The Daily Q, Northwestern in Qatar’s first student publication, is up and running after officially launching Thursday.
The publication, a multimedia website at www.dailyq.org, has been in the works for more than two years, said Professor Janet Key, the publication’s adviser.
“It’s something I hoped would come from our program, but it just knocks me out that it has been so amazing,” she said.
The New York Times chairman and publisher Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr. and editorial page editor Andrew Rosenthal were present for the site’s unveiling.
“Sulzberger hit the button, and that was it,” Key said. “We launched.”
Key said the two were in town for the Doha Tribeca Film Festival and came to campus to give a question-and-answer session and help launch the site.
“Serendipity does not get any better than that,” Key said.
Richard Roth, senior associate dean for journalism at NU-Q, said the publication will give journalism students real-world experience.
“That leads to better residencies and better internships,” Roth said.
The new site had 2,785 hits in its first three days, Roth said.
Medill sophomore Sidra Ayub who has been writing feature stories, news articles and profile pieces on her own, said it is an honor to be a member of the first The Daily Q staff.
“It’s extremely special, for the very reason that we are its pioneers,” she said. “It’s like setting the footsteps in snow, giving a direction for others to follow.”
The site includes breaking news coverage, photo essays, video packages and opinion-editorial pieces produced by NU-Q students. Story ideas are either pitched by staff writers or assigned by Key.
“It was really a terrific experience,” Key said. “We worked long, we worked hard, but wow. There is a whole world of enthusiasm here for newspapering.”
