The University of South Florida’s student newspaper The Oracle is the latest student paper to announce that it is no longer allowing email interviews, except under rare circumstances. In a letter to readers Monday, Editor-in-Chief Divya Kumar said an increasing number of sources are requesting email interviews in hopes of having more control over their message. "As a newspaper, is it our job to provide readers with the truth, directly from the source — not from the strategically coordinated voices of public relations staff or prescreened e-mail answers. We don’t think these responses provide our readers with the unvarnished truth, and we will no longer include them in our articles at the expense of compromising the integrity of the information we provide. University departments do not have one, centralized voice, but rather are made up of a multitude of diverse perspectives."

Powerfully and personally, Pacific Media Guild member Jeremy Hay tells readers his own story of his nearly lifetime fight against mental and emotional problems that were finally diagnosed as bipolar disorder. He credits his union contract as one of the things that has helped him get better: “Imagine not having the personal support I have: the rudimentary working knowledge of the health care system; the inclination or ability to negotiate that system; the employer willing and able to work with me while I struggled; the union contract that installed a net of protections I was able to rely on. All those things meshed to carry me through to a safe shore. I can’t imagine how hard it is or would be for others not so blessed.”

Last week, the young entrepreneur and newspaper junkie who bought the Palisadian-Post dismissed his circulation manager, business manager, graphic designer and even his publisher so he could put the money into editorial content and staff pay.