| Type | Student publication |
|---|---|
| Format | Newspaper, Magazine, Newsletter, Folio, Book (depending on publication) |
| Owner | The Spectrum Student Media Corps |
| Staff writers | from 25 to 30 (excluding contributors) |
| Founded | June 1956 |
| Language | English and Filipino |
| Headquarters | Coliseum ground floor, University of St. La Salle, Bacolod City, Philippines |
| Circulation | University-wide |
| ISSN | pending |
| Official website | http://www.thespectrum.ph |
The Spectrum is one of the oldest student publications in the Philippines; its history dates back to 1956. Its monthly newspaper, bimonthly magazine, and annual literary folio Scribe are published by the students of the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod City.
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In the school year 1956-1957 The Spectrum was born in an exclusive school for boys. That time, the then La Salle College was populated by less than 1,000 from prep to college. The Spectrum came out once every quarter in tabloid form, printed on white paper which was the standard during that time. Although the high school and college shared the same flag for their publications, they had separate issues prepared by their 30-member staff. Oscar L. Hilado (college) and Mario Guariňo (high school) were the first editors-in-chief of The Spectrum. When La Salle opened its doors to female students in 1966, Lourdes Carisma Barredo became the first female editor-in-chief of the publication three years later.
The Spectrum joined the annual Western Visayas College Press Conference and Awards (COPRE) in 1976. COPRE was and is still being sponsored by the Philippine Information Agency under the Office of the President of Philippines.
The first issue of The Spectrum magazine came out when the Fundamentals of Journalism class of 1978 was able to produce it as part of their semestral requirements. The editor-in-chief then was Isabel C. Urra. Two years later, The Spectrum won its first COPRE awards: Western Visayas’ Second Best Magazine and Second Best Filipino and Literary pages.
Right after the ousting of then-president Ferdinand Marcos, The Spectrum produced issues filled with post Marcos-related articles and pictures of the scenario in the province. In the middle of the 1990s, Scope, The Spectrum’s investigative arm was created, first published as a separate newsletter. Scope aimed to instigate change through investigative journalism so as to improve the university’s academic system.
In 1991–1993, the publication won the COPRE Region 6’s Best Newspaper for three consecutive years paving the way for The Spectrum to grab the most coveted Graciano Lopez-Jaena Award. To accommodate literary pieces in prose and poetry, The Spectrum released its first literary folio – Scribe1995.
In the 90s, The Spectrum won first place awards in COPRE's categories for newspaper and magazine, besting publications from colleges and universities all over the region.
In 2004, The Spectrum became the Grand Prize winner of the National Campus Investigative Journalism Award sponsored by The Varsitarian, the official student publication of the University of Santo Tomas. It was for the Scope section in the July 2004 magazine featured the “Probing into the STM Program” investigative piece. The article created an impact on the university’s policy regarding the Student Team Managers Program that resulted in its abolition.
In 2004–2005 The Spectrum and its writers amassed a total of 31 major and minor COPRE awards and recognitions. In February 2005, the Spectrum Negroswide Campus Journalism Fellowship had its debut. It was participated by various college and high school campus journalists all throughout Negros Occidental. A year later, The Spectrum fellowship was held again and, this time, student journalists from Negros Oriental’s prominent schools like Silliman University and Negros Oriental State University came to participate.
The publication celebrated its 50th anniversary in the school year 2006–2007 with Ms. Krysl Marie E. Santiago as editor-in-chief. The holding of the 3rd Annual Spectrum Campus Journalism Fellowship was the main event. The fellowship that gathered campus journalists from all over Visayas had Inquirer columnist and ANC host Manuel Quezon III, Palanca awardee and performance poet Angelo Suarez and Peace Journalism Network National Coordinator Jean Lee Patindol, who was a 1988-89 editor-in-chief of The Spectrum, as resource speakers.
The Spectrum now packages itself as more than just a publication. It now holds the title the Official Student Media Corps of the University of St. La Salle. The current editor-in-chief is Kurt Tee.
On September 27-29, 2007 under Manuel Jeffrey Ordaniel Sistoso as editor-in-chief The Spectrum transformed its annual fellowship into "The First National Campus Journalism Conference." It was held at Santuario De La Salle, Bacolod City. The event invited several of the country’s top personalities in the field of writing and journalism to share their expertise and experiences. Among them are ANC’s The Explainer and Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist Manuel L. Quezon III for opinion writing, Mother Earth Foundation vice chair Chin Chin Gutierrez for the role of media in environmental consciousness, UP Institute for Creative Writing director Carmelo “Vim” Nadera for Filipino writing and nationalism in writing and journalism, Palanca Awardee Angelo Suarez for creative writing and performance poetry, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism Training officer Yvonne Chua for investigative reporting, multi-awarded children’s book author Jean Lee Patindol for peace and conflict journalism, and women’s rights advocate Atty. Rowena Guanzon for gender-sensitive journalism.
The fellowship gathered the most senior Filipino young writers, campus journalists, artists and advisers from campus-based publications all over the Philippines.
In the same school year, The Spectrum hosted the 4th National Lasallian Schools Press Conference (LSPCon 2008). The event featured topics such as peace and conflict journalism, gender-sensitive communications, and nationalism in writing and journalism, among others.
LSPCon 2008 invited Vim Nadera, with two-time Salanga Grand Prize Winner for Children's Literature Jean Lee Patindol, Palanca awardee and performance poet Angelo Suarez, former magazine editor Jessica Zafra, among others.