Indiana University School of Journalism

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Photo by Lauren Kastner

As custom demands of all IDS editors-in-chief, Mace Broide, BA'47, signs the drawer of Ernie Pyle's desk during his visit to the IDS open house Saturday. He and other editors from past years reconnected and chatted with current staffers.

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Alumni packed the Indiana Student Media newsroom on Saturday morning for the Student Publications Alumni Breakfast, part of the IU School of Journalism’s Centennial Weekend.

Those returning to the newsroom caught up with one another, met with current students and bid on award-winning photographs by School of Journalism alumni in a silent auction that raised approximately $2,000 for the school’s multimedia lab.

A highlight for former newspaper editors-in-chief was to partake in the tradition of signing their names on a drawer from Ernie Pyle’s wooden desk. Current editors of the Indiana Daily Student cheered as older alumni like Mace Broide, BA’47, added his name to the long legacy documented on the drawer.

Others teasingly revealed memories from their time in the newsroom that probably would have landed them in trouble back in the day. Over breakfast, Bruce Buchanan, BA’78, “outed” photojournalist Bill Foley, ’77, BA’07, for sleeping in the darkroom in the basement of the Arbutus when Foley did not have a place to live.

“I remember one day I got caught because a group of High School Journalism Institute students walked through while I was sleeping on a table in a sleeping bag,” said Foley, who went on to win a Pulitzer Prize for his photojournalism.

Photo by Lauren Kastner

From left, current staffers Matt Callahan and Sarah Thacker and Student Media Director Ron Johnson took advantage of alumni expertise as they chatted with Ron Reason, BA'85.

Many of the alumni shared stories from their time as students that have contributed to the rich history of the newsroom. Craig Klugman, BA’67, and Sheldon Shaefer, BA‘66, remembered being editors during the build up to the Vietnam War as both a troubling and courageous time for the Daily Student. At the time, the Daily Student was still run by the School of Journalism and was subject to prior review by faculty.

“We were being taught freedom of speech and press in class, but were being told otherwise in the newsroom,” Klugman said.

According to Klugman, 300 faculty members coalesced as a group to take out a full-page advertisement in the Daily Student opposing the war. IU President Elvis Stahr ordered journalism department chair John Stempel not to run the ad. It was this incident that led the Daily Student to split from the School of Journalism and become an independent newspaper.

“It was an exciting time to be at the Daily Student,” said Mary Ellen Cohn, BA’66. “No one else on campus was getting the professional experience that we did.”

This tradition of excellence hasn’t changed, according to Director of Student Media Ron Johnson.

“They don’t produce their stuff to win awards,” Johnson said of the student staffers. “But they are they envy of college journalism.” IU student media consistently wins top national awards.

Photo by Lauren Kastner

The reunion paid homage to the IDS' 134-year-old past with displays of artifacts.

While celebrating the last 100 years, Marty Anderson, BA’57, said he’s looking forward to the next century of the School of Journalism.

“I hope that it will continue to grow and meet the new demands of the world of journalism,” said Anderson, who worked at the IDS in Stempel’s day before launching a career with the Associated Press.

To ensure that, he recently gave the school more than $1 million in scholarship funding, underscoring his faith in the school in preparing students for whatever the future holds for the industry.

“I’m sure this school will be at the forefront,” he said.

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