''The Universe'' (formerly ''The Daily Universe'') is the official

student newspaper A student publication is a media outlet such as a newspaper, magazine, television show, or radio station Graduate student journal, produced by students at an educational institution. These publications typically cover local and school-related new ...

for

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

(BYU) and was started in 1956.

History

BYU's student-published newspaper was first titled ''White and Blue'' (1898–1921), later becoming the ''Y News'' (1921–1948). In 1948, the title was changed to the ''Brigham Young Universe'' (1948–1956), and in 1956 this was updated to simply ''The Daily Universe''. ''The Universe'' is part of a larger news organization called BYU NewsNet, which was one of the first integrated (web, radio, newspaper, and television) news organization in the world. The paper was printed Monday through Friday, except during school breaks and some holidays. It was distributed free of charge on BYU campus and is sent around the world to alumni and friends of the university for a small fee. On January 12, 2012, the BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications announced the newspaper's move to digital."Daily Universe Goes Digital"
''

BYU Magazine Brigham Young University (BYU) is a private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsored by the Church of ...

'', 2012. Retrieved on 21 February 2020. Beginning in 2012, content would continue to be published online daily, while the print newspaper would only be published once a week. In 2017, ''The Universe'' partnered with ''

HuffPost ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...

'' on a series called ''Listen to America'' to investigate issues facing

Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...

millennials. In 2020 a satirical website was launched by BYU students called ''The Alternate Universe,'' mimicking ''

The Onion ''The Onion'' is an American digital media company and newspaper organization that publishes satirical articles on international, national, and local news. The company is currently based in Chicago, but originated as a weekly print publication ...

'' on issues related to BYU and students.

Operations

The editors, writers, photographers and copy editors are all students, some paid, some reporting for a journalism class. These students are overseen by a collection of school professors and other full-time staff, who help train students and maintain professional standards. The opinion pieces in the paper are overseen by an editorial board which includes student staff, professional staff, university professors and local professionals. Limitations on what the paper can publish has been an issue in years past with debate over content appropriate for the campus audience. Student editors are required to avoid any topic that is critical of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church), including examinations of polygamy and segregation in church history. Rules about content were established in 1970 and forbade coverage of drugs, sex education, birth control, and specifically, acid rock music. One student editor said there were many spoken and unspoken rules about what topics were permitted. One of the paper's most popular features is the letter to the editor section, which routinely becomes a forum for campus issues or ideas. ''Police Beat'' is a popular ongoing round-up of eccentric reports to campus police.

Notable alumni

* McKay Coppins, political journalist and staff writer at ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

''Byers, Dylan
"McKay Coppins, the Mormon on Mitt's trail"
''

Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American political digital newspaper company founded by American banker and media executive Robert Allbritton in 2007. It covers politics and policy in the Unit ...

'', 31 January 2012. Retrieved on 21 February 2020. * Caleb Turner,

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake (RSL) is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Fou ...

beat writer for KSL.com * Jackson Payne, sportswriter for the

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS ...

References

External links

''The Universe'' Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Universe (student newspaper), The 1956 establishments in Utah Brigham Young University publications Newspapers established in 1956 Student newspapers published in Utah