'Prince' initiates minority summer journalism program

In December of 2000, The Daily Princetonian, of which I was then editor-in-chief, ran a 10-part series about the state of race relations at Princeton. We sought to chronicle some of the numerous ways race manifests itself in the daily lives of University students. And so we wrote about how race plays a role in the classroom and in the dorm room, on the athletic field and on the stage, within religious groups and within groups of friends. We wrote about minorities who had declined to enroll at Princeton. We wrote about relationships that race had made difficult and those it had made rewarding. We wrote about how race affects a few of Princeton's most celebrated professors and several of its lowest-paid workers.

For two weeks, we asked our readers to consider how race had affected their lives at Princeton. Toward the end of those two weeks, however, we realized that we had been asking that difficult question of everyone but ourselves. And so, on the last day of the series, we turned our attention inward, and published a piece about race and the 'Prince.'

What we wrote about was a phenomenon we had long known existed but talked about far too little — the paltry representation of black and Latino student journalists at both the 'Prince' and other elite college newspapers. We wrote about how, despite the good-faith efforts of generations of 'Prince' editors, the paper had been unable to attract black and Latino writers in substantial numbers, and how such a failure inevitably damages the quality of any journalistic enterprise.

To be sure, we noted that a poor record of minority recruitment has long plagued American journalism as a whole — but we also expressed hope that we and our successors at the 'Prince' would be among the generation of journalists who would finally make real progress toward resolving the problem.

Today, we are proud to announce a modest response to that challenge. With a generous grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation — directed by Hodding Carter III '57 — as well as support from the University itself, we are set to launch The Daily Princetonian Class of 2001 Summer Journalism Program.

After a rigorous application and interview process, members of my board have selected 22 black and Latino high school juniors from 14 urban public high schools in Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Camden, Newark, New York, Hartford, Springfield and Boston to spend one week on campus this August studying journalism and learning about life at a daily college newspaper.

All the selected students have terrific potential as both reporters and intellectuals. All are aspiring writers. And all have the ability someday to be editors of the nation's best daily college newspapers — including, and especially, our own. We hope that their week at the University this summer will point them in that direction.

While at Princeton, our students will live in dorms and eat in dining halls. All the costs of the their week on campus, including their transportation to and from Princeton, will be covered by the Knight Foundation and the University. The program will be run by returning members of my board and members of the current managing board of the 'Prince.' It will feature seminars by established journalists, as well as opportunities for participants to tour professional news organizations. Students will work on their own stories throughout the week, and will, on the program's last day, write, edit, design and produce their own edition of the 'Prince.'

We hope our students will come away from the week energized by the exciting four years that lie ahead of them. To that end, one important component of the program will be providing them with guidance on the college search and application process. After they return home to start their senior years of high school, both 'Prince' alumni and current members of the 'Prince' staff will stay in touch with them, continuing to serve as resources while they work on their college applications.

We want to extend our thanks to the University for its extraordinary support of our undertaking. Former President Shapiro and President Tilghman have both put the University's institutional backing — and personal confidence — behind our program, and vice president Janet Dickerson and Jan Logan GS '72 of the student life office have offered invaluable support. They have trusted that this program will be of great benefit not merely to 22 terrific youngsters, but also to Princeton.

One year ago, my board decided to make this program our graduation gift to the newspaper that had given so much to us. But it was not until recently, when we met the students we would select during our week-long series of interviews at high schools along the east coast, that we knew for sure what talented students we had on our hands. Former managing editors Rich Tucker '01 and Kate Deringer '01, former Prince Magazine editor Greg Mancini '01, former senior writer Michael Hochman '01 and I came away from the interviews knowing that our week at Princeton in late August is bound to be an exciting one — for aspiring journalists, current 'Prince' editors and alumni alike.

In several weeks, the 'Prince' Website will feature mini-biographies of the students we selected. We encourage members of the University community to visit the site and take the opportunity to learn about these students for themselves.

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It is, in many ways, difficult for members of my board to believe that it has already been one year since we graduated — and hard as well to believe that 18 months ago we published our series on race and, shortly thereafter, left the 'Prince' to our successors. When we published those articles, we heard mostly compliments, but also skepticism: Talking about race was nice enough, people told us, but ultimately talk was just that — talk. Fair enough. We have no illusions that a one-week program for 22 aspiring journalists will solve the problem of minority representation at college newspapers. It may barely make a dent. But it will also be a first step beyond mere talk. Richard Just '01, a former editor-in-chief of The Daily Princetonian, writes for The American Prospect in Washington, D.C. He can be reached at rajust@alumni.princeton.edu.