Auburn Plainsman
The front page of the Plainsman, dated November 13, 2008
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| Type | Weekly student newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet/Online |
| University | Auburn University |
| Editor-in-chief | Corey Williams |
| Managing editors | Dakota Sumpter |
| Campus editor | Claire Tully |
| Community Editor | Chip Brownlee |
| Lifestyle Editor | Lily Jackson |
| Opinion editor | Weston Sims |
| Sports editor | Emily Shoffit |
| Photo editor | Madison Ogletree |
| Founded | 1893 |
| Headquarters | Suite 1111 255 Heisman Drive Auburn, AL 36849-5343 |
| ISSN | 1071-1279 |
| OCLC number | 232118815 |
| Website | theplainsman |
The Auburn Plainsman is the student-run newspaper for Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. It has notably received awards for excellence from the Associated Collegiate Press and is the second-most decorated student publication in the history of the National Pacemaker competition.
It is published Thursdays throughout each academic term and freely distributed at more than 75 locations. The editor is selected by a group of faculty, students and professional journalists. In turn, the editor hires a paid staff to run the paper and recruits volunteers. Plainsman staff and volunteers create all of the paper's content without the use of a wire service. The business manager, also a student, is selected by a group similar to the one that selects the editor. The business manager hires advertisement salespeople and designers.
The Plainsman is a self-supported publication and receives no student or state taxpayer money. Though located on campus, it pays rent to Auburn University. A typical page count for each modern issue is 20 pages and includes four sections: Campus, Community, Intrigue and Sports.
Founded by the school's two literary societies, Wirts and Websterians, students began publishing a newspaper for the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Alabama in 1893. The students called it the Orange and Blue after the colors worn by the football team formed a year earlier.
The paper began as twice monthly publication. Through its early years, the paper was small. It resembled other newspapers of the day. The first major change in the paper's traditional production came in 1922, when the name went from the Orange and Blue to The Auburn Plainsman. Name changes since then were minor, as editors have dropped and picked up the word "Auburn," but the word became a permanent fixture in the title in 1961-62, a year after the Alabama Legislature changed the school's name for the final time, from Alabama Polytechnic Institute to Auburn University.
Aside from the paper's name change, the frequency of publication has shifted. It went from one edition per week to two editions per week in the fall of 1928. The Plainsman returned to a weekly publication schedule some time in the late 1940s, and is now the largest weekly newspaper in Alabama.
The first female editor was Martha Rand, in 1944. She was followed by Mimi Simms. Since Rand and Simms, only 10 women have served as editor.
The paper launched its online presence in early 1997 with only selected articles placed on a university-based website. In fall 1997, the first Online Editor, Karl Sebelius, moved the paper to its current online home at theplainsman.com. The online edition has received one Online Pacemaker in 2003-2004.
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