With a new editorial team comes a new set of experiences, opinions, and skill sets. We are excited, to say the least – and Abdul Malik would like to introduce himself and the whole new editorial board with a smile, a hearty handshake, and a pat on the back. We’re on your side, we swear.
Hi. You there?
Are you reading this? Do I have your attention? I do? I hope I have your attention. Because I’m about to INTRODUCE THE FUCK OUT OF MYSELF.
I’m Abdul Malik, the new arts editor around here. We’re all new. In the same way the guards change regularly at Buckingham palace, aspiring Bat-men blow up the lairs of the ninjas that trained them, and white dwarf suns create nebulae that eventually coalesce into brand new stars, Excalibur has a new editorial team once again.
One of the great things about this paper is the fact that the staff changes every year. Each new editor brings a different set of priorities and personality to their job; it’s simultaneously a way to improve the learning experience and stay in touch with the ever evolving needs of the community we serve.
“Cynicism is far too easy, and we are all of us doing the best we can.”
And believe me, we’re here to serve.
To those unacquainted with Excalibur, I’ll give you this sentence to expend your phallic jokes re: our name. Done? Alright. Cool. To get you up to speed: we’ve been York’s community newspaper since 1966 and we are completely autonomous from the school administration. Our job is simply to be journalists, journalists that look out for the interests of York’s students, faculty, and community.
To those familiar with Excalibur and are cynical about the paper, student journalism, or the impact of the press-at-large: at the end of the day, we’re still here to look out for you, regardless of how you view us. Cynicism is far too easy, and we are all of us doing the best we can.
To those of us who pick up and read Excalibur regularly, we can guarantee the paper will only get better. We’ve picked up from what was already an amazing team of editors, and we have titanic shoes to fill.
Our team is diverse. Some of us have worked here in other positions, others are entirely new, and a few of us started as volunteers and staff writers. Our doors are open to anyone and everyone who wants to be a part of the team, and this has only ever been a good thing.
The paper has content online and in print; we change with the times, and expect a Herculean degree of web content this year. The physical paper will stay strong, too, no matter how many death bells toll for print journalism.
Hey, we outlived Newsweek. Isn’t that neat-o?
At this point, it’s not unsafe to call Excalibur an institution at York, and while there have been ups and down in the paper’s history, we have a standard of excellence to meet — a standard that’s set not by us, but by you, the reader.
And I can speak for the entire team when I say we plan to go above and beyond the call of duty for the next year. We’re here to create dialogues, keep you in the loop, and shine a light on any of the numerous goings on, positive or negative, on the York campus.
We hope you can be a part of what we’re doing, while we’re doing it.
And occasionally, our headlines will be punny. Sorry in advance.
Abdul Malik
Arts Editor
