The Daily Mississippian

The Daily Mississippian, commonly called The DM, is the student newspaper of the University of Mississippi. It is operated as an independent student-run newspaper, and is the only college newspaper in Mississippi that is published five times a week. It publishes Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters, and twice a week during the June and July summer terms. With a daily circulation of 12,000 during fall and spring, it is one of the larger college newspapers in the country.^[1] It is also the only college newspaper in Mississippi to be a full member of the state press association, and it competes in the Mississippi Press Association's Better Newspaper Contest against professional daily newspapers.

The DM is a part of the S. Gale Denley Student Media Center. The Director of Student Media reports to the Dean of the Meek School of Journalism and New Media. The DM staff consists of approximately 15 editors, along with a couple dozen reporters and photographers. These numbers vary from year to year and semester to semester. There is also a separate staff devoted entirely to advertising sales and production.

The DM's web site, theDMonline.com is the most visited web site associated with the University of Mississippi. It began offering daily updates in 1996.

Affiliations

• Associated Collegiate Press
• Associated Press
• College Media Association (CMA)
• College Newspaper Business & Advertising Managers (CNBAM)
• Columbia Scholastic Press Association
• Mississippi Press Association
  • Oxford-Lafayette County (Mississippi) Chamber of Commerce
• Southern University Newspapers (SUN)

History

In 1962 the University of Mississippi was the focal point of a major civil rights showdown between the government of the state of Mississippi, led by segregationist governor Ross Barnett, and the administration of President John F. Kennedy. At issue was the enrollment of an African-American student, James Meredith. As rioting engulfed the campus, a special edition of The Daily Mississippian carried an editorial from editor Sidna Brower. Brower urged students to return to their homes and not to involve themselves in the violence, which Brower said was a battle between the state and the United States government.^[2] The University's student Senate later censured Brower for her newspaper's coverage, which it claimed did not accurately reflect events, and for statements such as Brower's contention that the anti-integration demonstrations were bringing "dishonor and shame" to the University. The censure was repealed by the Associated Student Body Senate in 2002 as the 40th anniversary of the rioting approached. Brower's editorial was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.^[3]

In 2011, The DM celebrated its 100th anniversary with a weekend of events in Oxford. The keynote speaker was former governor William Winter, a former editor in chief of the newspaper. The student newspaper was originally named The Mississippian. It became a daily in 1962 (though the name "Daily" wasn't added to its masthead until 1968).

Controversy

The newspaper drew criticism after publishing an inflammatory advertisement about immigration and diversity on April 15, 2005. The ad pictured a white baby with light hair and eyes under the heading, "Will She Be a Racial Minority by the Time She Turns 40?" The ad was paid for by the New Century Foundation, which publishes American Renaissance, an Oakton, Virginia-based monthly magazine about race and immigration. Officials said that the student leaders of the newspaper, including the African American journalism student who accepted the ad, did not thoroughly proof the ready-made ad. Staff and advisers received several calls and e-mails over the advertisement.^[4][5]

See also

• University of Mississippi
• Ole Miss Rebels

External links

• The Daily Mississippian
• Mississippi Press Association

References

1. ↑ The Daily Mississippian
2. ↑ Doyle, William. An American Insurrection: The Battle of Oxford, Mississippi, 1962, page 277. Doubleday, 2002.
3. ↑ AP: Ole Miss repeals 1962 censure of editor
4. ↑ The Society of Professional Journalists, Press Notes
5. ↑ The Clarion-Ledger, April 16, 2005

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