''The Daily Gamecock'' (formerly ''The Gamecock'') is the editorially independent

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or elementa ...

news organization of the University of South Carolina. It primarily serves the main campus of the

University of South Carolina System The University of South Carolina System is a state university system collection of campuses established in 1957 to expand the educational opportunities of the citizens of South Carolina as well as extend the reach of the University of South Ca ...

in the state of

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

History

The first issue of ''The Gamecock'' was published on January 30, 1908. Robert Gonzales, a student, was primarily responsible for the paper's establishment. In its first semester only three issues were produced, but in the following term the paper began weekly production. The paper eventually moved to publication on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and in the fall semester of 2006 began publishing Monday through Friday publication. At this time, it was renamed ''The Daily Gamecock'' and became the first student paper in South Carolina to publish daily. In the Fall of 2014 the paper ended Friday production, producing instead a tabloid-format known as ''Weekender''. In the Fall of 2016 the paper moved two a twice-weekly production, Mondays and Thursdays, citing declining paper readership but increased digital readership. In fall 2018, the news organization's print edition moved to a once-weekly production with a circulation of 7,000. On January 30, 2008, the newspaper completed 100 years of operation, which it marked with prizes, a special

letterhead A letterhead is the heading at the top of a sheet of letter paper ( stationery). It consists of a name, address, logo or trademark, and sometimes a background pattern. Overview Many companies and individuals prefer to create a letterhead templat ...

, historical headlines, and an alumni ball celebrated the milestone. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, the newspaper stopped publishing weekly print editions and moved almost entirely online in March 2020. Themed print editions now release once or twice a semester.

Content

''The Daily Gamecock'' prints all-original coverage of daily news, USC sports,

opinion An opinion is a judgment, viewpoint, or statement that is not conclusive, rather than facts, which are true statements. Definition A given opinion may deal with subjective matters in which there is no conclusive finding, or it may deal with ...

, and the arts & culture of the USC campus and

Columbia, SC Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

area.

Awards and honors

''The Gamecock'' has won many South Carolina Press Association awards and was a finalist for the

National Pacemaker Awards The National Pacemaker Awards are awards for excellence in American student journalism, given annually since 1927. The awards are generally considered to be the highest national honors in their field, and are unofficially known as the " Pulitzer ...

for the

Associated Collegiate Press The Associated Collegiate Press (ACP) is the largest and oldest national membership organization for college student media in the United States. The ACP is a division of the National Scholastic Press Association. It awards the newspaper, mag ...

in 1999. In October 2007, the ''Gamecock'' won the Sun Newspaper of the Year Award and ten other awards at the 2007 Southern University Newspaper Conference. The newspaper also won 31 SCPA awards in 2013. It also won first place in the "General Excellence" category (formerly "Best Overall") at the SCPA awards in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2020, and 2021. In March 2006, ''The Daily Gamecock'' was recognized by the South Carolina Press Association for excellence for its coverage of

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

. Eight ''Gamecock'' staffers drove to hurricane-affected areas in

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

, and

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

to report on the story. The Daily Gamecock was awarded a "Top 10" national ranking by the Princeton Review in 2013 (#10). It was ranked No. 17 in 2011, the first time the newspaper appeared in the annual rankings.

Operations

The newspaper has a staff of more than 50 students, both paid and volunteers. The paper's senior staff are appointed by the editor-in-chief.

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Daily Gamecock, The Student newspapers published in South Carolina Publications established in 1908 Daily newspapers published in the United States 1908 establishments in South Carolina