Daily Bruin Explained

Daily Bruin
Type:Student newspaper
Format:Broadsheet
Foundation:1919
Headquarters:118 Kerckhoff Hall
308 Westwood Plaza
Los Angeles 90095
Circulation:6,000
Website:dailybruin.com
Owners:Associated Students of the University of California, Los Angeles (ASUCLA)[1]
Chiefeditor:Lex Wang

The Daily Bruin is the student newspaper at the University of California, Los Angeles. It began publishing in 1919, the year UCLA was founded.

The Daily Bruin distributes about 6,000 copies across campus each school day. It also publishes PRIME, a quarterly arts, culture and lifestyle magazine, and Bruinwalk.com, a professor, class and apartment review website.[2]

Frequency and governance

The Bruin was published Monday through Friday during the school year prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, twice a week during the last week of the quarter, once a week during finals week, and once a week on Mondays in the summer quarter. As of the 2022-2023 school year, the Bruin is published three times a week during the school year on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The Bruins staff also publishes PRIME, a quarterly lifestyle magazine, and maintains Bruinwalk.com, a professor and apartment review site.[3] The Daily Bruin produced a total of 2,419 articles in the 2021/2022 academic year.[4]

It is published by the ASUCLA Communications Board, which sets policies for the newspaper and other campus communications media. The current editor in chief is Lex Wang.[5]

The Daily Bruin has 13 editorial departments: news writing, sports writing, arts & entertainment writing, opinion writing, blogging, infographic reporting, digital development, video journalism, copy editing, photojournalism, design, PRIME, enterprise reporting and cartoons and illustrations.[6]

Location

The Daily Bruin office and newsroom is located on the first floor of Kerckhoff Hall, Room 118.[7]

History

Nomenclature

The Daily Bruin was preceded by the weekly Normal Outlook on the campus of UCLA's predecessor, the Los Angeles State Normal School, from 1910 through 1918 or 1919 (the records are incomplete).

Upon the establishment in fall 1919 of the Southern Branch of the University of California, as UCLA was first known, the twice-weekly Cub Californian was first issued on Sept. 29, 1919. Its name was changed to the California Grizzly with the issue of March 21, 1924, and on Sept. 13, 1925 it began to publish five days a week.

On October 22, 1926, the newspaper became known as the California Daily Bruin.[8] During World War II it reduced its publication frequency to three times a week under the title California Bruin, reverting to a daily publication at war's end. On April 2, 1948, the name was changed to UCLA Daily Bruin.

Control

The newspaper has generally been under control of the student organization now known as the Associated Students UCLA, or ASUCLA, although during the summer sessions of the 1920s and 1930s the newspapers were used as laboratory papers for university journalism classes. A student body president in 1931 advocated that the Bruin be made independent from control by the ASUC, as it was known then, so it might act as a check on student government. In the 1950s, the Summer Bruin was again taken over by the Administration, and '"controversial social issues" were banned from print during the summers.[9] [10]

Until 1955, the Associated Students was considered the publisher of the Daily Bruin, sometimes directly under the student council and sometimes with the interposition of a Publications Board. Editors were named by the student council. This system resulted in frequent political struggles between the staff (which nominated candidates for the key editorial positions) and the student council.[9]

During the height of the McCarthy era, with the newspaper staff being accused of Communist leanings, the university administration in 1955 revised the governance of the paper and instituted a system whereby the student body itself elected the editor (see below).[9] "Editors had to run for elective office just like politicians, and the newspaper was closely controlled by the [student] Council," wrote William C. Ackerman, the ASUCLA graduate administrator.[11]

The practice of student election of editors ended in 1963 with the establishment of the ASUCLA Communications Board,[9] a student-led organization that selects the editors of the Bruin as well as the editors for the other seven newsmagazines and UCLA Radio.[12]

The 1920s

In 1926, editor John F. Cohee was expelled from school by Ernest Carroll Moore, the campus administrator and director, for what Moore called "certain indecent statements which affront the good name of the women of the University." These were apparently a tongue-in-cheek "report" that some sorority women had been seen cavorting nude in the Pacific Ocean surf.[9] This article was included in a twice-yearly burlesque edition of the Daily Bruin known as "Hell's Bells." (Cohee transferred to the Berkeley campus and graduated there in 1927. He later went on to become a professional reporter.)

