In my first letter as editor-in-chief, I promised to continue the conversation on issues that our readers and community face.
The Daily Gamecock still stands by that promise.
As the independent student newspaper of the University of South Carolina, we have made the decision to continue to report.
With spring break extended and, as of right now, classes not expected to resume in-person until April 6, we feel it is our responsibility to keep our readers informed, tell the stories that are not being told and be the student voice.
In our last editors' meeting before we left for break, I discussed the possibility of changes to our content production depending on the university's decisions surrounding the coronavirus. At the time, it seemed bizarre because South Carolina was still far enough removed from the effects of the disease.
Still, every editor raised their hand when asked if they would want to continue to produce content.
Now facing the reality of the pandemic, the health and safety of The Daily Gamecock staff is our highest priority. Almost the entire staff is working remotely and we are constantly brainstorming ways to report without sacrificing our safety.
We understand this outbreak is unparalleled to anything in recent history, but we also understand the overwhelming amount of news about the coronavirus our readers are consuming.
The Daily Gamecock's coverage will include reporting on the global health crisis, but it also will include stories we feel are important to our community.
It is these stories we hope will connect our community, even when we are interacting with our peers through Zoom, Blackboard or even a Facebook group.
There are three outlets that we will be producing and sharing content on: our website, social media and email newsletter. All of these outlets are free to our readers.
Because of the suspension of all face-to-face instruction, The Daily Gamecock will not have its regular weekly print newspaper for the duration of the online instruction period. When classes resume in-person instruction, we will begin our print product again.
Website
Our website is where all of our content lives and breathes. It is updated as soon as stories, designs and photo galleries are published.
For our coverage specifically on the coronavirus click here.
Social media
The Daily Gamecock has a Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. On these accounts, we share breaking news and stories that were published on the website and interact with our followers.
We will continue to poll, respond to Q&As and ask for our followers’ input.
Email Newsletter
In lieu of our print product, we will be producing an email newsletter every Monday. New content and content from the previous week will be included in this newsletter.
Subscribe to our newsletter here.
The decision to cut down from five newsletters to one was made because we will be working with a smaller staff. With this smaller staff and reporters working remotely, it was not realistic for us to produce the same amount of content as we did with our full staff.
Our readers will still be at the center of everything we do.
Do you have questions you want to be answered? We will work to get those answers.
Do you have a story that you think we should hear? We will listen.
Do you want to write a letter to the editor or submit a tip? We will read it.
Thank you for allowing us to tell your story and making our coverage possible.