Also, I want students to know about why thinks are happening the way they are. I have utmost respect for those of your who put your time into this, and the initial post we’re commenting on actually raises some important issues…

They meet Sunday and Monday nights in Capen Annex, and anyone who is interested is welcome to come. We’re always looking for more careful eyes to help us catch mistakes. We are a very chill and welcoming group of people, and we definitely welcome drop-ins or people trying out copy-editing for the first time.

I think Smiffy makes a very good point about the need for a professional print newspaper on campus, and I would also like to clarify that our staff and editors do not receive money for the work we do. Our budget goes solely into printing costs (we have literally been denied a couple bucks to buy pens); every member of the Sophian volunteers their time and effort because they love working for the paper.

This post was drawn up for a few reasons. We don’t understand why, despite The Sophian’s budget, there continue to be errors, dated content, and constant typos (Wesleyan ***College (!?), guys, really?). There were even some issues getting The Sophian to interview one of the co-founders of this blog, which just seems like it would be common sense.

While most readers connect with our sarcasm, some don’t. You’re one of them. That’s okay–but just to clear things up in the most genuine way possible: this post isn’t just a bunch of Smith’d writers being haughty assholes…it’s making another point entirely about the content of The Sophian. We don’t necessarily want to cut them down or project unfounded criticism because Smith NEEDS a print publication. Needs. But just as we accept constructive criticism, The Sophian should be receptive, not defensive, about their shortcomings.

As a chartered school publication, typos, errors, and dated content should be unacceptable, plain and simple. It reflects poorly, not only on the school, but on the student body. I don’t think this is entirely The Sophian’s fault. I think lack of student interest in contributing to publications probably puts stress on the editors and causes them to overlook certain details. Also, Smith is academically demanding, and the effort they put forth into putting out a newspaper every two weeks is much more than most students here even have to worry about.

So yes, we’ll poke fun. We poke fun at everything. Yes, we’ll be sarcastic and ironically haughty and all of that. Accept it. But at the end of the day, we support The Sophian–we just wish more people cared about its quality.

Smith is proud of you.

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