Dear Dalhousie Gazette,
We need to talk. Clear the air and straighten out the facts. We’re all student journalists here, right?
Recently, things have felt tense between us. When I came back in the fall, we had similar dreams and goals. But recently, I feel there’s been a competitive edge. Even hints of resentment. Though King’s and Dalhousie are separate universities, I know the lines get blurred. Many King’s students work and write for the Gazette. However, I don’t feel there’s any sort of competition here, and I don’t know why there would be. Afterall, you’re a newspaper and I’m a magazine. We’re entirely different publications.
Did I come on too strong? Become interesting too fast? Sure, I’ve got some ideas. I’ve got an underdog edge, a glossy freshness. But Gazette, my love, I’m scraping pennies together while you’re bathing in riches.
You’ve got it all. You have news, features, opinions. You have biweekly papers, with dozens of contributors and columnists. You cover sports in ways I aspire to. But most of all, dear Gazette, you have a budget. A large budget. The 2022-2023 DSU budget report outlined that $130,810 in expected fees would go to the Dalhousie Gazette. In that same year, the KSU Projected Fall Budget outlined that $11,640 would go to The Watch for the whole year.
Honey, you’re living the high life. Your executive team is too. Your hiring page reveals that next year, your editor-in-chief will make $16,400, your managing editor and director of finance and operation will both make $12,960 each and your four section editors will make $10,560 each. These salaries alone make up about 64 per cent of your estimated budget*. This time last year, you were also hiring a director of marketing and growth and a copyeditor, who were set to be paid $5,600 and $3,360 respectively.
I don’t mean to point fingers –– I say this all with love. In fact, I do everything with love. The Watch is run by volunteers. Each executive member receives a honorarium ranging from $200 to $250, which altogether makes up about 14 per cent of my budget. Look at it this way –– my entire yearly operating costs are thousands less than the salary of your editor-in-chief. If there was any competition, Gazette, you’ve already won. You are making money.
Frankly, my love, I wonder if you might have succumbed to greed when handling your winnings. Though your budget is over 11 times the size of ours, our contributor pay is alarmingly similar: your website states that as of September 2021, contributors receive $10-30 per article or contribution. I’m hoping that information is out of date. See, contributors to The Watch receive $20-30 per article**, which uses roughly 20 per cent of our budget. The only reason we don’t pay them more is because we can’t. We spend the majority of our budget on printing costs. Our executive team carries the pay cut so we can pay our contributors more.
I wonder, Gazette. Can you say the same?
I don’t mean to quarrel, my love. I want to squash the beef before it even starts. Gazette –– I love you. Genuinely. I love what you do for student journalism and for the Dal community. If I’ve inspired you, I’m honoured. We both have a place on this joint campus, especially in our own niches and specialties.
I was listening to a song last night. It reminded me of you, of us. It’s called “Girl, so confusing” by Charli XCX. I hope, if you hear it, it makes you think of me, too, because I ride for you, Gazette.
Sincerely and with love,
The Watch
* While our data comes from different years, the authors assume that any changes over the three-year period have been relatively small.
**For transparency’s sake, The Watch’s executive team does receive compensation for their contributions to The Watch, but they primarily take on stories when contributors don’t.
