Support student journalism!

It’s September, and the office of the Charlatan, Carleton University's independent student-run newspaper, is crowded with new volunteers, eager to venture into the world of journalism.

Many of these students will do their very first interview for a Charlatan article; many of them will proudly receive their first author credit through the Charlatan.

Most importantly, for many of these writers, the Charlatan will be their first step towards an exciting  and bright future as renowned journalists.

For over 70 years, the Charlatan has been a place to train aspiring journalists.

From covering student government and campus activism, highlighting student artistic talent, following the most exciting moments of Ravens sports, and tackling national student issues, the Charlatan has become an institution at Carleton.

Former writers and editors of the Charlatan have gone on to break national and international news across the worlds of politics, arts, and sports, and also have become professionals in the communications industry. Working for companies such as the CBC, TSN, the Huffington Post, and the Globe and Mail, Charlatan alumni have gone far since their days working at the small fifth-floor office of the Carleton University Centre.

We want to continue to be a welcoming place where many future nationally-renowned writers and editors take their first steps into the world of journalism.

In order to be a place that sharpens student talent in writing, editing, and breaking news, we need the tools to be able to do so.

We’d like to invite you to contribute financially to help student journalism keep getting better.

Why is the Charlatan fundraising?

The Charlatan’s operations are mainly funded through an annual student levy and advertising dollars. While this funding has been just enough to sustain annual production, we want to give students the tools to go beyond just sustaining the day-to-day operations of the Charlatan and produce innovative content.

The reality is, advertising and student levies are barely enough to keep the Charlatan running. As journalism shifts more towards digital platforms, advertising revenue has steadily decreased, and our levy, which has not been raised for years, has been stagnant.

The bottom line: for an independent, student-run newspaper, it’s getting more expensive to keep up. We’re fundraising because we want the Charlatan to produce the best content it can for the Carleton community, and we need better tools to equip our volunteers to better tell stories.

Alongside many other school newspapers across the country, we believe the Charlatan provides a public service by both training future journalists and keeping students informed.

What will this money go towards?

We don’t want outdated technology (or lack of technology overall) to be a hindrance to student journalists’ creativity. For today's news consumers, especially students, good visual content is essential to good journalism. Our office technology—specifically computers, photo and video equipment, and visual design software—are severely outdated and in need of replacement and maintenance.

Furthermore, we want our office to be a place that provides resources to equip our students with the means to tell great stories and continually improve. So, we'd also like to buy supplementary equipment, such as two cameras, radio-quality audio recorders and microphones, for volunteers to use.

With the school year coming up fast, we hope to raise the funds before September starts, so we have a fully-equipped newsroom all ready for eager and new aspiring student reporters and editors.

So, donate, share this campaign, and support student journalism today!