''The Irish Rover'' is an independent,

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

biweekly student newspaper serving the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

community. The paper was launched in 2003 by Joe Lindlsey, when he and students believed that ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'', another student publication, was showing a liberal bias in their coverage of events. The paper provides news coverage of campus life and features regular opinion columns from alumni and faculty.

History

''The'' ''Irish Rover'' was launched as a free print newspaper in December 2003. In 2005, editors of ''The Irish Rover'' revealed that they received significant funding from the conservative

Intercollegiate Studies Institute The Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI) is a nonprofit educational organization that promotes conservative thought on college campuses. It was founded in 1953 by Frank Chodorov with William F. Buckley Jr. as its first president. It sponso ...

. In 2009, ''The Irish Rover'' joined with a coalition of other student organizations to oppose the invitation of then-

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

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to deliver Notre Dame's 2009 Commencement address, writing that they pledged "to acts of witness that will be characterized by respect, prayerfulness, outspoken fidelity to the Church and true concern for the good of our University". In 2013, ''The Irish Rover'' was recognized, for the first of two times, as the publication of the year by the Collegiate Network. On December 4, 2017, the editorial staff of ''The Irish Rover'' published an open letter criticizing the decision of University of Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. to provide for coverage of contraception, sterilization, and

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

in the university's employee health insurance plans. The university had previously sued the

Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...

to obtain an exemption from the

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that would require them to do so, leading editorial staff to write, that Jenkins's "reversal has left many dumbfounded — shocked that after a long and costly lawsuit in which Notre Dame asserted that it was against its Catholic values to play any part in providing contraceptives and abortifacients to employees and students, it would abruptly reverse course and willingly participate in such action " In 2019, ''The Irish Rover'' was subjected to an on-campus protest involving a sign placed on campus that contained clippings from articles published by ''The Irish Rover'' and fellow student newspaper ''

'' with the names of the student journalists and others circled in "blood-red" paint, implicating them for the deaths of people who identify as queer. The sign's creator later published a video during which she beat the sign with a

crowbar A crowbar, also called a wrecking bar, pry bar or prybar, pinch-bar, or occasionally a prise bar or prisebar, colloquially gooseneck, or pig bar, or in Australia a jemmy, is a lever consisting of a metal bar with a single curved end and flat ...

, drawing allegations of violating Indiana's intimidation law. The incident drew criticism as an attack on free speech and an attempt to incite violence. In 2021, the ''Irish Rover'' was awarded "Publication of the Year" by the Collegiate Network, and in 2023, "Irish Rover" won the William F. Buckley Jr. Award for Campus Reporting, also awarded by the Collegiate Network. In 2023, Notre Dame professor Tamara Kay filed a civil suit against the ''Rover'' for defamation, claiming that the newspaper falsely portrayed her as offering abortion access to students. However, the case was dismissed, and the dismissal later upheld by an Indiana Court of Appeals in 2025.

References

{{reflist Student newspapers published in Indiana University of Notre Dame Newspapers established in 2003 2003 establishments in Indiana