On a crisp October afternoon in 2023, two friends of the closest kind knocked on the door of George Washington University’s newspaper office. Not taking no for an answer, they quickly made friends with a industrious student editor getting some extra work done.
Unknowingly, the pair — notorious for their undying devotion to student journalism and writing at large — had been the first domino falling in what would lead us here. The fourth instalment of student media spotlight, where I connect with and platform Australian student publications.
Except this publication is not Australian. This paper hails from Washington D.C. to be exact. And this paper’s name is The GW Hatchet. So, consider this a special instalment just for you.
‘Thank you’s’ are also in order to fellow editor, Ariana Haghighi and Honi Soit alumni, Marlow Hurst, for stumbling into and then introducing me, over Instagram, to Ianne Salvosa.
The GW Hatchet is an independent, non-profit student newspaper that has been in circulation since 1904. A George Washington namesake (one of the founding fathers of the University), the paper is said to be inspired by a tale where Washington was chopping down a cherry tree with a hatchet.
The paper is the second-oldest running publication in Washington, second to The Washington Post, and continues to receive praise as one of the best student papers in the United States with many notable alumni.
Earlier this week I dialled into a timezone-aligned Zoom meeting with one of this year’s news editors, Ianne Salvosa to chat about all things student journalism, writing aspirations and our respective student communities.
Salvosa began writing for the Hatchet in her Freshman year of college but her writing career started long before that when she followed in her sister’s footsteps as a prolific contributor to her high school publication. Salvosa started off as an academics reporter but by the end of her Freshman year became an editor. Today, Salvosa is the administrative and finance editor, responsible for reporting on any sort of administrative happenings, executive or non-executive staff issues, scholarships and any financial or budgetary news.
Now, Salvosa is fighting to take her passion for news writing journalism and convert it into a career she’s proud of. When asked why she set her eyes on the Hatchet to achieve this Salvosa said, “we serve the whole GW community” and “use fact-based reporting to be a true scribe for our students.”
The Hatchet prides itself in covering all issues pertaining to students, staff, the newspaper alumni and the wider surrounds of Foggy Bottom — the fond, colloquial name for the University area. Likewise, the paper endeavours to keep up with the evolution of technology and first started their website in 1998, well ahead of the student media standard by maintaining a prolific online presence.
Like Honi, the Hatchet is a weekly student newspaper but is formatted as a broadsheet paper characterised by its long vertical edges (approximately 57 centimetres). Unlike Honi, Ianne and the team of approximately 40 staff volunteer for the paper and do not receive a stipend which she says is standard for the college student media scene. The paper is both financially and editorially independent from the University but pays rent to maintain their office on campus.
Other notable student papers that Salvosa says exists in their immediate landscape include The Daily Northwestern (Northwestern University’s paper since 1881) and The Columbia Spectator (Columbia University’s paper since 1877). The US also boasts being the birthplace of other historic student journalism precedents with The Harvard Crimson (Harvard University’s paper since 1873) and the nation’s oldest daily student newspaper, The Dartmouth or Dartmouth Gazette (Dartmouth College’s paper since 1799).
Interestingly, the Hatchet harbours alumni like L Ron. Hubbard, an American author and founder of Scientology. The paper has been a fascinating breeding ground for generations of academics and award-winning journalists like Deborah Solomon who won the 2002 Pulitzer prize with the Wall Street Journal for her work in ‘explainer reporting’ or Jake Sherman who recently founded Punchbowl News — an online political news daily dedicated to interrogating the figures “who power the US legislature.”
Salvosa compared the experience of editing the paper to a “student community” built on a shared passion for platforming stories that matter and said her paper’s community of approximately 100 members including reporters is a key part of her university experience.
It seems that the paper’s ethos is deeply rooted in student interest and the desire for truth. Salvosa’s pride for the historic impact of her paper extends into a recognition that it “has a distinct function in our community to be a space for student voices to amplify their concerns.
This year the Hatchet is celebrating its 120th year in circulation and continues to “uphold the presence it has in the community by using its history as an incentive to improve on journalistic standard.”
Making the Zoom call feel less like a product of being 15,000 kilometres apart, Salvosa and I shared an adoration for our respective papers and an excitement for what independent student journalism has in store ahead.