Three years later, Director Moore suspended 14 students for publishing the January 23, 1929, issue of "Hell's Bells," "the filthiest and most indecent piece of printed matter that any of us has ever seen." Some of those students were later reinstated. That was the last issue of "Hell's Bells."

The 1930s

The 1940s

In October 1944 the student president charged that the Bruin was "unrepresentative and self-perpetuating" and that it was controlled by the liberal American Youth for Democracy. The staff threatened to strike but found that the president had already sketched out a plan for substitute staffers, so it refrained.[10]

The 1950s

Charges of left-wing influence

In spring 1949 Jim Garst and Clancy Sigal were nominated by the Bruin staff as editor and managing editor. Some student leaders charged that the two favored leftist positions. Garst was chosen editor by the student council, but Sigal (who had been asked by a member of the council whether he was "a Communist") was rejected. The staffers refused to work over the summer, and in the fall a new council approved Sigal. The same council, however, refused to reappoint him in the spring 1950 term. A student vote rejected Sigal, 2,272 to 676.[13] [9]

In the spring semester 1951, President Robert Gordon Sproul wrote Provost Clarence Dykstra that he had received letters "pouring in" about opinion columns written by student Art Janov (later the author of The Primal Scream), "including one from the governor's office.... I do hope that some way will be found to keep this young man from using the feature page of the Bruin as a medium for propaganda of the party line." On February 13, 1951, Dean Hahn replied in a memo to Dykstra that "we are still looking for an editor with more moderate leanings."[9]

The student council turned down the staff's nomination of Jerry Schlapik as editor for the spring 1951 term in favor of conservative Bob Strock, who was then deemed ineligible because of a low grade-point average. On February 7, 1951, the council appointed Martin Brower as editor but also chose Rex Rexrode, a non-staffer, as feature (opinion) editor. Brower immediately submitted his resignation, and the entire non-sports editorial staff resigned. Most of them returned to work in two weeks after the council agreed that, from then on, all top editors would be chosen from the newspaper's senior staff.[14] [9]

Student election of editors

On November 23, 1954, President Robert Gordon Sproul approved a new student-election plan for the newspaper. Dean of Students Milton E. Hahn sent a memorandum to UCLA Chancellor Raymond B. Allen on December 7. 1954. He wrote:

Editor Martin McReynolds caught word of the plan and published an editorial on December 8, stating that "Someone, probably the Administration, has been planning this change for at least six weeks. The planning has all been kept secret from The Daily Bruin and the students at large." On the same day, Hahn submitted the plan to the Student Council.[9]

The plan required that:

A total of 3,004 signatures, representing one-fifth of the student body, were collected for a petition to be sent to Sproul to retract the plan. The number of signatures was about a thousand more than the number of votes in the preceding student-body election.[9]

The Bruin staff nominated six candidates to become editors the following year, but all six were rejected by the selection committee appointed to decide on the new editors.[9]

21st century

In 2013, the Daily Bruin's publisher laid off most of its full-time employees, following more than a decade of consistently declining advertising revenues that reflected the national newspaper industry. Despite layoffs, it retained UCLA Student Media Director Doria Deen, editorial advisor Abigail Goldman and Business Manager Jeremy Wildman.[15]

In spring 2016, UCLA's student body voted in favor of the "Daily Bruin and Bruinwalk.com Referendum," which guaranteed student fees to support the Bruin as its print advertising revenues continue to decline.[16]

Following COVID-19 lockdowns in March 2020, the upper management of the Bruin decided to cease all print operations for the rest of the school year after initially pausing it for the first two weeks of the spring quarter. It was the first time the paper had scaled back its daily print operations since World War II.[17] The paper resumed printing once a week the next school year in 2020-2021 while UCLA was still holding all classes remotely, before scaling up to two days a week in 2021-2022 and the current schedule of three days of week in 2022-2023.

Stonewall

In 2013, the Daily Bruin created the "Stonewall" as an online record of sources who "stonewalled," or refused to speak, with reporters.[18] The "Stonewall" was created in effort to maintain transparency with readers about individuals in the community who thwarted Daily Bruin reporters' attempts at providing information. The most recent stone added to the "Stonewall" was on June 5, 2019, when the UCLA media relations office for several weeks delayed an interview with administrators regarding a professor's conviction of child sexual abuse.[18]

The Stack

Data editor Neil Bedi launched The Stack, Daily Bruin's data journalism and newsroom tech blog, in March 2015.[19] Articles analyze public data and present them with accompanying quantitative graphics and visualizations.[20] Previous projects include examining the data of the mandatory Undergraduate Students Association Council (USAC) student fees over time,[21] funding sources behind UCLA research projects,[22] and rate of major changes among UCLA students.[23]

The Stack makes the code on its blog available under open-source licenses on GitHub.

