The Aquinian
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The Aquinian is a student-owned-and-operated campus newspaper, at St. Thomas University (STU) in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. The newspaper was established in 1935. It is published on a weekly basis during the regular academic year. The paper is a member paper of Canadian University Press. The paper was known for its controversial and sometimes inflammatory style of reporting in the past, but has since toned it down. The paper was less controversial in the fall term of the 2006/07 acedemic year.
The Aquinian's mission is "...to foster a sense of community at STU by developing and promoting dialogue on issues of concern to the community."
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[edit] Recent History
Before the 2004/2005 academic year, the newspaper was printed biweekly in broadsheet format. Under the leadership of Miriam Christensen, who graduated from STU journalism in 2005, the editorial staff scaled the paper down to tabloid format, which made it financially feasible to print on a weekly basis. In April 2005, fourth-year STU journalism student Justin Sadler became the Editor-in-Chief.
On Tuesday, April 4th, 2006, it was announced that Kate Wright would be the paper's EIC for the 2006/2007 academic year.
[edit] Controversies
St. Thomas University gained international headlines in Autumn 2004 when then-editor Miriam Christensen published a photo of several nude Rugby players streaking across the school field. The incident generated huge interest in the paper amongst students for the remainder of the semester, but was also a controversy as the players in question were not allowed to play in some upcoming games; many fans felt that the story cost them their potential "wins."
The paper's content came under fire in the 2005/2006 academic year after it published an opinion piece on student apathy towards the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq by STU student Sean Horsley. It was accompanied by a photograph of a dead Iraqi soldier who had allegedly been run over by a tank. The image was taken from the controversial website, nowthatsfuckedup.com.
The paper came under further scrutiny after publishing a questionable column on fitness ("Low Resolution") by then-arts editor Max Maxwell. In the piece, he made several incorrect assumptions about his primary subject, Lucie Desaulniers; ironically most associated criticism involved a remark that supposedly alluded to the animal-like appearance of Ms. Desaulniers, but was actually misread by many. A brief controversy arose when Ms. Desaulniers disposed of several copies of the issue in which the piece was printed, instructed to do so by St. Thomas' then-SU President, Sofia Rodriguez-Gallagher. Mr. Sadler knew of this "straight from the horse's mouth," so to speak, but did not publish a story on the matter (Maxwell was relieved of his position soon after the incident due to long-term disagreements with Mr. Sadler and the rest of the editorial staff).
[edit] Campus Involvement
The socially-conscious paper has been particularly critical of the university's presidential search process. The institution's faculty union, FAUST, cried foul after their only representative resigned from the selection committee in protest of the clandestine process. The Aquinian picked up on the story and followed it until the process had been opened and the shortlisted candidates were revealed to the community. Justin Sadler took a stance in the selection process and favoured Dr. Robert Campbell, the Dean of Wilfrid Laurier University's faculty of arts. The Board of Governors named Dr. Michael Higgins, who at the time was President and Vice Chancellor and Professor of English and Religious Studies at St. Jerome’s University, as the next President and Vice Chancellor of St. Thomas University.
[edit] Sample Editorial Boards
2006/07 School Year
- Editor-in-Chief: Kate Wright
- Managing Editor: Brendan Glauser
- News Editor: Evan Clark
- Arts Editor: Hiedi Irvine
- Sports Editor: Chris Fox
- Photo Editor: Tony Kiritsis
- Layout & Design Editor: John Pollack
- Photo Editor (September-October): Andrew Kelly
2005/06 School Year Staff
- Editor-in-Chief: Justin Sadler
- Managing Editor: Andrew McGilligan
- News Editor: Miranda Mathews
- Arts Editors (March-April): Erin Pottie and Andrew McGilligan
- Sports Editor: Brendan Glauser
- Photo Editor: Candice MacLean
- Production Editor: Erin Pottie
- Distribution Manager: Steven Duke
- Arts Editor (September-October): Megan Cumby
- Arts Editor (October-March): Max Maxwell
2004/05 School Year Staff
- Editor-in-Chief: Miriam Christensen
- Managing Editor: Breanna Flanagan
- News Editor: Maggie Estey
- Arts Editor: Sarah Trainor
- Features Editor: Andrew Livingstone
- Sports Editor: Stephen Bruce
- Photo Editor: Justin Sadler
[edit] Sample Columns/Columnists (2005-2006)
"Primordial Ooze & Ah's," Max Maxwell (music/issues)
"The Last Word," Justin Sadler (general-interest/issues)
"Listen Between The Lines," Andrew J. Livingstone (music)
"Vanity Affair," Kristin MacDonald (fashion)
"Well-steeped Brew," Miranda Matthews (news)
"The Examined Life," Stu Forestall (philosophy)
"Malevolent Ink," Step Taylor (humor)
"Faking It," Step Taylor (professional wrestling)
"My First Time," Brendan Glauser (sports/lifestyle)
"Vertical Takedown," Jason D. MacLeod (general-entertainment)
General-interest columns by Andrew McGilligan and Erin Pottie also irregularly ran. Many people proposed a fine arts column but the idea did not get off the ground.
