Washington Square News

What Washington Square News does

Washington Square News (WSN) is the independent student newspaper of New York University, founded in 1973 after the merger of NYU's University Heights and Washington Square campuses. It is operated entirely by NYU undergraduates, with a core staff of approximately 50 editors and additional contributors across reporting, editing, photography, video, design, illustration, and business functions. The publication produces daily news coverage Monday through Thursday during the academic year, spanning NYU's Manhattan and Brooklyn campuses, surrounding NYC neighborhoods, and NYU's 12 global academic sites. Content is distributed free of charge across eight social platforms (Facebook, Threads, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, YouTube, Reddit, Spotify), the nyunews.com website, and a Mailchimp-powered email newsletter, with no subscription or paywall.

WSN's product portfolio centers on the core news outlet and extends to the 'Under the Arch' magazine (themed special issues on Graduation, Housing, Literacy, Health, and Beverage), the 'In the Huddle' sports podcast on Spotify, multimedia features (photos, videos, podcasts, cartoons), and the email newsletter. The underlying platform is a WordPress-based content management system with multimedia capabilities; WSN integrates Google Forms for contributor onboarding, Mailchimp for newsletters, and Linktree for tips and submissions. Editorial operations are advised by Russell Berman, a staff writer at The Atlantic, who runs training sessions in editing, writing, and career planning.

WSN is a non-profit, private organization financially independent of NYU administration. Revenue is generated through (1) digital and print advertising — website, newsletter, social media, out-of-home, sponsored content, and special print issues — managed by a student-run Business Team, and (2) voluntary donations collected via the GiveCampus platform. There is no subscription or paywall revenue. Customer segments are NYU students (primary), NYU faculty and staff, NYU alumni and families, and advertisers seeking access to the NYU community. The alumni network — including placement at The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal, NBC News, and Bloomberg — functions as a credentialing pipeline for student contributors.

Name

Washington Square News

Legal name

Washington Square News

Website

https://nyunews.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Washington Square News is NYU's independent student newspaper, founded in 1973 and run by approximately 50 undergraduates. It publishes daily news, the 'Under the Arch' magazine, and the 'In the Huddle' podcast, funded by advertising and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Student Newspaper

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (51311)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

Keywords

• Student journalism
• Campus newspaper
• Independent media
• News publishing
• Student media

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Advertising: WSN offers digital and print advertising services including website ads, newsletter placements, social media campaigns, out-of-home advertising, sponsored content, and special print issues. A student-run Business Team manages all advertising relationships and sales.
2. Donations: WSN accepts donations through GiveCampus platform to support operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Washington Square News is NYU's independent student newspaper, publishing original reporting, opinion, sports, culture, arts, and multimedia content five days a week during the academic year on its website and in print. It operates the "Under the Arch" themed magazine and the "In the Huddle" sports podcast, supported by an in-house Business Team that sells digital and print advertising and accepts reader donations.

Product overview

Washington Square News operates as a unified student journalism platform delivering news five days a week during the academic year. The core product is the Washington Square News newspaper, published both digitally on the website and in print editions. Supporting offerings include Under the Arch Magazine (special themed issues), the WSN Podcast (In the Huddle), email newsletter subscriptions via Mailchimp, and advertising services managed by the student Business Team. Content spans News, Opinion, Sports, Culture, Arts, and Multimedia sections covering NYU's Manhattan and Brooklyn campuses, global campuses, and surrounding NYC neighborhoods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Under the Arch: WSN's magazine featuring special issues such as The Graduation Issue, The Housing Issue, The Literacy Issue, The Health Issue, and The Beverage Issue.

Products and services

• Washington Square News Independent student newspaper publishing daily campus and city news coverage across News, Opinion, Sports, Culture, Arts, Magazine, and Multimedia sections, delivered five days per week during the academic year on the website and in print for NYU students, faculty, alumni, and the broader community.
• Under the Arch Magazine Themed special-issue magazine from Washington Square News with editions focused on Graduation, Housing, Literacy, Health, Beverage, and other topics relevant to NYU students.
• WSN Podcast (In the Huddle) Sports-focused podcast produced by Washington Square News featuring interviews with NYU athletes and coverage of varsity sports programs; distributed on Spotify.
• Advertising Services Sold product offering managed by the student Business Team covering digital ads (website, newsletter, social media), out-of-home placements, sponsored content, and special print issues for local businesses and national brands seeking access to the NYU community.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration11 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Daily Princetonian: Princeton University's independent student newspaper, also founded in the late 19th century and operating with a similar daily publication cadence, independent editorial model, and student-run newsroom. Highly comparable in mission, audience, and revenue model.
• The Harvard Crimson: Harvard's independent daily student newspaper with a comparable century-plus history, professional journalism training mission, and alumni network pipeline into top newsrooms. One of the most prestigious comparables in the student newspaper category.
• Columbia Daily Spectator: Columbia University's independent student newspaper, sharing the same NYC university media environment and serving a comparable urban graduate and undergraduate audience. Operates with a similar independent editorial model and digital-first publishing approach.
• The Stanford Daily: Stanford's independent student newspaper, comparable in operating an advertising-supported newsroom with a strong journalism training mission and alumni network entering professional media.
• The Daily Pennsylvanian: University of Pennsylvania's independent student newspaper, with a comparable multi-platform digital and print publishing model serving a major urban research university audience.
• The Cornell Daily Sun: Cornell University's independent student newspaper, founded in 1880 and operating a daily publication model similar to WSN, with comparable student-run newsroom structure and advertising-supported revenue model.
• The Brown Daily Herald: Brown University's independent student newspaper, comparable in operating as a daily digital and print publication run entirely by undergraduates with advertising as the primary revenue stream.
• The Michigan Daily: University of Michigan's independent student newspaper, one of the largest and most established college dailies in the U.S., with a comparable independent editorial mission and alumni pipeline to professional journalism.

Broad incumbents

• The New York Times: The dominant general-interest newspaper in WSN's geographic market, with overlapping coverage of NYU-area news, NYC affairs, and university affairs. Not a direct competitor but the primary professional reference point for WSN's journalism ambitions and alumni destination.

Regional players

• The Village Sun: A local NYC community news outlet covering Greenwich Village and surrounding Lower Manhattan neighborhoods, overlapping geographically with WSN's city and neighborhood coverage but serving a broader non-student audience.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nyunews
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@WashingtonSquareNews
• Facebookfacebook.com/nyunews
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/washington-square-news
• Instagraminstagram.com/nyunews

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Washington Square News