By Rachel Davis
The staff of The Daily Tar Heel is not only producing a print newspaper, but also online content.
The 10 students who contribute to The Daily Tar Heel publish daily articles on its website, print a 5-day-a-week newspaper during the school year and release a weekly newspaper over the summer. The merging of online news and print newspaper has been smooth, due to the advantages of both types of media for staff and audience.
Erica Perel, the students’ adviser and former staff member, joins the staff weekly to give them guidance. She credits the high quality content that the DTH produces as a reason for their continued success.
“We want to produce a print publication at the highest level while developing our online content.”
Perel referred to the staff as “digital natives,” emphasizing their talents in online design and computer skills.
The students enter with these proficiencies and in the process are taught journalism techniques.
“We pride ourselves on being able to teach you what you need to know,” Perel said.
Paige Ladisic, the managing editor, is also the online editor, transferring her skills in print publication onto the Web.
“We’ve done well with adapting to the [online] culture,” Ladisic said. The DTH’s site, along with the newspaper’s Twitter and Facebook feeds, is updated daily with breaking news stories from around UNC-Chapel Hill.
The DTH’s website is not only accessible to students, but to anyone with an interest in the UNC-Chapel Hill community.
“It’s expanded who can read us,” Perel said. Students studying abroad, parents of students and UNC-Chapel Hill alumni can remain informed long-distance.
A larger audience leads to more responsibility for the newspaper staff. They now have the ability to immediately inform their audience about any developing stories. There is no need to wait for next week’s print issue when the latest news will be uploaded online in a matter of hours.
Online media is both convenient and economical for the DTH, which is financially independent. Students rely entirely on donations and advertising to fund the paper, making the cost of printing a concern. The website costs nothing in comparison to the price of printing 17,000 newspapers.
The DTH, now in its 121st year of publication, has been operating online for the last 20 years, making it one of the frontrunners in online-based news. The staff and their adviser remain confident in its expansion.
“We’re making online connections,” Perel said. “People want to read it.”