Editor in chief

Normal Outlook

Cub Californian

California Grizzly

Daily Bruin

1920s

1930s

1940s

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Awards and recognition

The Daily Bruin and its staffers earn honors at local, state, regional and national levels on an annual basis. Listed below are some of the prominent honors the Daily Bruin has received.

National

Associated Collegiate Press – Pacemaker Awards

Society of Professional Journalists – National Mark of Excellence Awards

Regional

Society of Professional Journalists – Region 11 Mark of Excellence Awards

State

California College Media Association – Excellence in Student Media Awards

California Newspaper Publishers Association – Campus Excellence in Journalism Awards

Local

Los Angeles Press Club – SoCal Journalism Awards

Awards last updated in October 2019

Editorial Board

The Daily Bruin Editorial Board presents the opinions of veteran staff members of the Bruin about topics relating to UCLA.[69] It is made up of five standing members in addition to staff representatives. The board operates separately from the newsroom, and the editorials represent the majority opinion of the board. Editorials are published once or twice a week throughout the year.[69]

2023-2024 Members of the Board!Name!Position
Isabelle FriedmanEditor in chief
Laila WheelerOpinion editor
Allison BushongAssistant Opinion editor
Nicolas GreamoAssistant Opinion editor
Zoraiz IrshadAssistant Opinion editor
Lex WangEnterprise editor
Russell AhmedStaff representative
Eva DaneshStaff representative
Natalie GlaweStaff representative
Javier Jauregui RamirezStaff representative

Daily Bruin Hall of Fame

Other notable alumni (chronological)

If not cited here, references can be found within the articles.

