Leonid Volkov: “For the first time in about ten years I read a paper newspaper every morning”

“One of the little things that impressed me most about Yale is the daily newspaper, Yale Daily News. Published since 1878 (the oldest daily university newspaper in the USA), 12 full pages, very, very informative,” writes Alexei’s colleague on Facebook Navalny, studying at Yale University.

“Every morning in any of the university buildings there is an impressive stack, and by lunchtime it is sorted out. Because it is interesting, it covers all areas of campus life (from sports to politics, from administrative issues to new cafes) - and because it does it completely independently.

There is no advertising in the newspaper, it is quite obvious that the university is funding it. But she smashes and crushes the bones of the university leadership absolutely uncompromisingly.

On the front page today they criticize the admissions committee (the data retention policy does not allow appealing decisions after three years), on the second - personally the rector Peter Salovey (does not take a strong enough position regarding the increasing incidence of harassment allegations) and the Faculty of Mathematics as a whole (for an unbalanced academic program) - all this along with reports on the performance of the university symphony orchestra and a story about the events of the alumni association.

All employees are students. All articles, of course, are signed with the names of their authors - even if it is an article, as was in one of the recent issues, with an investigation into how one of the deans of colleges, contrary to a tradition dating back hundreds of years, does not live directly in the college, but rented a separate house for himself (with evidence, with a secretly taken photograph of the dean on the lawn of the house and with very harsh criticism of him).

I could go on and on (well, yes, no one withdraws issues from the printing house and prevents them from being distributed throughout the buildings, expels students for critical articles and does not threaten to stop funding the printing of the newspaper), but I think you already understood that I I wanted to say.

I just realized that I was reading a paper newspaper every morning (and with great pleasure) for the first time in about ten years."