Columbia Daily Spectator is the weekly student newspaper of Columbia University. It is published at 112th and Broadway in New York, New York. Founded in 1877, it is the oldest continuously operating college news daily in the nation after The Harvard Crimson, and has been legally independent of the university since 1962. During the academic term, it is published online Monday through Friday and printed every Thursday. In addition to serving as a campus newspaper, Spec, as it is commonly known, also reports the latest news of the surrounding Morningside Heights community. The paper is delivered each week to over 150 locations throughout the Morningside Heights neighborhood.
Spectator is published by Spectator Publishing Company Inc, an independent 501(c)(3) corporation. Spectator Publishing Company was formed in 1962 and has been independent of Columbia University since then. The president of the Spectator Publishing Company also serves as the editor in chief of the Columbia Daily Spectator.
Spectator's writing departments, each headed by one or two editors, include campus news, city news, sports, arts and entertainment, and opinion. The other non-writing departments, also headed by their own respective editors, include photography, design, online, production, copy, and business. The business departments, which oversee the newspaper's advertising, finances, and alumni relations, are headed by the publisher.
Spec is currently run by the 141st managing board. First-time writers at Columbia begin their time at the paper with a 1- to 2-month trial period, during which they learn the basics of writing an article and publish their first articles. Each November and December, students run for positions at the paper, a grueling process that takes nearly a month. They begin by shadowing, or sitting with the current editors or associate editors and learning the editing process. Next they write proposals for their desired position. The students then take editing tests made up by their department editor that test them on fundamentals. Finally, they go through the turkeyshoots, an interview in which the current managing board grills the applicant on why the applicant feels that they would be a good fit for the position. The results of the process, including the new managing board, are announced in mid-December, the weekend before finals.
In 2005, Spec started printing La Página, a weekly flyer in Spanish with translations of some of the week's English content most relevant to neighborhood readers. It folded within the year.
The next year, in February 2006, the paper launched a series of blogs, SpecBlogs. They were the third Ivy League paper to do this, after the Harvard Crimson 's Sports Blog (December 2005) and The Daily Pennsylvanian 's TheBuzz (January 2006).
In September 2006, Spectator staff launched The Eye, a weekly magazine featuring investigative pieces and commentary on Columbia and New York City. The name of The Eye relates both to the fact that one "spectates" with it and urban theorist Jane Jacobs' notion that "eyes on the street" help keep neighborhoods safe.
In March 2010, Spec launched a new blog, Spectrum, which is updated several times a day with breaking news, columns, and features.
Editor in Chief: Catie Edmondson
Managing Editor: J. Clara Chan
Publisher: Anurak Saelaow
News Editors: Aaron Holmes, Jessica Spitz
Editorial Page Editor: Hannah Barbosa-Cesnik
Sports Editor: Austin Horn
Head Copy Editor: Kaatje Greenberg
Photo Editor: Yasmine Akki
Design Editor: Amanda Frame
Managing Editor, The Eye: Rebecca Ausseil
Spectrum Editor: Veronica Grace Taleon
Deputy Publisher: Michael Tai
David Alpern, former senior writer and current contributing editor for NewsweekLou Antonelli, Texas-based science fiction and fantasy authorR.W. Apple, senior staff writer for The New York Times, serving as a foreign correspondent for over 30 yearsRoone Arledge, sportscaster and head of ABC News; created 20/20 and Nightline in addition to Monday Night FootballChris Beam, The New Republic reporter and co-founder of IvyGateNaftali Bendavid political reporter for The Wall Street Journal and author of The Thumpin': How Rahm Emanuel and the Democrats Learned to Be Ruthless and Ended the Republican RevolutionArnold Beichman, conservative commentatorDamien Bona, former Daily Spectator film critic, film historian and co-author of "Inside Oscar: The Unofficial History of the Academy Awards"Katherine Boo, writer for The New Yorker and winner of the Pulitzer PrizeMarcus Brauchli, executive editor of the Washington Post and former managing editor of the Wall Street JournalRobert Neil Butler, geriatricianBen Casselman, economics reporter for FiveThirtyEight, formerly energy reporter for the Wall Street JournalBennett Cerf, co-founder of Random HouseIsadora Cerullo, Olympic rugby playerAriana Cha, The Washington PostElizabeth Cohen, CNN reporterMatthew Cooper, Portfolio columnistMatthew Continetti, writer at The Weekly StandardDavid Denby, staff writer for The New YorkerI.A.L. Diamond, screenwriterMorris Dickstein, noted literary critic and professor at CUNYJoe Ferullo, Vice President of Programming and Development for CBS Paramount Domestic TelevisionMax Frankel, former executive editor of The New York TimesRuth Franklin (née Ruth Halikman), senior literary editor at The New RepublicRobert Friedman, editor-at-large at BloombergJulius Genachowski, chairman of the Federal Communications CommissionRobert Giroux, publisherRalph J. Gleason, music criticNeil Gorsuch, United States Circuit Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth CircuitAlfred Harcourt, publisherReed Harris, expelled for 20 days, author of King Football, journalist, civil servant, target of McCarthyismLangston Hughes, poet, novelist and playwrightDan Janison, reporter and columnist for New York NewsdayJack Kerouac, Beat Generation novelistBob Klapisch, sportswriter for The RecordVi Kyuin Wellington Koo, Chinese diplomatAdam B. Kushner, editor of PostEverything at the Washington PostTony Kushner, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright; author of Angels in AmericaArthur Lazarus, Jr., attorney for Indian tribesJonathan Lemire, national political reporter for the Associated PressArthur M. Louis, former long-time writer with Fortune magazine, free-lance writer and authorJohn R. MacArthur, publisher of Harper's magazineDienda Madiq, music promoterJoseph L. Mankiewicz, Academy award-winning movie directorSam Marchiano, sportscaster, currently for MLB.comGraham Moore, Academy award-winning screenwriterMichael Mukasey, former US Attorney GeneralPat Mullins, Chairman of Virginia Republican PartyMichael Musto, New York City journalist and media gadflyBernard W. Nussbaum, former White House counsel to President Bill ClintonJim Ogle, longtime sportswriter for The Star-Ledger and chronicler of the New York YankeesJed Perl, author and art critic of The New RepublicJoshua Prager, author and previous special senior projects reporter for the Wall Street JournalTed Rall, political cartoonistIan Rapoport, sportswriter and television analyst, NFL NetworkRoger Rubin, sportswriter, New York Daily NewsRob Saliterman, former spokesman for former President George W. BushNick Schifrin, Pakistan correspondent for ABC NewsWarren St. John, New York Times reporter and authorNick Summers, Bloomberg Businessweek reporter and co-founder of IvyGateLee C. Townsend, News Editor, CBS Evening News (Cronkite & Rather)Dick Wald, former president of NBCSteven Waldman, journalist and founder of Beliefnet.comMichael Waldman, speechwriter and advisor for President Bill ClintonSharon Waxman, New York Times reporterJames Wechsler, chief editor of the New York PostLis Wiehl, legal commentator for Fox NewsBeau Willimon, creator, producer and writer of U.S. miniseries House of CardsHerman Wouk, authorPaul Zimmerman, columnist for Sports Illustrated (as "Dr. Z")Bruce Mayrock, Student activist and self-immolator