Encyclopedia Trinitiana

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{{tag>organizations students publications}}
====== The Trinity Tripod ======
[{{::screen_shot_2022-07-13_at_1.00.27_pm.png?500 |The inaugural issue of the //Tripod//, September 23, 1904. Image credit: Trinity College Archives}}]

//The Trinity Tripod// was founded in 1904 as a student newspaper. At that time, the //[[tablet|Trinity Tablet]]// was another long-running student newspaper on campus. In 1908, the //Tablet// ceased publication and the //Tripod// became the main student newspaper.

The //Tripod// is funded through each semester's Student Activities Fee as well as through subscriptions, donations, and advertisements. The paper aims to provide students and faculty with complete campus news, while also amplifying student voices. Since its founding, the //Tripod// has been published nearly continuously, with the exception of certain issues, often during wartime. It is published on Tuesdays while classes are in session, and distributed throughout campus. The //Tripod// office sits under [[jackson_hall|Jackson Hall Dormitory]]. 

In the paper's earliest days, the //Tripod// clearly influenced the political consciousness of the student body, carefully tracking the political career of President [[luther_flavel_sweeten|Flavel Sweeten Luther]]. Student polls have been a large part of the //Tripod//, and even today, news and politics remain a part of the paper, with the Opinion section largely serving as a platform for students to voice their political opinions.

The //Tripod's// motto, "Now, then -- Trinity!" first appeared in the paper's masthead in the September 30, 1904 issue. These were the "first words President Luther addressed to his students" on the evening of his election, a "slogan of onset and action" which inspired so deeply that the students felt it necessary to memorialize for all time. In his election speech, Luther evoked the image of a football captain inspiring the team, telling "of the old football signal... given at a stage of the game when its successful execution meant a touchdown, and its success depended upon every man. If one failed to do his part the chance to win a game was lost." For the students listening, "Now, then -- Trinity" was the signal "for trustee, alumni, student, for every Trinity man who stands waiting to do his full share for his alma mater." These words continue to serve as the paper's motto to this day.

Famous alumni who wrote for the //Tripod// include //Los Angeles Times// sports writer Jim Murray ’43, //Washington Post// columnist George F. Will ’62, //Philadelphia Inquirer// editor William K. Marimow ’69, and //Washington Post// columnist Steven Pearlstein ’73-–all four are Pulitzer Prize winners. Other notable alumni include //New York Times// features writer Peter Kilborn ’61, Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack ’88, and //Sports Illustrated// writer Stephanie Apstein ’10. 

The //Tripod// has won several awards, including the first-place prize with special merit by the American Scholastic Press Association in 1992 as well awards from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association in 1992 and 2001. The paper also has several traditions, including an annual April Fools' edition called the //Trinity Liepod//, which includes jokes and satirical articles.
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===== Sources =====

[[https://tripod.domains.trincoll.edu/about-the-trinity-tripod/|Trinity Tripod: About]]

[[https://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/w_books/2/|Trinity College in the Twentieth Century]] (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, p. 41.

[[https://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/w_books/4/|History of Trinity College]] (1967) by Glenn Weaver, pp. 265, 297.

[[https://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/tablets/530|Trinity Tablet]], 06/07/1904.



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