The Missouri Miner: "The best thing at M.S.M."

Research Project: 100 years of
The Missouri Miner 1915-2015

by Randal A. Burd, Jr., M.Ed.

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Chapter 1 — "The Best Thing At M.S.M."

Such was the Missouri Miner called by James L. Head, first Editor-in-Chief of the Missouri Miner as he wrote to the Miner staff from his job at Braden Copper Company, in Rancagua, Chile, South America, five years after his tenure on the paper. Head felt it necessary to write to the fledgling paper relating its origins to a staff who for the most part was not around to witness its birth pangs. While the support of students and faculty largely contribute to the paper's success, too much credit can not be given to the individuals who started this endeavor, leading it to "earn a place among the permanent institutions of M.S.M."

Chapter 2 — A Letter From the Western Front

Gerard Ernest Ebmeyer was the first Sports Editor for the Missouri Miner in 1915, and became its Editor-in-Chief in 1916, before World War I sent him to the Western Front, "on active service with the American Expeditionary Force." Ebmeyer would return to M.S.M. and to the Miner's Editorship, but not before serving his tour overseas and writing back to the Missouri Miner's staff to encourage the efforts of paper. Offering editor Francis H. Geib his "hearty cooperation in whatever you do," Ebmeyer further encourages Geib to "keep the old paper 'a-going'—it's worth it. I'm for you, even if I'm a long ways off."

Chapter 3 — Editors-in-Chief

The Editorship of the Missouri Miner has attracted individuals with strong leadership skills and a genuine concern for the welfare of this time-honored institution. Whether these individuals went on to fulfill larger destinies, such as Nobel Prize winner Clyde L. Cowen (EIC 1939-1940) and Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives Homer L. Leonard (EIC 1922), whether like Eugene Gorman (EIC 1925) they met their untimely end shortly after their tenure as Editor (died in a fire at Braden Copper Company, Sewell, Chili, South America, in September of 1925), or whether their leadership skills earned them neither fame nor misfortune, the fact that many if not all of these individuals left a substantial mark on the Missouri Miner is undeniable.

Chapter 4 — Challenges and Accomplishments of the Missouri Miner

Between balancing a heavy class load, making daily decisions regarding advertising, staff training, editorial content, and dealing with the politics inherent in the newspaper business, working on the Missouri Miner has involved the constant emergence of challenges and opportunities for accomplishment. The Missouri Miner staff has had little trouble meeting the challenges and embracing these opportunities head on.

Chapter 5 — The "Big Story"

Even in the relatively apathetic atmosphere of college life in Rolla, Missouri, the Missouri Miner has occasionally come across the big story that has gotten others (and sometimes themselves) into hot water. Other times the Missouri Miner has offered the perfect small town angle to state and national news.

Chapter 6 — The Daily Grind of a Weekly Rag

From intermittent meetings in dorm rooms and classrooms to having an office, from setting type to submitting an electronic file to the printer, the way the Missouri Miner has conducted day to day operations in the past 93 years has changed in several areas. Advertising budgets, student fee monies, salaries, distribution, and other aspects of this college newspaper business have evolved and cycled as different times have placed different demands on the collegiate press.

Chapter 7 — Learner-Centered Classroom: The Educational Impact of a Student-Run Newspaper

With emphasis in today's education theory promoting the student-centered and learner-centered classroom, it is no surprise that I was able to collect vast amounts of qualitative evidence that the Missouri Miner has had a profound impact on the education of individuals fortunate enough to share part of this institution's legacy. The testimonies for the Missouri Miner's practical education in writing and more intangible skills show the overwhelming value the campus newspaper has provided to this university's students.

Chapter 8 — Newspaper Conference

A big way the Missouri Miner has compensated for the lack of a journalism department at the university has been to send staff members to regional and national collegiate newspaper conventions. These conventions have been an invaluable source of information and training for the Missouri Miner staff, as well as a source of memories, and at times, a setting for mayhem.

Chapter 9 — Politics and Policy: The Mechanisms of the Student Free Press

The Missouri Miner has dealt with many internal issues over the past 93 years, and has created documents and Boards to deal with issues of policy. The paper has also seen its fair share of the darker side of politics both outside of and within the organization. It is important to note that, 93 years after its founding, this newspaper has not only survived but has thrived thanks to the support of staff, faculty, students, and the community.

Chapter 10 — The Constitutional Question

As recent events have seen college newspapers and their editors at legal odds with university administrators, student governments, and local communities, college journalists would be well served to re-examine their role as guardians of and activists for First Amendment freedoms and decide what if any lines need to be drawn in the name of their journalistic responsibilities. The Missouri Miner has been faced with this question several times in recent years.

Appendix — Advisors, Editors-in-Chief , Endnotes, Interviews, etc.

Index