Daniel Frank, Public Policy and Economics '26, has written for the Massachusetts Daily Collegian since his first year at UMass Amherst and is now an Assistant News Editor. Over the last few months, he and his colleagues have provided important coverage of on-campus protests and the subsequent police response. We caught up with Daniel recently to learn more about how get got started at the Collegian and how journalism shapes conversations around current affairs:
What drew you to write for the Collegian?
I never expected to write for a newspaper or do any sort of journalism when I came into college. I went to the club fair at the start of my freshman year, and the people at the Collegian table seemed nice, and told me that even though I had no previous experience, people could help me along the way. My first stories were about weekly Student Government meetings, and I loved being able to start to understand how the campus worked.
What made me stay at the Collegian was the constant support I got from those above me, teaching me to report and how to convey what I learn from my reporting. I’m really honored to be in a position where I’m able to do the same.
How have your public policy classes and/or the research you do with Professor Shoub on policing shaped your reporting?
I’ve found that my work with the Collegian is very similar to my classwork as a public policy major, reporting is just a bit more personal. What drew me into the public policy major was the opportunity it offered me to figure out why a problem is happening. My work at the Collegian as a Staff Writer, Assistant News Editor, and now as the incoming Head News Editor has allowed me to apply the process of research to journalism, and the process of journalism to research. I love figuring out why something is happening and how the ‘why’ is affecting the world around it. Working at the Collegian allows me to spend the time to research issues directly on campus, through data, documents, and interviews.
My research and classes with Dr. Shoub about policing also gave me the knowledge that I needed to help lead the Collegian’s coverage of the May 7th encampment and the subsequent 132 arrests. Issues we discussed in class were plainly apparent, and I had the language and knowledge to be able to help each member of our news team properly report on police actions. Knowing what to look for is the most important task in journalism, and my policy work has given me the ability to look for and report on the important things.
How do you see the impact of reporting shaping the big conversations that are happening now across campus?
I sincerely hope our reporting can be seen as a trustworthy source of information by the campus as a whole and give people a set of specifics that they can form opinions on. As a campus paper we’re uniquely positioned to cover incredibly important things happening on our campus and provide people the information they need to stay informed about the university they attend. We’re also often the only consistent source of information for the community of Amherst more generally. Hopefully, the conversations that have unfolded are more grounded in reality because of our reporting.