The Campus is the independent, student-run newspaper of Allegheny College, a small liberal arts college in Meadville, Pennsylvania. It has been publishing continuously since 1876, making it one of the longest-running college papers in the country. This is the story of how it got there, and who keeps it going.
The Beat Goes On traces that history through pivotal moments: Ida Tarbell’s early stint on the editorial board before becoming one of America’s foremost investigative journalists, the Black Book issues of 1969 and 1970 published by the Association of Black Collegians, the women’s edition of 1895, and a tradition of April Fools satire stretching back to the 1930s. Alongside that history, the film follows the paper’s current staff as they do what student journalists have always done: chase stories, cover their community, and figure it out as they go.
