On Tuesday night as the Orange Media Network and Baro news team sat in the office and watched the results come in, we shared with the country our feelings of surprise and uneasiness. We turned to one another,  and we began to talk about our concerns and emotions. But, it was not our job to share these intimate feelings with our audience, so we pressed on and continued our election night coverage from an objective standpoint.

Then the next day, as students organized protests on campus, capping the night with a march that drew over 400 members of the community, we did not pick up signs and join in—rather we picked up our cameras and pens and notebooks, and got to work.

Because our job is not to participate, our job is to observe, and report.

I have watched as over the last several days as many have voiced their disbelief, their shock and their anger. I have watched as many others have voiced their satisfaction, their hope and their contentment for the end of a contentious election cycle.

The spectrum of reactions has been wide, and likewise, our coverage of related issues going forward from here needs to be.

As the media, we must ensure that all stories are being told, and no voice is systematically silenced. 

Presenting information that provokes civil and open conversation is our goal.

As our cover story in this issue addresses, there if immense power in protest and free speech, but there is also great power in the press. It is no coincidence our founding fathers put these all in the country’s First Amendment.

It is our job at Orange Media Network to continue our coverage of the election and the aftermath on campus and in our community in a fair and balanced. 

There is pain, there is fear and there is uneasiness in the community. This has to be addressed.

Now, more than ever, there is an intangible need for quality journalism, a continuous push for more inclusive and more expansive coverage and a relentless drive to always look deeper, find the bigger stories.  

But above all else, there is an roaring call for truth and objectivity.

Looking forward, we here at the Baro and Orange Media Network are committed to further growing and developing ourselves as journalists who use our power to inform positively. We have a responsibility to you, our audience, and we intend to fulfill all expectations, and then some.