The Tab JMU isn’t one publication too many

On February 10, Matt D’Angelo of The Breeze wrote an article attacking The Tab. His main complaint was The Tab’s joining JMU’s 10 publications and his view of The Tab’s articles as basically frivolous. He argues:

The bottom line is that we’re all young, raw and extremely inexperienced. Writing for structured publications like the ones I previously mentioned pushes writers to interact with editors, work in newsrooms and get involved with other areas of experience that a publication like The Tab can’t offer. Everything anyone writes for The Breeze is scrutinized by at least three people before it’s posted. Can The Tab say the same? […] Publications like The Tab may not embody these same aspects, and thus not give young writers the right platform to develop their skills.

Why, yes, Matt, we can say the same. Before getting the opportunity to write for The Tab, students have to submit a starting idea and work with one of their many editors on their first article. Then, it’s reviewed by The Tab’s staff before it’s sent to the editor for that college’s branch of The Tab (JMU, in our case), then that editor gets in contact with you about what else your article may need. Any Tab writer can work closely with a professional journalist in New York through any stage of the publishing process, whether that’s pitching it in the first place, structuring so it reads best or dealing with the fallout after it’s rattled a few cages.

A few days before we officially went live, our assistant editor Sarah Desiderio and executive editor for The Tab Joshi Herrmann came to JMU to interview us one-on-one and we had our first meeting that night. We’re currently planning our next meetings. The Tab also offers tons of opportunities for internships and getting real-life, media experience by visiting their office in New York.

D’Angelo later says that he, “just would like to point out the macro-level implications of adding a publication that could possibly hurt the growth of SMAD students here at JMU.” While he makes a good, albeit rather uninformed (not having sat in on any of our meetings), point, I would like to respectfully disagree. The high number of publications at JMU is excellent for the development of journalism here. By adding to the market and increasing competition, the high number of publications is a good, watered-down example of some of the competition we will face in our careers. Journalism is a highly competitive line of work with tons of newspapers trying to out-scoop each other on a daily basis. By having more opportunity for students to gain writing experience, build their portfolios, and be published through multiple publications, we not only encourage students to write, but also give them an example of what they will face down the road.

The fact that JMU offers 11 different opportunities for students to have their voices heard should be a point of pride for the university, not one of shame. If a student’s article were to get turned down by The Breeze or The Odyssey, they could take it to The Tab or Potty Mouth or HerCampus and still get an opportunity to be published because different publications are looking for different things. Having 11 different publications also showcases the drive behind JMU journalism students to gain the experience they need. The fact that the student body is dedicated to their studies and passions enough to want to pursue multiple publication opportunities is a terrific thing for JMU.

While I agree that we should “focus on improving the current publications” in an effort to “raise the bar on the quality of them all,” I disagree that The Tab’s presence affects the quality in a negative way. If anything, its presence forces the other publications to look at the quality of their papers and potentially step up their game. The idea that multiple publications is a disservice to students is false. The more publications offered, the more opportunities to get published, and the more experience and more rounded knowledge we get. Just as each person is different and original, each editor and publication are different and original. By writing for more than one of these publications, we can see the differences between editors and the differences in what each publication is looking to publish. We can see, firsthand, the competition in play to get fresh and interesting stories that keep people reading.

D’Angelo also cited a couple of our first articles as examples for the lesser-quality he accuses The Tab of producing, namely that of the “mermaid” and the origin of the dog food smell in Harrisonburg. While these select two articles may not be exactly hard-hitting journalism, it’s hardly a fair snapshot of the level of quality The Tab produces overall. D’Angelo fails to mention the article on the separation of church and state and the article on sexual misconduct, topics he may find to be of a more hard-hitting, journalistic quality. The Tab covers a wide range of topics that are all student interest – I should not have to tell you that students are not all interested in hard-hitting news stories all the time.

While Matt D’Angelo presents his argument well and wrote a good article, I respectfully disagree. The Tab offers great opportunities for the futures of its writers and quality, interesting articles for its readers. Besides, a little competition never hurt anyone. So how about all the publications co-exist peacefully and strive to do what competition is meant to do, encourage us to perform better.

For anyone interested in joining us sign up to write for us and be a part of a new platform on campus giving a voice to all JMU students. And Matt D’Angelo, if you’d to get a much more informed perspective on our editorial process than the one you chose to publish, we’d be happy to have you as well.

Go Dukes!