Hello, my name is Molly and I’m your readers’ representative. If you have problems, questions or concerns, I want to hear them.

As more people begin to question creditability at newspapers everywhere, my position is extremely important. I keep the Daily accountable to its readers. As your representative, I will work as a liaison between you and the newspaper. I can let you in on the inner workings at the Daily. I’m on the inside of the newspaper, yet I am independent of it.

If you think the Daily has biased coverage, inaccurate reports or just doesn’t understand something, please ask me about it. I take your questions and concerns to Daily management and get answers. The Daily is to inform you – it’s your paper. But to do this job, the Daily needs to know about its mistakes.

I read your letters to the editor. I try to publish as many of them as I can, or at least respond if you had a question. This is a great opportunity to voice your opinions..I’ve noticed that the Daily receives and runs many liberal pieces on the opinions page. This is not because the Daily is a liberal newspaper, but because the majority of letters lean left. If you want more conservative viewpoints printed, you have to write them.

I have worked at the Daily for two years as a reporter. I saw how easy it can be for journalists to make mistakes, whether misspelling names, attributing quotes to the wrong source or inaccurately paraphrasing something. Sometimes mistakes do happen. It’s not right, but journalists are human.

Some things that are not OK. Plagiarism, making up sources or quotes and libelous statements are some examples. The Daily will not stand for this type of behavior. The paper has dealt with such issues in the past, and immediate action was taken to remedy the problem. But again, the paper can’t fix these problems unless the readers let it know.

I’m a senior at the University, double-majoring in journalism and political science. Last semester I was studying and interning in London. Now that I’m back at the Daily, I’ve noticed a few changes at the paper that

I think are promising. The biggest thing I’ve noticed is the Daily’s efforts to better represent minorities within the newsroom and in its coverage. For as long as I’ve been at the Daily, this has been something the paper has struggled with. Let me know if you’ve noticed a difference in the coverage, for better or for worse.

I can honestly say I believe the Daily is an ethical and accountable paper. That doesn’t mean it’s perfect, but I know most of the students working for it are hardworking, honest journalists. They care about what they do, they care about the paper, and they care about their readers. But sometimes there is the occasional bad apple or the innocent mistake. Please let me know if you have a problem with anything that runs in the Daily. E-mail me. Call me. Come see me during my weekly meet-and-greets (more information on that to come later).

Journalists have great power – power that can be abused, seen recently with Jayson Blair, previously of the New York Times, and Jack Kelley, previously of USA Today. But readers also have great power, the power to fight back against flawed reports. If you think the Daily has made any sort of mistake, I want to know about it. Turn the Daily into the paper you want it to be.

Molly Moker is the Daily’s readers’ representative. Please send comments to [email protected].