The Tufts Democrats will fulfill a long-time goal by publishing the first edition of their new, as-of-yet unnamed magazine at the end of March.
Freshman Scott Dodds will guide the newborn publication as Editor-in-Chief and senior Allison Preiss, freshman Andrea Lowe and sophomore Matthew Diamante will serve as editors.
Those involved with the magazine believe it will help express young Democrats' political views and create more politically active students on campus.
"We felt that the campus was lacking a true Democratic voice, as we obviously don't agree with The Primary Source, and Radix is ... no longer being published," Preiss said.
The Primary Source is Tufts' "Journal of Conservative Thought" and Radix was formerly Tufts' "Journal of Liberal and Radical Thought."
The first issue of the new magazine will examine immigration issues, dovetailing with the immigration symposium that the Tufts Democrats are holding at the end of March.
"Additionally, we'll be covering anything from Social Security, 2008 candidates, choice and women's issues and minimum age. You name it, we'll talk about it," Preiss said.
Each edition of the paper will feature a specific focus and will contain a humor column, an opinion piece, a national and international section, and, if relevant, movie and book reviews.
Dodds said he hopes this will provide a broad range of different formats in which students can express their views.
"The new magazine will not only analyze current events but also provide an outlet for students hoping to shape Democratic policy and dialogue," he said.
The Tufts Democrats have wanted to print a magazine since the end of circulation of their e-newsletter, The Donkey's Tale, in the 2003-2004 academic year.
This semester, they will be paying for the magazine using buffer funding from the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Treasury, but they plan to fund future editions by incorporating the publication into their yearly budget.
Tufts Democrats President Kayt Norris said that if they do not receive enough money for the budget, they will fundraise to cover the cost.
While the magazine will only come out once this semester, its leaders plan to print twice a semester in the future.
Lowe said that he believes the magazine will find support from students who are currently not participating in politics on campus.
"We feel that many students on campus who are reluctant to get involved with the actual Democrats group would like to be involved in writing for, or even just reading, the magazine," he said.
According to Dodds, now is the ideal time to start capturing this support because enthusiasm for the Democratic Party is still high.
"The Tufts Democrats have seen an overwhelming swell in support this year, encouraged and strengthened by the successful efforts to retake Congress," he said.
