Royal Purple

Issue date: 1/23/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Haley Smith Elise Sommerfeldt, Brandon Gorman, Shane Brossard, Sarah Millard, Sam Martino, Nicole Trotta, Jeremy Pink and Cherome Owens celebrate the opening of the renovated Royal Purple office located in the University Center 66.

Royal Purple staff members held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday to celebrate their office's relocation back to the University Center.

The newspaper staff temporarily worked out of Drumlin Hall while the UC was under construction but have now moved back permanently to the UC.

Staff members hope the larger office will allow the newspaper to grow to meet the needs of its readers, while providing a workspace that promotes cooperation.

"Not only are we expanding our office, we're expanding our content too," Brandon Gorman, managing editor, said. "We've come a long way in the last few years, and I'm really excited about the future."

Gorman also made note of the newspaper's new Web site, which was redesigned in the summer of 2007, and said his staff plans to add more videos and slideshows to the site this semester.

The Royal Purple currently employs 28 students, not including freelancers or staff writers. This semester, awards will be given away to writers to recognize their contribution to the newspaper, and experienced writers will be given the byline of "senior staff writer."

The Royal Purple also hopes to begin a staff member scholarship fund in the fall.

More opportunities to gain experience as a section editor have been provided by the split of the former Arts and Lifestyle section into "Lifestyle" and "Arts & Entertainment."

New content has been added to each of the five sections of the newspaper. News will contain court records, Opinion will have Web article comments, Lifestyle will have a Dear Abi column and horoscopes, Arts & Entertainment will include a crossword puzzle, and Sports will feature an outstanding athlete on campus each week.

The Royal Purple's office can now be found in 66 UC on the first floor between the UW Credit Union and Down Under.

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