority.
Fourteen years later, John Campell, a postmaster created the first successful newspaper, the “Boston News-Letter.”
During the Revolutionary War, newspapers were a major force in influencing public opinion, which ultimately led to political independence from England.
And in 1791, when the Bill of Rights was ratified and freedom of the press was granted, American newspapers took their central role in national affairs, became a platform to express the voice to the people and took their place as watchdog over the government, to prevent it from gaining too much power.
George Washington once said, “For my part I entertain a high idea of the utility of periodical publications…I consider such vehicles of knowledge more happily calculated than any other to preserve the liberty, stimulate the industry and ameliorate the morals of a free and enlightened people.”
It has been several hundred years since George Washington made that statement, but in my opinion, it still holds true. And as the staff of the UVU Review we are pleased to provide such “periodical publications.”
We as a staff have worked tirelessly, long hours over the course of the summer to create a newspaper and magazine for the UVU campus, and we are eager to continue to provide the students and faculty of UVU a quality publication throughout the 2011-2012 school year.
For many of us, creating the UVU Review and the V Magazine is a labor of love. And though we are all still students, learning as we go, we work hard to publish the best articles, the most compelling photos, all in a crisp design. We work hard because we love what we do, and we want to give you, our audience, the best.
We look forward to sharing this year with you, telling your stories, hearing your concerns, enjoying your activities, and, together, writing the history of UVU.
Sincerely yours,
Andrea Whatcott
Editor-in-Chief of the UVU Review
