Journalism is dead.
It was a common diagnosis when I first confessed my major freshman year, fumbling through introductions in a sea of future doctors and engineers. It’s a diagnosis that still lingers as fake news outwits filters and politicians openly lash out at the oldest media institutions. And when I first began studying at UF, having never written for an independent news publication, I wasn’t too confident myself in the fate of news.
But then I stumbled into a dilapidated fraternity house on West University Avenue and found The Independent Florida Alligator. It was here I fell in love with my craft, my college and my colleagues, and it was here I realized journalism is far from over.
The paper’s medium may not outlive us, the sleek sophistication of online wiping away the inky fingerprints of paper. The industry itself may never flex with stability and security the way it used to. But the Alligator has taught me that journalism will never be chained to buildings, stereotypes or past practices. It’s still thriving, fueled by the passion of people willing to defy the death sentence and tell the stories that need to be told.
I saw it in the final hours of shaky Wi-Fi and tacky bamboo wallpaper, watching the thousands of words that poured into remembering Tiffany Sessions, the agonizing coverage of the Pedro Bravo trial and dynamic athletics features.
I see it in the first steps on Southwest 13th Street, watching over the scramblings of Election Day coverage, the flashy sports layouts and the continuing push to do more, to do better.
Most importantly, I now see it in me, having found my place after ricocheting across the various sections of the newsroom: sports, cops, photo, online, editor.
Four years and five semesters later, it’s time for me to say goodbye to the paper that started it all. I’m taking a step back from the late nights, the frenzy of breaking news and the nagging moments of insecurity and indecision.
But in taking a step back from this paper, I take a step forward in journalism. Thanks to this paper’s people — from the sisters I found through late-night talks and debate transcriptions to the sports boys who belt “Hamilton” with me on eight-hour road trips to the staff members who accepted my editing and my sass — I am more confident than ever before not just in the future of this industry, but of my place in it.
The Alligator, its staff and its readers are more important than ever before. As long as there are people passionate enough to tell the stories of our city and there are people hungry for the truth to read those stories, journalism here will continue to flourish. To be a part of this growth and this change has been gratifying, humbling and exciting.
Even when my byline is finally gone from these pages, let’s continue to support journalism here, and beyond the boundaries of Gainesville.
Let’s continue to make a paper.
Emily Cochrane is a UF journalism senior. She is the current editor-in-chief of the Alligator.
