A half-century in the news
Megan McClure
Issue date: 10/12/07 Section: 50th Anniversary Special Edition
The more things change...
During Eugene Redmond's editorship in 1963-64, the newspaper staff was divided between the East St. Louis and Alton campuses. In earlier years, each campus had its own editor and the staffs rotated production for each weekly publication.
"At the beginning, the laying out of the paper was done alternately at Alton and East St. Louis," Redmond said.
Unlike with modern desktop publishing, newspaper design was a more labor-intensive process.
"That's light years away from when we would physically lay it out," Redmond said of current publishing technology.
While Redmond was editor of the newspaper, the Edwardsville campus was not yet open, but the publication's name had already switched from ARC (short for Alton Residence Center) to Alestle, paying homage to the university's three campuses in Alton, East St. Louis and Edwardsville.
Redmond said that with each passing year, fewer students knew the origin of the newspaper's name.
"People identify with Edwardsville almost exclusively," he said.
At that time, however, East St. Louis was what Redmond referred to as "the biggie, if you will."
"Edwardsville was struggling for an identity when Alton and East St. Louis already had one," he said.
Redmond also recalled weekly meetings with President Delyte Morris. At the time, he said, the Edwardsville and Carbondale campuses were more closely united.
"We were just a northern extension," Redmond said.
During the 1970s, the Alestle was a daily publication. According to Alice Noble-Allgire, Alestle editor in 1977-78, the production day typically ran from 8 a.m. until 6 or 7 p.m.
"It was never a drag," she said. "It was something I looked forward to spending my time doing every day."
During the 1978-79 school year, the Alestle began its twice-weekly publication schedule, which continues today. According to former editor Kelly Brooks, the change came after Student Government threatened to withhold half of the newspaper's funds until a mid-year review. Refusing to submit to the evaluation, Brooks decided the newspaper would operate on half its normal budget.
"That was a little power play," he said of Student Government's decision.
After the switch to two newspapers per week, the staff continued the same mission of journalistic integrity.
"That's a lot of responsibility for someone that young," Brooks said, "and all of us were that young."
Controversy and activism
The political atmosphere at various points in the Alestle's history often helped define staff members' experiences as student journalists.
For Redmond, one of the best-known events of the Civil Rights movement was the highlight of his term as editor.
"In the summer of '63, right after I had been appointed editor in chief, I went to the March on Washington," he said, explaining that he reported on the event for the newspaper.
The Alestle staff's coverage of the movement took a more direct approach, with staff members of various races attempting to use public facilities in an effort to evaluate and report on the integration process.
"At the time, many of the public facilities were segregated, so the students integrated places around the site of SIU," Redmond said.
The early 1960s also saw the birth of the feminist movement, as well as war protests.
"Every day, there was something," Redmond said.
Similarly, students in the late 1970s took current events to heart.
"We had a very activist student body … we really couldn't please everyone," Brooks said.
According to Brooks, the editorial staff regularly received criticism and compliments of like from organizations and students.
"You can't satisfy everyone's agendas," he said.
Both Brooks and Noble-Allgire reflected on a particularly memorable article, in which the Alestle investigated allegations of misuse of travel funds by the athletics department.
"We were right in there and really had a strong investigative element to us," Brooks said.
Noble-Allgire said the story created a rift within the staff, as editors determined how to handle the subject.
"It's pretty heavy stuff for a college journalist, reporting on what appeared to be fraud by a university official," she said.
For many staff members, the process was a learning experience.
"It pointed out to me the importance of what were doing and highlighted the amount of care and caution that we needed to take to protect someone's reputation," Noble-Allgire said.
In the office
Brooks recalled memories of staff members working in the darkroom, processing film between midnight and 6 a.m.
"You worked around the clock," he said.
Bill Platschke, Alestle sports editor from 1978 to 1980, said he enjoyed playing tricks on high school students touring the office.
"Any time a tour came through, Rick Pearson would run across the hall to my office, busting right through the wide-eyed students shouting, waving papers and shouting, 'Deadline! Deadline!' This, even though those stories wouldn't run for a week," he said in an e-mail. "I think Rick and I were responsible for at least a dozen students enrolling at SIUE in hopes of working for such a pressurized, big-city newspaper."
Many staff members in the late 1970s developed a close relationship. In fact, the group still holds a reunion each year.
