At the end of this semester, junior Maiya Tate will become editor-in-chief of The Hullabaloo. Tate has previously served as a copy editor, recruitment chair and personnel director for the paper — positions that have left her with a strong sense of community with her student-journalist peers. 

“The Hullabaloo is my home, I love it a lot, enough to be editor-in-chief,” Tate said. “It means a lot to me.” 

This sense of community that enticed Tate when she first got involved with The Hullabaloo in the second semester of her freshman year is what she loves most about the organization. That being said, she still wants to improve it as much as possible going forward. 

“I want to make sure we’re trying to work more with our writers and have the communication with our writers beyond section editors,” Tate said. “I want the writers to get to know the copy editors, the art editors, etc. So they feel as much a part of The Hullabaloo as the managing board does.”

Tate is also looking forward to expanding the digital influence of The Hullabaloo. To her, this is a matter of the paper’s life or death in the future. 

“The Hullabaloo needs a stronger digital side for us to survive,” Tate said. 

According to her, updating the digital presence of The Hullabaloo is not only going to be an important part of her stewardship, but possibly the most challenging obstacle she will face. 

“Restructuring digital is definitely going to be a challenge,” she said. “But I think change is important. As much as Tulane loves Facebook, the rest of the world is not Facebook-adjacent, and so I think that using Instagram and Twitter, where people get their news now, is really important.”

Tate’s election also marks a significant milestone in the history of the paper in that it has never before had a Black editor-in-chief. Down the line, Tate wants to use her newly minted authority to give a louder voice to students of color and other marginalized student populations.

“Tulane is a predominantly white institution and one of the things we always need to talk about is our students of color and the students that may not have a big enough voice,” she said.

Expanding The Hullabaloo’s coverage of New Orleans tops the list of her priorities for next fall as well. 

Tate said, “Having more New Orleans content so that the Tulane students living in a Tulane bubble realize that the city is more than what’s within three blocks of campus.” 

Looking back fondly on her time as a writer for the paper, Tate is most proud of her article “A More Just Tulane,” which embodies the spirit of inclusivity she intends to bring with her to the position. 

“Doing that really opened my eyes to how Tulane has treated African American students, and also how we’re still treating African American students,” Tate said.

With each new editor-in-chief, The Hullabaloo’s interests and purpose change slightly. Next semester’s issues will surely bring with them a fresh and unique perspective led by a well qualified leader.