Leading
@idsnews
this semester has been my greatest honor. I love this organization and the staff more than I can put into words.
So I’m incredibly grateful to say I have been selected to serve as co-editor-in-chief alongside
@nicnapier1
this spring!
Day and night, reporters for
@idsnews
have been on the scene of the Gaza encampment and protests since they began Thursday. Here’s a compilation of all of the IDS’ coverage so far:
I am so excited to say I have been selected as the
@idsnews
fall editor-in-chief.
I’m honored to lead this incredible organization. I have so much love for the IDS and the staff, and I’m grateful to be a part of it.
Congratulations to Salomé Cloteaux (
@CloteauxSalome
), who has been elected as the Indiana Daily Student editor-in-chief for Fall 2023.
Cloteaux currently serves as a managing editor and has previously served as a news editor and news reporter.
I never thought we’d have to write this letter. But the severity of the threats against IU student media, by our own university, warrant immediate action.
Next week, on April 25, the IDS will stage a one-day walkout — the first in its 157-year history.
@spudichjacob
and I have been at Dunn Meadow since 11 p.m., reporting on the first night of the Gaza encampment for
@idsnews
.
People have been protesting since Thursday, but they stayed overnight for the first time yesterday.
1/x
Check out these photos from Monroe Lake! Tonight’s aurora borealis is a result of massive, ongoing ejections of magnetic field and plasma from the sun. Read more from
@idsnews
:
The financial situation of the IDS — and IU student media in general — has been an ongoing story and struggle.
This semester, an IU Student Media Committee, which
@nicnapier1
and I are a part of, is aiming to find a solution.
Read about it here:
For
#WorldPressFreedomDay
I want to recognize the student journalists reporting on the historic protests across the country, especially the
@idsnews
staff.
It’s my greatest honor to be their co-EIC and to report alongside them. Here are photos of us covering the protests at IU:
The IDS means everything to me. I would not be the journalist and person I am today without it, and I know many other staffers feel the same way.
Not to mention the role of the IDS at IU and in the Bloomington community is invaluable.
Please take time to read this today.
Nearly two years ago,
@idsnews
ran out of money.
Today, the IDS is running a deficit around -$450,000, without a permanent financial plan. We are waiting for an answer with time we cannot afford.
A somber update for this Student Press Freedom Day:
The IDS cares deeply about your feedback, and we want to keep hearing from you, our readers, about our coverage of the war.
I wrote this letter to address your concerns and explain our reporting process.
As always, thank you for reading.
In the interest of being as transparent as possible with readers, the IDS explains its reporting process for coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.
Read the letter from the editor here:
In addition to news stories about the pro-Palestinian encampment at IU,
@idsnews
has published opinion columns and letters to the editor for more perspectives on the protests:
About 20 pro-Palestinian protesters from the Dunn Meadow encampment are gathered outside the Federal Room in the IMU, chanting loudly. They said they are protesting a listening session IU President Pamela Whitten is hosting.
@idsnews
What started out as peaceful gatherings turned into a face-off between two groups of students over the Israel-Palestine conflict Monday night at Sample Gates.
For
@idsnews
:
Today's the day! 🤩 May your
#StudentPressFreedom
Day celebrations and advocacy be
#powerfullypersistent
.
Tell us: What does student journalism mean to you? What's the story you'd tell if no one could stop you?
Learn more:
If you have time in your day, please take the time to read this special story, where I profiled a horse, Luna, and how she impacts the lives of children.
We all can learn a lot about ourselves through perspective and helping those in need.
After the number of police cars in the Dunn Meadow area diminished, protesters were told to “relax” at 6:31 a.m. as they believed there was a lower risk of police encroachment on the camp. They spread out around the encampment with some going back into their tents.
6/x
IU refuses to support student media. Next Thursday will provide a glimpse of a possible future without
@idsnews
as it exists today — a future we will face if IU continues to make cuts to our newsroom.
