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The Arkansas Traveler (newspaper)
Encyclopedia
The Arkansas Traveler is the student newspaper
of the University of Arkansas
. It is printed four times a week and has an online edition that is updated daily.
The Traveler is distributed free on campus and around the city of Fayetteville, Arkansas
, and usually contains a mix of campus and local news
coverage. It's Thursday edition is called the Weekender and provides a preview for
The Traveler is an affiliate of UWIRE, which distributes and promotes its content to their network.
, who published the paper weekly through the end of the academic year.
Early stories in the newspaper included coverage of the university debate team, reports by faculty members, sports stories and news from the three residence halls. It initially was printed on tabloid size paper, briefly printed in magazine format during the 1909-10 school year, switched to broadsheet during the 1920s and 1930s and back to tabloid during the 1940s.
The first woman to edit the newspaper was Elizabeth Adams, who ran the paper during the 1913-14 school year. The first cartoonist for the newspaper, Stewart Carothers, who also worked on the paper during that period, became well known across the country when he went to work for the Chicago Herald Examiner in 1917, drawing a cartoon strip called Charlie Chaplin's Comic Capers, which was syndicated to 60 metropolitan newspapers.
The name of the newspaper was changed in 1920 when editors decided to publish the paper more than once a week. The editors sponsored a contest to select a new name, and The Arkansas Traveler, well known as the name of a story by Sanford Faulkner
that was later put to music in the song also titled The Arkansas Traveler
, was chosen.
Like many student newspapers, the quality and focus of the paper shifted each year as a new student editor took over.
The Traveler briefly suspended operations in 1917 when a flu epidemic forced the university and the surrounding Fayetteville community to be quarantined. Otherwise, the newspaper has printed without interruption since, even printing an edition about a blaze that consumed the newspaper offices and printing plant when the university's Hill Hall caught fire in 1969.
; novelist E. Lynn Harris
; Mike Gauldin, press secretary to Gov. Bill Clinton
and later director of communications for the U.S. Department of Interior
; and former Sen. David Pryor
.
Student newspaper
A student newspaper is a newspaper run by students of a university, high school, middle school, or other school. These papers traditionally cover local and, primarily, school or university news....
of the University of Arkansas
University of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...
. It is printed four times a week and has an online edition that is updated daily.
The Traveler is distributed free on campus and around the city of Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville is the county seat of Washington County, and the third largest city in Arkansas. The city is centrally located within the county and is home to the University of Arkansas. Fayetteville is also deep in the Boston Mountains, a subset of The Ozarks...
, and usually contains a mix of campus and local news
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
coverage. It's Thursday edition is called the Weekender and provides a preview for
The Traveler is an affiliate of UWIRE, which distributes and promotes its content to their network.
History
Students at the university had published student literary magazines as early as 1895, but the first student newspaper was founded on Oct. 10, 1906, as The University Weekly. The newspaper was supported by student subscription and remains a student-operated publication. Its first editor was Joseph Othel York, a senior from Bellefonte, ArkansasBellefonte, Arkansas
Bellefonte is a town in Boone County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 400 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Harrison Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Bellefonte is located at ....
, who published the paper weekly through the end of the academic year.
Early stories in the newspaper included coverage of the university debate team, reports by faculty members, sports stories and news from the three residence halls. It initially was printed on tabloid size paper, briefly printed in magazine format during the 1909-10 school year, switched to broadsheet during the 1920s and 1930s and back to tabloid during the 1940s.
The first woman to edit the newspaper was Elizabeth Adams, who ran the paper during the 1913-14 school year. The first cartoonist for the newspaper, Stewart Carothers, who also worked on the paper during that period, became well known across the country when he went to work for the Chicago Herald Examiner in 1917, drawing a cartoon strip called Charlie Chaplin's Comic Capers, which was syndicated to 60 metropolitan newspapers.
The name of the newspaper was changed in 1920 when editors decided to publish the paper more than once a week. The editors sponsored a contest to select a new name, and The Arkansas Traveler, well known as the name of a story by Sanford Faulkner
Sanford Faulkner
Colonel Sanford C. 'Sandy' Faulkner was an American teller of tall tales, fiddle player, and composer of the popular fiddle tune "The Arkansas Traveler", which was the State song of Arkansas from 1949–1963....
that was later put to music in the song also titled The Arkansas Traveler
The Arkansas Traveler (song)
"The Arkansas Traveler" was the state song of Arkansas from 1949 to 1963; it has been the state historical song since 1987. The music was composed in the 19th century by Colonel Sanford C...
, was chosen.
Like many student newspapers, the quality and focus of the paper shifted each year as a new student editor took over.
The Traveler briefly suspended operations in 1917 when a flu epidemic forced the university and the surrounding Fayetteville community to be quarantined. Otherwise, the newspaper has printed without interruption since, even printing an edition about a blaze that consumed the newspaper offices and printing plant when the university's Hill Hall caught fire in 1969.
Alumni
Former members of The Arkansas Traveler staff include author Charles PortisCharles Portis
Charles McColl Portis is an American author best known for his novels Norwood and the 1968 classic Western novel True Grit , both adapted as films. The latter also inspired a film sequel and made-for-TV movie sequel...
; novelist E. Lynn Harris
E. Lynn Harris
Everette "E." Lynn Harris was an American author. Openly gay, he was best known for his depictions of African American men who were on the down-low and closeted...
; Mike Gauldin, press secretary to Gov. Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and later director of communications for the U.S. Department of Interior
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native...
; and former Sen. David Pryor
David Pryor
David Hampton Pryor is a former Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives and United States Senator from the State of Arkansas. Pryor also served as 39th Governor of Arkansas from 1975 to 1979 and was a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from 1960 to 1966...
.
External links
- UATrav.com, the online version of the The Arkansas Traveler
- The History of The Arkansas Traveler, site dedicated to gathering historical information on the paper
- The University of Arkansas, main site
- UAtrav, The Arkansas Traveler on Twitter