Damn, we’ve really been through it.

In less than a year the world has experienced one of the largest wildfire outbreaks in recorded history, a serious threat of an American-Iranian war, the impeachment of a U.S. president, a medical disaster on the scale of the 1918 flu pandemic, unemployment spiking to levels reminiscent of the Great Depression and one of the largest civil rights movements in American history. And here we are back in classes, caught in the middle.

Events have escalated from bad to worse, month by month. Throughout it all, we’ve heard a cacophony of disparate opinions ranging from complete overhaul of federal systems to outright dismissal of pressing issues.

In the wake — and in many cases ongoing hardship — of these events, the importance of our own voices has never been more apparent. It may be said that those of us with the ability to speak up and share our experiences have an obligation to do so. I push that further: We also have an obligation to ensure we use our platform to amplify the voices of the unheard.

Reporter understands this obligation. Our mission is to ensure reliable journalistic coverage of topics relevant to the RIT community, from voices within that community. However, we need your support to do so.

We are students working on behalf of students. We rely on our community to ensure our coverage is cohesive, accurate, impactful and encompassing. But we also need students to join our staff. To write, photograph, illustrate and so much more.

Our content and ideas come directly from our staff and our community; and the more interest we have, the more we’re able to do.

We also rely heavily on the community to provide us with tips (anonymous or otherwise) for further investigation. It’s through tips like these we’re able to uncover stories that the community deserves to know, from federal legal scandals involving RIT professors to cutbacks in student healthcare on campus.

Further, Reporter welcomes and encourages feedback through letters to the editor, whether that be feedback on our own coverage or thoughts on the actions of other RIT-affiliated offices and organizations.

We are Reporter. Our office is located in the Campus Center, room A-730. Come say hi.