Reporting from the passenger seat of a taxi transporting passengers through San Francisco, senior
@marissa_meador
became the eighth IU student to win the national writing championship in 15 years.
@idsnews
IU sees student media as a business, rather than a learning lab that provides students invaluable experience and produces vital news coverage, whose contribution to the university and community can’t be captured by a budget line.
Ultimately, this becomes a press freedom issue.
@idsnews
For years the university has rejected proposals from the IDS to solve our financial issues. Meanwhile, the IDS is forced to decrease professional staff and reduce the print paper.
There is nothing left to cut without substantially changing the IDS.
“I’ve heard a lot of concern about the impact of teaching kids inappropriate things at too young of an age,” Wright said. “But what about the impact of teaching kids they should hide their true selves to exist in school?”
@Conner4BTown
8/x
At 11 p.m., there were around 100 protesters. About 50 spent the night amid a cluster of 18 tents and two canopies. A few IUPD and Indiana State Police cars circled around and parked near Dunn Meadow throughout the night.
2/x
IU student and Bloomington City Council candidate Conner Wright said he came to the public testimony to oppose the bill as an ally for his LGBTQ+ friends, some of whom are on track to become teachers.
7/x
About 15 pro-Palestinian protesters from the Gaza encampment protested a listening session IU President Pamela Whitten hosted Tuesday in the IMU. They were threatened with arrest for chanting and “being disruptive.”
At 5 a.m., more police cars appeared. A small group of protesters still awake zigzagged through the tents, waking up the others. The IU Divestment Coalition sent a message on Telegram saying support was needed and asking people to show up.
3/x
Prior to a policy change Wednesday that bans the use of structures without approval, a 1969 IU Bloomington policy allowed the use of temporary structures in Dunn Meadow without prior approval, except from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.
4/x
On Monday, College of Arts and Sciences Executive Dean Rick Van Kooten sent an email to faculty and staff saying Whitten offered to meet with College faculty. It is unclear if the “listening session” today is connected to her planned meeting with College faculty.
Since January, I've been reporting on repatriation at IU, which has one of the largest reported collections of Native American human remains, acquired by IU anthropologists over decades for research long considered offensive. 🧵
@idsnews
The IU Divestment Coalition asked protesters who had gone home for the night to return for a rally at 11 a.m. Saturday morning, which marked 24 hours since the encampment was reestablished on the second day of protests.
2/x
Since 11 a.m. today, protesters have been trickling in, some bringing supplies like food and water. There are about 30 gathered now, including a handful of children.
4/x
As 6 a.m. approached, the protesters prepared in case police showed up by linking arms around the two larger canopies. Under the old 1969 policy, the protesters’ tents would not have been permitted until 6 a.m.
5/x
After 33 people were arrested Thursday afternoon, the first day of the encampment, the protesters left around 11:30 p.m. to regroup. They returned at 11 a.m. Friday, and many have been there since.
3/x
Whitten told Van Kooten, “I am committed to understanding how I can best serve the Bloomington campus community. Your views are important and I invite you to talk with me and share your suggestions and feedback,” according to the email.
@IUMediaSchool
In the second panel of
#reportingtheborder
journalist Alfredo Corchado Jiménez speaks about the challenge of staying objective when telling immigration stories.
Protesters debated with Bell-Robinson and Benjamin Hunter, associate vice president and superintendent for public safety at IU, about the number of warnings they received and IU’s free speech policies. They then marched out of the IMU, chanting.
There are at least 3 IU Police Department officers in the IMU nearby. Vicka Bell-Robinson, associate vice provost for involvement and belonging, told the protesters IUPD is on their way.
A small but vocal minority of people said during the public testimony they support the bill and advocate for parents’ right to be the ones to teach sensitive topics to their kids and teachers’ right to stay neutral on controversial subjects such as sexuality.
5/x
The nonstop chants of protestors shouting “shut it down” and “we say gay” can be heard inside the chamber where legislators are currently debating the bill.
3/x