"The folks who worked at the Alestle were like family," Noble-Allgire said.
Brooks credited that closeness to the nature of the job.
"I guess it's directly a result of what we went through together," he said. "How hard we worked, how hard we played."
In the cases of many former editors, it was difficult to estimate the amount of time spent in the office in a given week. For Redmond, the office in the former East St. Louis High School was a newsroom as well as a gathering place.
Even after the offices were moved to the Morris University Center on the Edwardsville campus, staff members continued to spend many hours at work each week.
"I'm pretty much a workaholic," Noble-Allgire said, "so when I wasn't in class, I was in the office."
In addition to working at the newspaper, Noble-Allgire was a member of the Cougar Guard, the student organization responsible for caring for the university's live mascots. On occasion, fellow guard members brought Chimega, the older cougar, to the Alestle office to visit.
"It was way cool," she said. "There is nothing like that."
Beyond the Alestle
Plaschke, nearly 30 years after being the sports editor of the Alestle, is a sports columnist for the L.A. Times and a panelist on ESPN's "Around the Horn."
Brooks, meanwhile, is the chief spokesman for Coca-Cola. He reflects on being editor of the Alestle as an early professional opportunity.
"It pushed me into a position of leadership," he said.
After working for United Press International in four cities, Noble-Allgire worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. In 1987, she began studying property law at SIUC before joining the full-time law faculty in 1995.
She credits Bill Ward, the former director of the journalism program, as a key influence in her career.
"We were scared to death of him," Noble-Allgire said. "But he had our best interests at heart, and we all knew that."
Though Redmond served as editor of the newspaper, his major was English.
"My intention was to go into journalism, but I couldn't afford to go to Carbondale," he said.
Instead, Redmond pursued graduate studies and returned to SIUE to teach in the Experiment in Higher Education beginning in 1967. Two years later, he transferred to Overland College and traveled before coming back to SIUE again in 1990 as an English professor. He retired Aug. 31, 2007.
"This is my fourth separation from SIUE," he said, "and I'm still waiting for the divorce."
During Eugene Redmond's editorship in 1963-64, the newspaper staff was divided between the East St. Louis and Alton campuses. In earlier years, each campus had its own editor and the staffs rotated production for each weekly publication.
"At the beginning, the laying out of the paper was done alternately at Alton and East St. Louis," Redmond said.
Unlike with modern desktop publishing, newspaper design was a more labor-intensive process.
"That's light years away from when we would physically lay it out," Redmond said of current publishing technology.
While Redmond was editor of the newspaper, the Edwardsville campus was not yet open, but the publication's name had already switched from ARC (short for Alton Residence Center) to Alestle, paying homage to the university's three campuses in Alton, East St. Louis and Edwardsville.
Redmond said that with each passing year, fewer students knew the origin of the newspaper's name.
"People identify with Edwardsville almost exclusively," he said.
At that time, however, East St. Louis was what Redmond referred to as "the biggie, if you will."
"Edwardsville was struggling for an identity when Alton and East St. Louis already had one," he said.
Redmond also recalled weekly meetings with President Delyte Morris. At the time, he said, the Edwardsville and Carbondale campuses were more closely united.
"We were just a northern extension," Redmond said.
During the 1970s, the Alestle was a daily publication. According to Alice Noble-Allgire, Alestle editor in 1977-78, the production day typically ran from 8 a.m. until 6 or 7 p.m.
"It was never a drag," she said. "It was something I looked forward to spending my time doing every day."
During the 1978-79 school year, the Alestle began its twice-weekly publication schedule, which continues today. According to former editor Kelly Brooks, the change came after Student Government threatened to withhold half of the newspaper's funds until a mid-year review. Refusing to submit to the evaluation, Brooks decided the newspaper would operate on half its normal budget.
"That was a little power play," he said of Student Government's decision.
After the switch to two newspapers per week, the staff continued the same mission of journalistic integrity.
"That's a lot of responsibility for someone that young," Brooks said, "and all of us were that young."
Controversy and activism
The political atmosphere at various points in the Alestle's history often helped define staff members' experiences as student journalists.
For Redmond, one of the best-known events of the Civil Rights movement was the highlight of his term as editor.
"In the summer of '63, right after I had been appointed editor in chief, I went to the March on Washington," he said, explaining that he reported on the event for the newspaper.
