After a little Twitter dispute, the idea for a student newspaper first started brewing around February 2021. However, it took a few more months, and an entire thesis later, to commit to the idea. At this time, I was still working at a student radio with Arthur and Audrey, who turned out to be the co-founders of the newspaper you are reading right now.
The past year certainly counts as a formative year for YOUvA Today, as we tried figuring out the workings of a newspaper as we went along. This has led to many exciting moments. For example, during my Christmas holiday, I was on a call with a law student as we had gotten a message from the University of Amsterdam; they were unhappy with something we had written and described our piece as defamatory. Of course, that is not something you expect to happen before the start of such an enormous project, but all of sudden you just have to deal with it. With the position of editor-in-chief comes the responsibility of handling these things, which causes a lot of self-doubts. Did the UvA have a point? What happens if they push their claim of defamation? Having a brother who has studied law and knows many law students is a blessing in moments like these.
This little anecdote goes to show that running a newspaper is far more than just covering events and writing an article. Audrey, head of social media, had to make sure our socials aligned with our website and Arthur, our web manager, had to deal with website crises many times throughout the year. News is constant, but so is the management of a news platform. Do not take this as complaining though, working for YOUvA Today has been educational, exciting, and all-around joy.
By now you must be wondering why this little piece has appeared on our website. I won’t keep you waiting any longer: I am leaving this lovely newspaper and have passed my duties as editor-in-chief to Arthur Vacca, our brilliant co-founder. Arthur is always up for a chat, loves to interview people, and never shies away from a challenge. I am lucky that the newspaper, which, let’s be honest feels a little bit like my baby, is in such capable hands.
As for me, I will be continuing in the field of journalism at Columbia University, where I will be pursuing a master’s degree in journalism. Nevertheless, I will remain a loyal reader.
YOUvA Today comes forth out of a love for journalism that persists in Arthur, Audrey, and me. We are hungry for exciting and surprising stories about our university. I have tried to share some of these stories in the past year- now, the rest is up to Arthur.
Love,
Babette Stolk
Your Editor-in-chief