It was late in the summer before my senior year when Emma Thumann asked me to be the Setonian’s news copy editor. I had never done a lick of work for the paper. I am as much a journalist as I am a person who can do long division; that is to say, not at all. How I came into consideration for this position remains a mystery, but I type before you today as a proud member of the Setonian’s 100th editorial board.
As my student journalism career draws to an untimely close, the most important lesson I learned in the newsroom was, “Man bites dog, that’s good stuff. You might win a Pulitzer. Dog bites man, nobody cares.”
My experience at the Setonian has been awesome. Everyone here cares deeply about the journalistic mission, and I’ve learned a lot about how to convey information clearly.
Some have said that journalism is dead; others contend that it’s in its silver fox years. I can’t comment on that, but I can tell you that the Setonian is just getting started.
Emmett Bikales is the Setonian’s news copy editor and a writer for its News and Campus Life sections. He can be reached at emmett.bikales@student.shu.edu.