See also

External links

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Notes and References

  1. Web site: About ASUCLA – ASUCLA Associated Students UCLA. ASUCLA Associated Students of the University of California. en-US. 2019-02-11.
  2. Web site: Daily Bruin About Page. Daily Bruin. 30 June 2016.
  3. Web site: Daily Bruin About Page. Daily Bruin. 2 April 2016.
  4. Web site: Levy . David . 2022-10-04 . We ranked the best college newspapers in 2022 by traffic and engagement . 2023-08-09 . Degreechoices.com . en-US.
  5. Web site: 2024-2025 Daily Bruin editing staff. dailybruin.com.
  6. Web site: UCLA Student Media . 2014-04-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140706010759/http://recruiting.dailybruin.com/applications/daily-bruin-editorial/ . 2014-07-06 . dead .
  7. Web site: Contact us. dailybruin.com.
  8. Web site: "This Month in History," UCLA History Project . May 30, 2009 . September 20, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080920000201/http://www.uclahistoryproject.ucla.edu/fun/ThisMonth_OctHailBruins.asp . dead .
  9. Loud Bark and Curious Eyes: A History of the UCLA Daily Bruin, 1919-1955. George. Garrigues. www.academia.edu.
  10. Al Greenstein, "Past DB-SEC Struggles Told," UCLA Daily Bruin, January 5, 1952, page 4
  11. Book: Ackerman, William C. . My Fifty Year Love-in at UCLA . 1969 . Fashion Press . Los Angeles . 978-0-86557-299-7 .
  12. Web site: Daily Bruin . 2007-04-07 . Filsuf,Darius . 2005 . UCLA in the 1960s . https://web.archive.org/web/20070224175606/http://www.english.ucla.edu/ucla1960s/6869/filsuf.htm . 2007-02-24.
  13. Al Greenstein, "DB, Pub Board, SEC Tiffs Told," UCLA Daily Bruin, January 6, 1953, page 3
  14. Al Greenstein, "History of SEC, DB Debates Tells of Staff Walkout in 1951" and "Bruin Staff Walkout in 1951 Threatened Paper's Demise," January 7, 1953, pages 1 and 3
  15. News: Hurley. Christopher. Rajwani. Naheed. Future of UCLA Student Media uncertain due to shrinking budget. 5 October 2016. Daily Bruin. 13 November 2013.
  16. News: Chiu. Evolet. Students approve all four referenda on USAC election ballot. 5 October 2016. Daily Bruin. 6 May 2016.
  17. News: Forburger. Angie. Hong. Joy. Hoang. Kristie-Valerie. Letter from the editors: Daily Bruin will cease printing and move online for rest of academic year. 11 April 2023. Daily Bruin. 20 March 2020.
  18. Web site: Stonewall. dailybruin.com . September 25, 2020.
  19. Web site: Welcome to The Stack. stack.dailybruin.com. 2019-12-16.
  20. Web site: About.
  21. Web site: A breakdown of USAC student government fees over time. stack.dailybruin.com. 2019-12-17.
  22. Web site: Breakdown of where UCLA research funding comes from and where it goes. stack.dailybruin.com. 2019-12-17.
  23. Web site: To Stick or To Switch: Student Major Changes at UCLA. stack.dailybruin.com. 2019-12-17.
  24. https://archive.today/20130208222510/http://www.ulwaf.com/DailyBruin/05B_Thirties.html George Garrigues, Loud Bark and Curious Eyes, page 42
  25. Web site: A History of the UCLA Daily Bruin: The Myth of 'The People's Bruin' (…. https://archive.today/20130208215001/http://www.ulwaf.com/DailyBruin/09A_People's.html. dead. 8 February 2013. 8 February 2013.
  26. Web site: Three Seek $500-a-Month Job : UCLA Board to Fill Bruin Editor's Post. KENNETH J.. FANUCCHI. 24 January 1985. Los Angeles Times.
  27. Web site: UCLA Board Names New Bruin Editor. 3 February 1985. Los Angeles Times. June 10, 2016. June 13, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160613193438/http://articles.latimes.com/1985-02-03/news/we-13608_1_ucla-daily-bruin. live.
  28. Web site: Daily Bruin wins awards for nation's best online, daily college newspaper. dailybruin.com.
  29. Web site: ACP - 2014 Newspaper Pacemaker. studentpress.org.
  30. Web site: UPDATED: Daily Bruin wins ACP Pacemaker for nation's best daily college newspaper. dailybruin.com.
  31. Web site: Bruin Walk--UCLA Magazine. magazine.ucla.edu.
  32. Web site: Daily Bruin wins awards for nation's best collegiate newspaper, websites. dailybruin.com.
  33. Web site: ACP - 2017 Newspaper Pacemaker Finalists. studentpress.org.
  34. Web site: The Daily Bruin wins three national college media awards at convention. dailybruin.com.
  35. Web site: ACP - 2012 Online Pacemaker Winners. studentpress.org.
  36. Web site: ACP - 2007 Online Pacemaker Winners. studentpress.org.
  37. Web site: ACP - 2017 Online Pacemaker Winners. studentpress.org.
  38. Web site: ACP - 2005 Online Pacemaker Winners. studentpress.org.
  39. Web site: ACP - 2017 Magazine Pacemaker finalists announced. studentpress.org.
  40. Web site: SPJ Announces 2006 Mark of Excellence Award National Winners. www.spj.org.
  41. Web site: National winners announced for 2015 Mark of Excellence Awards. www.spj.org.
  42. Web site: National winners announced for 2014 Mark of Excellence Awards. www.spj.org.
