Twenty years and still kicking
Tiffany Charbonier
Issue date: 9/15/08 Section: News
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Nineteen eighty-eight was also the year of the genesis of the Brooklyn College Excelsior.
Brooklyn College has seen its share of newspaper publications. The college's first newspaper, The Vanguard, had shut down 33 years earlier because of tensions between the staff and the college administration. An exclusive detailing the president's rejection of a faculty-vote electing Jesse Clarkson to head the History Department. Its descendent, The Kingsman, was shut down in May, 1988 because of publishing material that was found offensive to Jewish and Haitian-American students, as well as women and white men. The Royale, while short-lived, followed, until the Excelsior opened its doors and reader's eyes for the first time. And now, we are celebrating its 20th year birthday.
Of many of the trophies that the Excelsior can proudly showcase, one has always been the diversity of its staff.
"One of the administrators told us of our attempts to begin the Excelsior, don't do it, it had been done before. But when we started, we knew that we had talent and commitment. One of the things that made the Kingsman boring and in fact got them into trouble at the time was that the staff were all journalism majors," said Marc J. Monte, Esq. from The Law Office of Marc J. Monte and the Excelsior's 1st Arts Editor and Editor-In-Chief in 1992.
"Because of our diverse backgrounds and majors, we were able to get access to many writers and band members, concerts and other art venues, that normally people wouldn't have access to," continued Monte, a Film major at Brooklyn College.
For instance, the Excelsior's first issue on Sept. 9, 1988 included an exclusive of how the Kingsman office was vandalized that summer and a special and in-depth interview of Dee Dee Ramone, bass player extraordinaire of The Ramones.
The first staff of the Excelsior established the foundations for what has continued to be a reliable source of news for Brooklyn College students. Today the staff is just as dedicated and diverse as it was 20 years ago.
"Another thing about the Excelsior is that the editors always had a certain way that they handled their work. I would sit down with my writers and tell them why I would change things in their article. Who wants to write for an organization that just doesn't published their work?" said Mr. Monte.
''I don't believe in censorship,'' said Frances Guevara, who won the CLAS student election on an anti-Kingsman platform in 1988, adding, ''But at the same time, a college newspaper has to be sensitive to the needs of the students who are supporting [the paper].''
"The Excelsior has always had interesting headline stories and puts information in about school programs that don't usually get spotlighted. I think we should celebrate that the Excelsior is one year closer to being legal," said Lyl Tomlinson, a junior majoring in Psychology.
"The staff of the Excelsior always handles their stories appropriately. I think 20 years is important to celebrate for the Excelsior because it's important for a college student to know what is going on in their campus and in the rest of the world," said Tiffany Jade Colon, a junior majoring in English.
Some of the original staff including Lucille Jordana, assistant to the Editor-in-Chief in 1992, Christine Ruriani, Features Editor in 1988, and Adam Dickter, News Editor in 1988, all moved on to do big things in the media industry.
We anticipate the current staff will follow in the same footprints, which is really but a reflection of what's happening at Brooklyn College as a whole.
Brooklyn College, an innovative liberal arts institution with a history of academic excellence in both undergraduate and graduate studies, holds one of CUNY's oldest journalism programs. Since its founding in 1930, the College has offered men and women-many of them immigrants or the children of immigrants and often the first in their families to go to college-a high-quality, affordable education that allows them to build a richer life and a productive career.
"I don't remember when the Kingsman exactly stopped but when the Excelsior began, a significant presence of a campus newspaper was added to the college. We, as a staff, really felt like we contributing to the campus. The Excelsior is probably the most significantly long-lasting organization on the campus for the last 20 years," said Monte.
The Excelsior, founded in 1988, remains funded by the student activity fee and advertising revenue, and serves as a public forum for students and members of the Brooklyn College community.
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