On Dit
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On Dit is a newspaper published by the Students' Association of the University of Adelaide, which appears weekly during semester time. Founded in 1932 (making it the second oldest student newspaper in Australia), its title is French, meaning "one says" or "people say". While the paper charged a low price to its readers in its first decades, it switched to free distribution in the 1960s, and remains so to this day, supporting itself with advertising and funds from the student union budget.
Prior to 2007, in a typical year there were two or three paid editors, elected by the student body the previous year, who planned the paper. The paid editors were assisted by unpaid sub-editors, columnists and other contributors who research and write individual sections. On Dit is unusual among student papers in that for much of its existence it has remained independent of the prevailing political parties on campus. For 2007, the Student Union voted to remove salaries from the editors. Because of VSU, the editors now have to secure all their funding from advertising space. This has left its traditional format as a weekly paper in doubt.
On Dit celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1982, and will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2007. Past editors include former SA Premier John Bannon, current South Australian MLA Nick Xenophon, current editor of The Daily Telegraph David Penberthy and comedian Shaun Micallef.
For many years the paper was printed in a tabloid format on standard newsprint. This was changed to a magazine format early in 2006 to help the paper cope with financial uncertainty brought about by Voluntary Student Unionism. A special edition entitled Elle Dit, written primarily or exclusively by women, is also produced. In more recent years the paper has better resembled other free street press, though with more artistic (or at any rate abstract) covers, usually eschewing headlines, and a focus more broadly on politics and pop culture than on the popular music common to the format. On Dit mainly carries commentary, news articles and reviews.
