Campus Isn't Big Enough for Today's DTH

Posted on Dec. 10, 2009

The Daily Tar Heel is set to move its headquarters off campus less than a block from where it was born nearly 117 years ago.

The newspaper’s board of directors has approved the move to an office building at 151 E. Rosemary St. The Tar Heel was born on Feb. 23, 1893, in the upstairs storeroom of a house at 201 E. Rosemary St. (The Daily was added in February 1929, by a vote of the students.) The move from the old annex of the Student Union building will occur in phases and is expected to be completed by July 1.

The DTH had been looking to at least double its space for the past two years and had exhausted all its on-campus options before approving the move downtown. It will be the eighth home for the paper, which has been in its current location since 1981.

“There’s risk in doing this, but there’s risk in not doing anything,” General Manager Kevin Schwartz said. “We need to move forward.” The paper is continuing to develop a number of digital products and delivery methods that require more students to produce content and that require advertising support.

“It has simply become impossible to get all the staff we need to fit in the space,” Schwartz said. “More students than ever have an interest in being part of The DTH. We need to do this to give them the experience they deserve, the skills they’ll need in the new digital world and to continue to grow the business side of things.”

With the move, The DTH is betting that the support advertisers have provided its print edition will be sustainable as its new products generate revenue to support the demand for its content on multiple digital platforms. The paper also is expecting to continue to recruit and retain student staff who might live on the opposite side of campus. About 200 news and 50 advertising and business staff currently work for The DTH in a 3,101-square-foot space. The new space is 6,439 square feet.

In addition to where it started, The DTH has called “home” the Campus Y, New West, Alumni Building, the Graham Memorial and the original Frank Porter Graham Student Union building prior to the construction of the annex, where it now resides.

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