From the archives Jan. 5, 2017
What began in the fall of 2015 as a simple website for University of Mississippi journalism students to publish their work has grown into something far more impactful. Oxford Stories was launched to give students a platform to share their reporting with the world — and it quickly gained traction by partnering with two local news outlets: The Oxford Eagle and HottyToddy.com. Both publications reprinted student work, in print and online, giving students real exposure and a professional publishing experience.
This year, OxfordStories.net welcomed a new partner: The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Like the original collaborators, The Daily Journal also featured student-written articles in its print edition, expanding the reach and influence of student journalism.
To further elevate the project, news partners agreed to keep the content open-source — allowing any media outlet to republish student stories from the site. This model effectively transformed OxfordStories.net into a student-run wire service—think Associated Press, but powered by emerging college journalists.
“Thanks to our news partners, we were able to create something unique with OxfordStories.net that, as far as I know, hasn’t been done before in Mississippi college journalism,” said LaReeca Rucker, adjunct instructional assistant professor of journalism and founder of Oxford Stories. “It’s been exciting to watch the program evolve over the past two years. At the heart of it, our goal has always been to help students get published.”
And evolve it has. In addition to welcoming new reporters each semester, the site has seen a steady increase in web traffic. The first semester wrapped with about 5,000 page views. By the end of its second year in 2015, Oxford Stories had logged 48,720 views.
Most recently, four Journalism 102 classes contributed to the site, with nearly 80 students reporting stories throughout the semester — making Oxford Stories the largest active newsroom in the state during the school year.
The goal for the most recent semester was to hit 90,000 page views. As of now, OxfordStories.net has amassed 89,846 unique views — and that number continues to climb as final stories are posted and shared on social media.
“It’s not easy — it takes time and energy—but it’s been a wonderful experience,” Rucker said. “Guiding students as they develop content and working so seamlessly with our media partners has been incredibly rewarding. I hope everyone involved feels like they were part of something meaningful.”
The concept behind the classes was intentionally built around the website to give students real-world journalism experience in a modern media landscape.
“I didn’t want student work to go unnoticed — especially when some of it was so well written and meaningful,” Rucker said. “By creating an online publication where students could showcase their stories, we gave them a platform to be heard. It also helped them understand the importance of taking their work seriously and harnessing the power of social media to reach an audience.”