The Alestle staff's coverage of the movement took a more direct approach, with staff members of various races attempting to use public facilities in an effort to evaluate and report on the integration process.
"At the time, many of the public facilities were segregated, so the students integrated places around the site of SIU," Redmond said.
The early 1960s also saw the birth of the feminist movement, as well as war protests.
"Every day, there was something," Redmond said.
Similarly, students in the late 1970s took current events to heart.
"We had a very activist student body … we really couldn't please everyone," Brooks said.
According to Brooks, the editorial staff regularly received criticism and compliments of like from organizations and students.
"You can't satisfy everyone's agendas," he said.
Both Brooks and Noble-Allgire reflected on a particularly memorable article, in which the Alestle investigated allegations of misuse of travel funds by the athletics department.
"We were right in there and really had a strong investigative element to us," Brooks said.
Noble-Allgire said the story created a rift within the staff, as editors determined how to handle the subject.
"It's pretty heavy stuff for a college journalist, reporting on what appeared to be fraud by a university official," she said.
For many staff members, the process was a learning experience.
"It pointed out to me the importance of what were doing and highlighted the amount of care and caution that we needed to take to protect someone's reputation," Noble-Allgire said.
In the office
Brooks recalled memories of staff members working in the darkroom, processing film between midnight and 6 a.m.
"You worked around the clock," he said.
Bill Platschke, Alestle sports editor from 1978 to 1980, said he enjoyed playing tricks on high school students touring the office.
"Any time a tour came through, Rick Pearson would run across the hall to my office, busting right through the wide-eyed students shouting, waving papers and shouting, 'Deadline! Deadline!' This, even though those stories wouldn't run for a week," he said in an e-mail. "I think Rick and I were responsible for at least a dozen students enrolling at SIUE in hopes of working for such a pressurized, big-city newspaper."
Many staff members in the late 1970s developed a close relationship. In fact, the group still holds a reunion each year.
"The folks who worked at the Alestle were like family," Noble-Allgire said.
Brooks credited that closeness to the nature of the job.
"I guess it's directly a result of what we went through together," he said. "How hard we worked, how hard we played."
In the cases of many former editors, it was difficult to estimate the amount of time spent in the office in a given week. For Redmond, the office in the former East St. Louis High School was a newsroom as well as a gathering place.
Even after the offices were moved to the Morris University Center on the Edwardsville campus, staff members continued to spend many hours at work each week.
"I'm pretty much a workaholic," Noble-Allgire said, "so when I wasn't in class, I was in the office."
In addition to working at the newspaper, Noble-Allgire was a member of the Cougar Guard, the student organization responsible for caring for the university's live mascots. On occasion, fellow guard members brought Chimega, the older cougar, to the Alestle office to visit.
"It was way cool," she said. "There is nothing like that."
Beyond the Alestle
Plaschke, nearly 30 years after being the sports editor of the Alestle, is a sports columnist for the L.A. Times and a panelist on ESPN's "Around the Horn."
Brooks, meanwhile, is the chief spokesman for Coca-Cola. He reflects on being editor of the Alestle as an early professional opportunity.
"It pushed me into a position of leadership," he said.
After working for United Press International in four cities, Noble-Allgire worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. In 1987, she began studying property law at SIUC before joining the full-time law faculty in 1995.
She credits Bill Ward, the former director of the journalism program, as a key influence in her career.
"We were scared to death of him," Noble-Allgire said. "But he had our best interests at heart, and we all knew that."
Though Redmond served as editor of the newspaper, his major was English.
"My intention was to go into journalism, but I couldn't afford to go to Carbondale," he said.
Instead, Redmond pursued graduate studies and returned to SIUE to teach in the Experiment in Higher Education beginning in 1967. Two years later, he transferred to Overland College and traveled before coming back to SIUE again in 1990 as an English professor. He retired Aug. 31, 2007.
"This is my fourth separation from SIUE," he said, "and I'm still waiting for the divorce."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
dlridings
Daniel Ridings
posted 10/24/07 @ 8:10 AM CST
Brings back memories ... the all-nighters in the darkroom. Bill Ward. Work, work, work. And a feeling of accomplishment sometimes, sometimes exhaustion. (Continued…)
Maria Schellden
posted 2/24/09 @ 11:16 PM CST
Yes i agree with you , and nice news thanks. This realy nice news , i watch for them .
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