Downtown Devil was created in a dorm room by a handful of journalism students in downtown Phoenix. In the past nine years, we have grown into the gritty, independent news organization we are today––one where our newsroom is located in whichever apartment, coffee shop or classroom we can find as we piece together stories.
Hunched over laptops and running after sources, our staff learns how to delve into hyperlocal stories in a corner of Arizona rich with history and change. Our success in journalism can be attributed to Downtown Devil, which teaches us to adapt to the ever changing and often chaotic professional newsrooms. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
Today, April 25, student newsrooms across the country are calling for communities, alumni and schools to #SaveStudentNewsrooms. Many student newsrooms across the country will be calling for increased funding, support and acknowledgment.
We stand by student journalists everywhere on this day of recognition and visibility, joining their call to alumni, schools and communities to save student newsrooms.
Downtown Devil would also like to take this day to thank our own supporters, readers and sources for their support in continuing to make our own student publication possible.
Across the country, many student newsrooms struggle to maintain funds and sustain publishing. Some are better funded but face university overreach, others independent but have less access to funds. #SaveStudentNewsrooms was sparked after Southern Methodist University’s independent publication, The Daily Campus, announced it will be absorbed by the university next year. It’s one in a string of unfortunate instances as many student publications struggle with maintaining independence and funding. The #SaveStudentNewsrooms movement is backed by the Society of Professional Journalists board of directors, who reaffirmed commitment for student journalists Thursday.
If not for the support of the communities they cover, student newsrooms could not exist. It is only through your continued support that Downtown Devil is able to be the front page of downtown Phoenix, and we plan to continue as long as our resources last and as long as you’ll have us.
We thank you for treating us not just as students but journalists, and trusting us to cover the issues directly affecting your community. You have given us some of the most real and genuine journalism experiences a student can get, and while we aren’t perfect, we want to thank you for continuing to value our coverage.
Downtown Devil is produced and funded independently from any school. We rely on our hardworking members and contributors to volunteer their time. For now, we are fully funded by local advertisers, who allow us to maintain the site, domain and keep away pesky hackers. In the future, we may explore other funding methods.
Since our start in 2009, we have been named a regional finalist and winner of SPJ’s Best Independent Online Student Publication multiple times. This year alone, we have run stories about President Donald Trump’s visit to town halls to a peek at the local Freemason Masonic Temple. We have created new initiatives this year, including The Rundown, our weekly radio show that breaks down the top stories of the past week, and the Downtown Digest, bringing readers events happening downtown each week.
For many current and former members, Downtown Devil is where we learn to be journalists, from reporting to writing to editing. It’s where many of us cover our first city council meeting, learn multimedia, try out new tools, learn, fail and try again. The continued support, criticism, tips and engagement of our readers make us better journalists.
Many of our alumni have gone on to work in a range of positions and locations, including traditional media like Reuters, Bloomberg, the Arizona Republic, Gannett, NPR affiliates and the Denver Post, to newer industries, such as virtual reality initiatives and audience engagement services. Going forward we hope our current and future members will continue to follow in their footsteps.
As the entire staff, we thank you for your support of this student newsroom, and ask that you consider supporting others in acknowledging #SaveStudentNewsrooms. If any of our readers would like to consider donating to a student newsroom, many across the country are fundraising here.
The Downtown Devil Staff.
Contact Downtown Devil at news@downtowndevil.com.