  43. Web site: SPJ announces national Mark of Excellence Award winners. www.spj.org.
  44. Web site: Daily Bruin wins best all-around newspaper at SPJ regional awards. dailybruin.com.
  45. Web site: Region 11 Mark of Excellence Awards winners announced in San Francisco, California. www.spj.org.
  46. Web site: Region 11 Mark of Excellence Awards winners announced in Honolulu. www.spj.org.
  47. Web site: SPJ announces 2009 Region 11 Mark of Excellence Award Winners. www.spj.org.
  48. Web site: SPJ Announces 2007 Region 11 Mark of Excellence Award Winners. www.spj.org.
  49. Web site: SPJ Announces 2005 Region 11 Mark of Excellence Award Winners. www.spj.org.
  50. Web site: Region 11 Mark of Excellence Awards winners announced in Las Vegas. www.spj.org. 2019-10-06.
  51. Web site: Region 11 Mark of Excellence winners announced in Universal City, Calif.. www.spj.org. 2019-10-06.
  52. Web site: Daily Bruin earns 15 awards at SPJ regional competition. dailybruin.com.
  53. Web site: Region 11 Mark of Excellence Awards winners announced in Las Vegas. www.spj.org.
  54. Web site: Society of Professional Journalists names Daily Bruin third-best newspaper in its region. dailybruin.com.
  55. Web site: SPJ announces 2010 Region 11 Mark of Excellence Award Winners. www.spj.org.
  56. Web site: SPJ Announces 2006 Region 11 Mark of Excellence Award Winners. www.spj.org.
  57. Web site: Daily Bruin wins award for California's best college newspaper. dailybruin.com.
  58. Web site: Daily Bruin takes home 30 California College Media Association awards. dailybruin.com.
  59. Web site: Archived copy . 2016-09-02 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160915143148/http://www.calcollegemedia.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/CCMA-Contest-Results-2013-14.pdf . 2016-09-15 .
  60. Web site: California College Media Association. https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/facebook/110434298992585/187526394616708 . 2022-02-26 . limited. www.facebook.com.
  61. Web site: CCMA 2012-2013 Excellence in Student Media Award Winners. 21 April 2013.
  62. Web site: Daily Bruin wins state awards at California College Media Association banquet. dailybruin.com.
  63. Web site: Daily Bruin wins 29 California College Media Association awards. dailybruin.com.
  64. Web site: CNPA BNC Winners 2015. epublish.multiad.com.
  65. Web site: Archived copy . 2016-09-02 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20161017102031/http://www.lapressclub.org/Resources/Documents/56thSoCal_Winners.pdf . 2016-10-17 .
  66. Web site: Archived copy . 2016-08-01 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160705153940/http://www.lapressclub.org/resources/Documents/WINNERS58SoCalforOnline.pdf . 2016-07-05 .
  67. Web site: Archived copy . 2016-09-02 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160320135527/http://www.lapressclub.org/Resources/Documents/Winners57SocalJournalismAwards_Upd5.pdf . 2016-03-20 .
  68. Web site: Archived copy . 2016-09-02 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20161017100601/http://www.lapressclub.org/Resources/Documents/Winners_Socal_2013.pdf . 2016-10-17 .
  69. Web site: The Daily Bruin Editorial Board. 2023-04-11. Daily Bruin. en.
  70. Web site: Daily Bruin Alumni. https://web.archive.org/web/20050419214539/http://www.dailybruin.ucla.edu/alumni/section.asp?Section=28. dead. 19 April 2005. 19 April 2005.
  71. Web site: Daily Bruin Alumni. https://web.archive.org/web/20050419214524/http://www.dailybruin.ucla.edu/alumni/section.asp?Section=26. dead. 19 April 2005. 19 April 2005.
  72. Web site: Daily Bruin Alumni. https://web.archive.org/web/20050419214543/http://www.dailybruin.ucla.edu/alumni/section.asp?Section=25. dead. 19 April 2005. 19 April 2005.
  73. Web site: Daily Bruin Alumni. https://web.archive.org/web/20050419214545/http://www.dailybruin.ucla.edu/alumni/section.asp?Section=24. dead. 19 April 2005. 19 April 2005.
  74. Web site: Daily Bruin Alumni. https://web.archive.org/web/20050419214508/http://www.dailybruin.ucla.edu/alumni/section.asp?Section=29. dead. 19 April 2005. 19 April 2005.
  75. Woo, Elaine. "Togo W. Tanaka dies at 93; journalist documented life at Manzanar internment camp", Los Angeles Times, July 5, 2009. Accessed July 7, 2009.
  76. Web site: Carol Burnett: UCLA's class clown takes national honors. Daily. Mary. UCLA Newsroom. en. 2018-05-03.
  77. Web site: Notable Daily Bruin Alumni. newsletter.alumni.ucla.edu. 2019-05-01.
  78. Web site: Daily Bruin Archive. archive.dailybruin.com. 2019-05-01.
  79. News: From Daily Bruin to Timberwolves - UCLA Magazine. UCLA Magazine. 2018-05-03.
  80. News: ESPN's Referee - UCLA Magazine. UCLA Magazine. 2018-05-03.
  81. Web site: Daily Bruin Archive. 15 April 2002. archive.dailybruin.com. 2019-04-10.