Here's a brief overview of The Daily Tar Heel, UNC's student-run newspaper, for new students

If you have ever visited UNC, you’ve probably seen the bright blue Daily Tar Heel boxes around campus.

Week after week, new print papers are put in these boxes — papers that are made entirely by students covering news across UNC, Orange County and the state of North Carolina.

For more than 100 years, the DTH has been the newspaper of record at the University. If you’re a new UNC student or community member, here’s a rundown of who we are and what we do.

About the DTH

The DTH is the student-run newspaper at UNC. Now in its 129th year, the publication is completely independent from the University, though it does heavily cover UNC news.

The DTH’s mission includes pursuing news of the University community, training young journalists and setting the standard for innovative and accurate journalism. The paper aims to be a trusted source of news for UNC students, faculty, staff, Orange County community members and beyond. All reporting decisions are made by student reporters and editors.

Beyond University news, the DTH covers sports and city and state news.

Currently, we print a paper every Wednesday that is available in the blue boxes on and around campus. The DTH publishes online content every day of the week except Friday and Saturday, unless there is breaking news.

The DTH also has an editorial board comprised of board members, the opinion editor and assistant editor, and the editor-in-chief. Editorial board content does not represent the views of the DTH or its staff.

The newsroom is one part of the DTH Media Corp., which is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. In addition, it has an in-house, student-powered marketing agency, the 1893 Brand Studio and a student advertising sales team that coordinates print and digital ads.

What to expect from DTH coverage

DTH coverage intends to serve as a timely and reliable resource for readers. Reporting ranges from stories that are completed in 24 to 48 hours to enterprise projects that can take weeks to months long.

DTH staff covers meetings year-round of various bodies of governance at the University and beyond, including the UNC Faculty Executive Committee, Board of Governors and Board of Trustees, as well as the Chapel Hill and Carrboro town councils. Meeting coverage is usually live tweeted — which can be found via the newsroom’s primary Twitter account @dailytarheel — and full stories are posted on the website shortly after.

The publication works to keep the community informed of evolving news and aims to help answer questions that readers have.

During events such as student body president races and town elections, the DTH provides voting guides and candidate profiles to help community members learn more about how to participate and who the candidates are.

In August 2020, the DTH launched Elevate, a section of its website and print paper dedicated to stories that celebrate and uplift underrepresented communities.

The paper also focuses on service journalism, such as how to register for classes, game previews and analyses for sports, features on new businesses in town and more.

The DTH posts its coverage across a variety of platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and email newsletters. In the event of breaking news, articles are posted as soon as possible on these platforms.

Students and other community members can sign up for the DTH’s daily email newsletter, DTH at a Glance, and other Orange County and sports-focused newsletter online under the “subscribe” tab.

How to contact the newsroom

As the flagship news organization in Chapel Hill, the DTH welcomes and appreciates community engagement and feedback.

Any community member can submit a story tip or ask a question using a form on the website or by emailing dth@dailytarheel.com. Op-eds and letters to the editor can be submitted to opinion@dailytarheel.com, and Elevate also accepts op-eds and letters at elevate@dailytarheel.com.

With another school year fast approaching, the DTH is committed to producing excellent journalism and serving its community.