As the Greek philosopher Heraclitus once said, “Change is the only constant in life.” When The Granite Tower (GT) first shifted from a newspaper publication to a monthly magazine issue, the board of editors expressed great concern. Yet this wariness was easily overshadowed by an overwhelming sense of hope for GT’s future. This transformation came with the understanding that media was shifting to a new paradigm and as the first English collegiate newspaper in Korea, adaptation was necessary to keep GT up and running. Considering this background, GT asked its reporters their opinions regarding the things they would like to see changed at GT.
Being Open to New Possibilities
Alongside GT welcoming its first international student reporter, new projects were also undertaken. GT formed a video team as it aims to be more active and engaging on social media platforms. Established as a collaboration between the Web Magazine Department and the Photography Department, the video team is attempting to post video content regularly on GT’s Instagram account (@thegranitetower). Ideas such as having street interviews on the KU campus for the Voice on Campus section in the magazine, and filming publicity videos for the recruitment of cub reporters were raised and carried out last month. GT Spotlight is also part of the change GT is embracing, as this section aims to inform readers about the behind-the-scenes work within GT and establishes a personal connection between GT and its readers.
GT is open to changes, and reporters are provided with an opportunity to voice their opinions through a magazine evaluation at the end of every semester. They expressed a common sentiment hoping GT could embrace more light-hearted articles. Coincidentally enough, when asked about what they wished to change in GT, Naama Benamy Schoneveld (‘20, Linguistics) and Yun Sunwoo (‘21, Business Administration) both mentioned the formal tone and style GT articles adopt. “As we cannot write first-person pronouns, second-person pronouns, or even conjunctions, my articles often end up sounding a bit awkward. If GT had a more casual style of writing, I am sure our articles would have more flavor to them, and they would definitely be more interesting to read,” Sunwoo commented. Naama also added, saying, “I think the way we currently do our edits is a bit too excessive. Because of the GT style guide, we are unable to showcase our own writing techniques as writers and journalists through our articles. GT’s edge is that it is an English magazine with unique voices, but over over-stylization makes many articles sound near identical, almost too serious.”
In addition, Naama revealed how she wished there were more team development activities aside from the monthly meetings. “Many people may not know that our staff barely see each other! By having more team bonding activities, I think the writing and cohesion of the magazine would improve as a result,” she remarked. Sunwoo proposed the idea of going on a Membership Training (MT) as a bonding activity for GT members. “I have yet to go on an MT trip with GT, and I feel like it would be so much fun. We could rent a guest house near the ocean and cook barbeque, eat ramen, play games... I think it would be a real bonding experience for GT members, and I really hope we go on an MT this semester!”
It is never easy to accept shortcoming due to how difficult it may be to adapt to needed changes. Taking into consideration the feedback of GT reporters, GT hopes to clearly analyze and be critical of the current status of things to improve in the long run.