“The compulsion of writing one’s thoughts on paper where, freed from the personality of their author, they may stand on their intrinsic merits, is a most excellent discipline of the mind,” wrote the first editorial board of The Phillipian in 1878. In that first issue of The Phillipian, then a four-page, black-and-white, twice-monthly publication, the editors wrote that they hoped that the establishment of a student newspaper at Phillips Academy would create “a literary spirit among the students.” The Phillipian’s dedication to that spirit endures today. Since that first issue, The Phillipian’s commitment to honesty, accuracy and objective reporting, “free from the personality of the author,” has persisted. The paper remains a medium for students to both chronicle the news and record our thoughts in the certainty of print. And, for more than fifty years now, The Phillipian has been an uncensored paper, unseen by faculty members or administrators before publication. This issue of The Phillipian is the second of Volume CXXXI, but it is the first issue in which our masthead is printed alone on this page. This was the first week that we put out the paper completely independently, both thrilled by the possibilities of the year ahead and saddened by the empty chairs around us, where the previous board sat just one issue ago. We made it through this week, well-prepared by our predecessors for the responsibilities that have been entrusted to us and energized despite our lack of sleep. We are the 131st Editorial Board of The Phillipian, and we claim the newsroom knowing that it is ours for 28 issues and no more. With yellowing stacks of old papers, chipped coffee mugs, and the quotes written on the walls of the basement of Morse Hall, we also inherit 130 years of tradition and literary spirit. In our stewardship of the paper, Phillipian Editorial Board CXXXI will do our best to uphold the principles of journalistic integrity upon which the paper was founded. Today, as in 1878, The Phillipian presents an opportunity for discourse to all those who choose to add their voices to its forum. We aim to thoughtfully cover all issues that are relevant and important to the community. And we invite you to join us – to write, to respond, to complain and to offer advice. We welcome your comments and criticisms. We hope that you read this editorial – and this paper – with a critical, discerning eye, that you continue to challenge and question every article. To truly and fairly measure our principles and abilities, we hope you will judge Board CXXXI not by the promises we have made above, but by the content and quality of the paper in your mailbox each week. And we will do our part to make sure that that paper is the best we can offer.
