The Lantern

First, I want to make this disclaimer: I, in no way, shape or form am claiming to be an expert journalist.
Yes, The Lantern may be a large newspaper. However, that says nothing about the quality.
How harsh can one be on a student-​run newspaper? I understand they’re not experts and they are working hard. Yet, what do you say when professors around OSU itself unanimously deem it a laughing stock? I have been in more than one class at OSU — including journalism classes — in which the professor took articles from The Lantern and ripped them apart word by word. Grammar and spelling weren’t the only issues. Fact checking and source citing were also big problems, and that is major because it can get you sued if your «facts» are found to be false. Professors also had qualms because the articles were not objective. When writing a news article the writer must be as objective as possible.
Having a student-​run college newspaper is a good thing. Journalism students need experience. They also need guidance. Other college newspapers that are run by students are also mentored by university faculty and have gained respect from their communities. There are several factors that go into why The Lantern is not viewed in a positive light. I don’t think the students should be blamed entirely; they’re doing the best they can with what they have. I do think they could be more disciplined, though. But the students could also have more help.

If you want to kind of know what’s going on around the Ohio State University and really want to know about sports at the Ohio State University, then I guess The Lantern is your paper. I really feel like the sports section is the meat of the paper, but I don’t give a crap about anything in the sports section (unless the art section is regulated to the third page of said section) so what good does that do me?
It’s hard to read The Lantern without realizing it’s edited by students. As in, not professional editors. Perhaps some of these people will become professional editors in the future– but some of them seem destined to answer letters to Cat Fancy. That would be harsh if it weren’t true. Pretty bad, guys.
Sometimes the articles are okay, though. Every once in awhile I want to know what’s going on behind the scenes at Ohio State, and every once in awhile The Lantern delivers that.
Plus, classifieds for the campus area, so, bonus.

The Lantern is the student run newspaper at OSU, and according to Wikipedia, the third largest campus newspaper in the country.
The Lantern is at best dull. Chock full of hope and what appears to be integrity from Journalism students at OSU, it still has rough spots like spelling and grammatical errors that point out The Lantern is still just student run.
It wouldn’t hurt if this paper took on a stronger voice in support of the students and took stands on controversial issues. With over 75,000 readers The Lantern could be the center of major changes if the ambition was there, but it’s not and most of the writers will likely write for The Columbus Dispatch in the future.