Reporting with passion, integrity

By: Carley Milligan, Editor-in-Chief

Just as soon as we all began rejoicing that the summer had begun, it seems that August is already coming to a close. Nervous freshmen will move in this weekend, the University Store and BookHolders will develop long lines of students trying to buy textbooks, and seniors will simultaneously weep and celebrate as they head into their final year.

The start of the semester always brings with it those unfamiliar feelings of change, and after a long summer of partying at music festivals or working the late shift at a restaurant, it can be hard to adjust to a new schedule.

For some, like myself, part of this change means that they will be starting the semester in new positions of leadership for their campus organization or club and feeling the pressures of those responsibilities. Especially as the spotlight is shining on Towson during its 150th anniversary, I find myself feeling particularly concerned about taking my position as Editor-in-Chief seriously, and making sure I am able to share Towson’s campus and community news with passion  and integrity.

Reporting the news can be tricky at times, and I find that it’s challenging to do your job as a journalist without stepping on someone’s toes. Although the intent is not to maliciously single anyone out, it is the duty of a reporter to investigate, monitor and hold those in positions of power accountable for their actions.

Therefore, in an effort to fairly and accurately report the activities on campus, stepping on toes may be an inevitable side effect.

I believe the best way to combat any potential awkwardness is to develop strong and healthy working relationships with the various organizations and departments at Towson University, as well as the student, staff and faculty body. That way there is a deep and sustainable level of trust and understanding between us, the reporters, and you, the readers (and sometimes subjects) of our reporting.

Becoming more accessible and familiar to these groups and individuals is a primary goal of The Towerlight, and for myself, this semester, and I hope that through increasing our presence on campus we can begin to do just that.

I want these organizations and all students to know that The Towerlight is here to be the voice of the student body, and that if you have a message, story or event you want to share, that we are the place to make that happen.

Our office, located on the third floor of the University Union, in room 309, has an open door policy and I encourage anyone to come up and visit us at any time for any reason.

In exchange we promise to come to you as well, to meet you on campus, in your classrooms and at events as we strive to become a more visible fixture of Towson life.

Though while technically we operate as an independent news source, we could not exist without the activities of the University and its body, and we are thankful to you all for feeding us the information we need to survive.

We ask that you continue to forge new paths, break barriers, set records, and question old policies. As long as you do, we will share these victories, and sometimes failures and mistakes, with Towson so that we, as a whole, can be an educated, informed and connected University body.

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