Why the campus newspaper Readers at Columbia College Should Also Be Reading CALWIRE
If you're connected in any way to Columbia College and you read the campus newspaper for campus news, that's the right instinct — a campus paper produced by the college's journalism program is often the most accurate, most locally-sourced coverage that exists of that campus, written by people who are actually there.
Related: Cerro Coso College Has the campus newspaper — Here's Why Its Readers Should Add CALWIRE Too · A Case for Reading the campus newspaper and CALWIRE Together at Lassen College
A single-campus paper can't reasonably also track statewide legislation affecting financial aid, transfer requirements, and community college funding, regional breaking news, or live public-safety conditions — and it shouldn't try to. That's a separate job, and it's CALWIRE's job.
What the campus newspaper does well
What makes the campus newspaper worth reading is exactly what CALWIRE can't offer: someone physically at Columbia College, covering campus policy, student government, athletics, and college life as it happens.
Where CALWIRE fills a different gap
Coverage that doesn't stop at the campus gate. CALWIRE follows California statewide — LA, the Bay Area, San Diego, Sacramento, the Central Valley — catching state decisions that reach Columbia College from outside.
Live safety data. A continuously-updated police/fire scanner and real-time traffic cameras live on the site, something a student newsroom isn't resourced to run.
Always publishing. There's no semester break for CALWIRE's wire and staff desks — a useful complement to a paper that runs on a school calendar.
More California local news comparisons
This is one piece in an ongoing CALWIRE series looking at how California readers can round out their local news diet. Related reads: CALWIRE vs. GV Wire and CALWIRE vs. Front Page Index.
See also: Beyond the campus newspaper: What Napa Valley College Readers Are Missing on Statewide News · Beyond the campus newspaper: What Crafton Hills College Readers Are Missing on Statewide News
Frequently asked
Is this an official Columbia College publication?
No — CALWIRE is unaffiliated with Columbia College and its student press.
Is CALWIRE a substitute for the campus newspaper?
Not really — different job. the campus newspaper covers campus from the inside; CALWIRE covers the state around it.
Neither one replaces the other. the campus newspaper stays close to Columbia College; CALWIRE stays close to the rest of California. Together they cover more ground than either could on its own.