Who writes the articles on The Daily Eastern News?

Updated

The Daily Eastern News is written and edited by students at Eastern Illinois University, not by university officials. By checking the byline on any article, you can see whether it is a staff-reported news story, a sports report, a signed column, or an unsigned editorial representing the editorial board. The site describes itself as “The student news site of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois,” which is the clearest statement of its status.

How authorship is shown on the site

The Daily Eastern News uses standard newspaper bylines and labels. The page evidence shows several patterns:

  • Staff-reported news: Articles carry a reporter’s name and role, such as “Koria Downs, Reporter,” “Andrea Jimenez, Reporter,” or “Sean Strunk, Reporter.”
  • Edited news: Some stories are credited to an editor, such as “Jason Coulombe, Assistant News Editor,” with a date and a short summary.
  • Sports: Sports coverage is attributed to sports staff, such as “Gabe Newman, Sports Editor,” “Cameron Thomas, Sports Reporter,” or “Dalton Spahn, Sports Reporter.”
  • Opinion columns: Columns are attributed to individual columnists or editors, such as “Emerson Reynolds, Opinions Editor” or “Alexis Bialeschki, Columnist.”
  • Editorials: Editorials are credited to the “Editorial Board,” not to a named individual or a university office.

These labels are the main way to tell who is responsible for a piece. A named reporter or columnist is writing in their own capacity or reporting for the paper; an editorial board label means the piece represents the board’s collective view.

What this means for judging a story

Because the paper is student-run, its articles are student journalism rather than official university communications. That distinction matters when you are trying to understand the source of a claim:

  • A news story attributed to a reporter is that student’s reporting, edited by student editors.
  • A column reflects the named writer’s opinion.
  • An editorial reflects the editorial board’s position, which may differ from the views of university administrators or other students.

The site’s own description and the bylines shown in its article listings support this reading. If you need to know whether a statement represents the university’s official position, check whether the article quotes a university official or cites an official statement; the byline alone tells you who wrote the piece, not who endorsed its contents.

Practical way to check an article

  1. Open the article and read the byline under the headline.
  2. Note whether the credit is a named reporter, a named columnist, or the “Editorial Board.”
  3. Look at the section label (News, Sports, Opinions) to see what kind of piece it is.
  4. If the article discusses university decisions, look for quoted officials or documents rather than assuming the paper speaks for the university.

The expected result is a clear picture of whether you are reading reported news, a personal column, or an institutional editorial. A common snag is treating an editorial board piece as a news report; the “Editorial Board” credit is the signal that it is not.