The Daily Q, the student publication from Northwestern University in Qatar, was launched on Thursday with the help of chairman and publisher of The New York Times Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr.
Sulzberger and Andrew Rosenthal, editorial page editor of the New York Times, participated in a panel discussion in front of Northwestern students and faculty before Sulzberger hit a key to launch The Daily Q on the World Wide Web.
The Daily Q is the University’s first online publication featuring student writing, photography and video.
Rosenthal and Sulzberger shared their experiences of the media industry in the United States and around the world, and advised the students on the essentials of journalism in an evolving global media landscape.
“You have to know your tools because those tools are expanding,” said Rosenthal. “In an industry of constant change, nobody is just going to be a reporter anymore. Journalism is now about being able to take a picture or shoot a video. These skills are becoming more important.”
Acknowledging the challenges of media censorship, the panelists advised the students to be professional but courageous. “Find out what the limits are first, and then push as far as you can go,” they said. “Above all, be fair.”
Richard Roth, senior associate dean of journalism at NU-Q, said: “The names Sulzberger and Rosenthal are synonymous with The New York Times. And one day names like Al-Thani, Qazi, Ferreira and all the names of our students will be synonymous with The Daily Q.”
Students from the Middle East International School, who are planning to start their own newspaper, also attended the event and were able to tap into the experience of the panelists, NU-Q faculty and students.
Janet Key, assistant professor in the journalism program, is joint faculty advisor alongside Lecturer Miriam Berg. She said the newspaper provides students with an important opportunity to gain deeper knowledge of the profession they are studying.
“This is a terrific opportunity for the students,” said Key. “It is a way to have their work out there. They will be able to use it for internships and jobs as concrete evidence that they are published globally and are able to work as multimedia professional journalists.”
Currently the editor of the publication, Key expects to step back as students gradually take over the day-to-day running of the publication. Eventually, the publication will be opened up to other students across Education City. It will continue to be run according to Northwestern standards of fairness, balance, and accuracy.
