It's difficult to think about the fast approaching New Year with the buzz of finals in the air, however, we took a moment to pause and look ahead where The Lion's Roar newspaper is and where it's going.
This semester we took many leaps forward with the newspaper, mainly our online presence. We now have a website where anyone with the desire to do so can view the latest news and photos provided by The Lion's Roar, even between issues. Our Facebook has also taken giant steps forward and in only a few short months has garnered hundreds of ‘likes.' We're also in the process of strengthening our presence on Twitter. This move into cyber space might seem like a "no duh" to some, but for us it's a very exciting jump from a weekly publication to the spontaneity and longevity of the world wide web. Now we can present our news at a moment's notice for your convenience and it opens up opportunities for not only The Lion's Roar staff, but the campus as well.
With the advent of our Facebook page our readers can now become involved with our process and the campus as they never have before. Newspapers are, at their heart, a forum for public discussion of news, usually done through a letter to the editor or our much-loved "Speak Out" column on page three. This concept has now moved beyond the confines of a single page onto the infinite space of a Facebook wall. We encourage our readers, the students of Southeastern, to take advantage of this opportunity to promote their campus, group and their own ideas. Feel free to contact us through Facebook, Twitter, stopping by our office, send smoke signals, carrier pigeon, whatever and let us know what is going on at this school. This is a student newspaper, and it needs your voice and input.
This semester, the groundwork has been laid for something that will exponentially grow throughout its existence and precedents have been set. While it is impossible to say where The Lion's Roar will be in the next five or 10 years, we expect, and hope that what we have done these past few months has started it on a path to truly great things. Next semester we hope to bring fresh ideas and maybe a new look to the newspaper and make a publication that students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members will be proud to read. It's a tall order, but we'll fight tooth and nail to meet it.
We also want to say that this is the best job in the world, and the people that we work with are what make it so fantastic. Never will you find a more colorful bunch of psycho photographers, eccentric writers and raucous graphic designers working together under one roof. The tension often runs high during production, but when the Editorial staff is known as the "Avengers," we know that the day will always be saved and the paper will be off to the printers before our deadline hits.
If you think we're merely joking about calling ourselves the "Avengers," we're not. What started out as a simple joke from the A&E Editor spiraled into a lifestyle for the group. Our fearless leader Nick BeJeaux is naturally Captain America, despite his initial protests. Photo Editor Tony Romain goes by Iron Man, because he uses the most technology, and it doesn't hurt that he and Nick banter back and forth like Captain America and Iron Man already. Also, you wouldn't like our News Editor Christopher Martin when he's angry, because he really will turn into the Hulk. A&E Editor Tara Bennett lays down the hammer of Thor on injustice and stories that are turned in late. Sports Editor Joshua May is Wolverine because he will tear up stories that have the wrong sports scores with his adamantium claws. Social Media Editor Brooke Kimball is Black Widow because she is just that awesome.
Of course, we must thank the students, faculty and staff for all of their help this semester. Thank you everyone for helping us get the news out to the students. It would be a lie to say we do all of this work ourselves; in fact our ability to produce news is dependant on our relationships with students, organizations, faculty and staff. During Homecoming we were especially pesky to the Student Government Association, and we want to say we're sorry for being annoying, but thank you for bearing with us. President John L. Crain and his administration have also been very helpful and willing to take the time out of their busy schedules to answer our questions, so thank you.
That being said, good luck everyone on your final exams and farewell to all of those graduating. This is our last publication of the fall 2011 semester, and we hope you are looking forward to the New Year as much as we are. There's a particular brand of corniness that accompanies New Year's resolutions, but now is as good a time as any to make a change.
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