Editor in Chief

After a particularly awkward encounter this break, my New Year's resolution is to never again comment on someone's "new" haircut. While I believe I am decently observant person, my compliments always seem to fall on someone who did not have a haircut at all. It makes for an awkward pause and an even more awkward explanation. ("Oh, my mistake, it looks... different...?")

Well, in case you didn't notice or have also sworn off potentially incorrect compliments, sports got a haircut. Or as we say in the biz, a redesign.

Sports, 2007	Sports, 2008

What's so different, you ask? Well, we added "The Lineup" -- a column of news briefs, photos and teasers to inside content on the left side of the front page. Now in addition to full-length, front-page stories, you can read national briefs at a glance, read "quick hits" of important news inside, ogle pretty photos, check for daily PSU matchups and read our opinion.

It gives us a better platform to relay the day's sports news. Hey, we know you love the Eagles (Steelers) and when the Eagles (Steelers) play a late game, you want to know the score. We also know that we may not be the first newspaper you turn to for national sports news. (We wish we could send our sports reporters to the Linc too... or fine, Heinz Field. ) But if a professional or collegiate team does something newsworthy, the Collegian will make sure you know about it.

We're also pushing for color on the sports front more frequently. So now, those intense slam dunks, wrestling holds and our reporters' lovely faces will be featured in their full CMYK glory.

Agate, the Scoreboard section, was also spruced up. Though hopefully you enjoyed the wacky feature photo as much as we did, we decided to do away with it for more information. With our additional space, we're also looking local. Check for more Penn State scores and conference standings.

Redesigns -- even small ones -- are hard work. But when sports editor Andrew Staub brought up the idea, I believe his pitch went something like this: "The sports section looks it's still 1983. No, 1973. Whatever, it's out-of-date."

His disgust won everyone over immediately and we began trying to take some years off the face of sports. We started in October with weekly, sometimes semiweekly, meetings where we spent hours talking about what sucks about sports. After venting years of pent-up anger, we started on the harder part: the solutions. Where can we place important national sports news? How can the front page feature more than just football? What are we to do with 10 long previews for weekend events?

You can find the results everyday in a newsstand near you. We hope we brought the sports section into the late '90s, at least. Love it or hate it? We'd love to know. Send me compliments or critiques on sports' new haircut. No awkward pauses, I promise.

I'm sure you heard that Heath Ledger died yesterday. I certainly did -- as I walked from my class in the Sparks Building, as I came into the Collegian and as I crossed Beaver Avenue overhearing some girl's frantic phone call relaying the news.

There are some stories that will find you no matter where you are -- whether you are interested or not. There are other stories -- usually infinitely more interesting -- that somehow manage to stay under the radar.

(No offense, Ledger devotees. We have that story on page 9.)

It usually falls to the media (in Ledger's case, a larger and avid fan base) to select which stories you read each morning. We strive to make sure you aren't missing anything important when you pick up each day's paper, but we work with very concrete limitations. We call it paper size.

The size of the paper you hold in your hands depends many different variables, like the number of advertisements our Business Division sells, the amount of news content we predict we will have and even the amount of color in the paper.

Using this complex formula and some gut feeling, we decide the number of pages in each newspaper two days in advance. We have a certain amount of flexiblity, but usually, if we have one too many stories or nine too many stories, we have to make it work. This translates into holding the story for a later date and a bigger paper or running it solely on our Web site.

It affects some parts of the newsroom more than others. And every Sunday, it's the sports staff. On an average weekend, sports usually covers more than 20 stories. You don't have to major in math to understand: A weekend of local news + collegiate match-ups + professional teams) = Too much content.

Most often sports doesn't have the luxury of holding on to their content until they have the space. No one wants to read a story Tuesday about a men's basketball game on Friday. That's old news.

And while we can't always remedy a small paper size, we can do something about the way we present those stories online by making a crowded Monday sports section a little easier to navigate.

Now whether you like 55-meter dash or the Penn State Rifle Club, hopefully the new online layout of our sports section will help you find it a little faster and a little easier.

It debuts today. Look for future improvements to other section pages later this semester. All part of our effort to make sure you get your news, Heath Ledger-related or not, as easily as possible.

In the spirit of all the discussion about the state of our union, I thought it was only appropriate to let you in on the state of your newspaper.

Please insert applause as requested.

President Spanier, Daily Collegian staff, members of UPUA, distinguished guests, and readers:

Ten months have passed since I first stood before you as editor in chief (and by stood before you, I mean since my terrible mug shot graced the Collegian's front page).

In that time, our newspaper has been tested in ways that none of us could have imagined. We faced hard decisions while covering crime, administrative proposals, student government initiatives and borough council legislation.

These issues call for vigorous debate, and I think it's fair to say we've answered the call. (If you disagree, try composing one of those things that starts with 'l-' and ends with '-etter.')

Yet history will record that despite our differences, we acted with purpose. And together, we showed the university the power and resilience of the student voice.

[Pause here for applause.]

From printing hard-hitting news that affected your wallets to quirky features that stole your hearts to captivating photos and graphics that dazzled your eyes, we've made good progress. Yet we have unfinished business before us, and our readers expect us to get it done.

In the time ahead, we must be guided by the philosophy that made our newspaper great. As journalists, we believe in the power of the First Amendment to determine and shape the course of history. We believe that the most reliable guide for our newspaper is the collective wisdom of ordinary citizens.

By trusting the people, our Founders wagered that a great and noble press could be built on the liberty that resides in the hearts of all men and women. And so long as we continue to trust the people, our newspaper will prosper, our liberty will be secure, and the state of The Daily Collegian will remain strong.

So tonight, with confidence in freedom's power, and trust in the people, let us set forth to do their business. God bless America.

[Insert more applause here.]