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| Students at the University of Botswana check out the first issue of the UB Horizon. |
By Donna Brutkoski
“We will take you to the horizon,” posters plastered around the campus of the University of Botswana promised earlier this month.
On March 21, a group of students under the guidance of ICFJ fellow Doug Cosper delivered on that promise, launching the UB Horizon, the university’s first student newspaper.
Cosper is at the university as this year’s McGee Journalism Fellow. Each year, the McGee program, administered by the International Center for Journalists, sends an experienced, U.S. journalist to Southern Africa to teach in the journalism schools and conduct professional development programs.
“There is a new energy around this place,” says Cosper on the launch of the newspaper.
The premiere issue featured an investigative piece detailing the bureaucratic barriers in pinning down the true HIV infection rate on campus. Estimates suggest that anywhere from one-fifth to one-third of the population is HIV-positive, and as reporter Lopang Rankgomo wrote, “students urgently need to understand their risk of HIV/AIDS.”
The student editorial staff took charge of everything from reporting to layout to ad sales in producing the first issue, which had a press run of 5,000 copies. They launched a Web site, www.UBHorizon.com, on April 1.
“My guess is that this newspaper is bringing the highest concentration of journalism learning ever to the department,” Cosper says. “The students are getting hooked.”
To see PDF versions of the UB Horizon, click here: Issue 1> Issue 2> Issue 3>
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