Lauren Jost, Connect2Mason Staff Writer
Patriots looking for Express, the daily and free commuter newspaper once distributed at numerous locations across campus, are now out of luck. Due to budget cuts and downsizing at The Washington Post — which Express is a subsidiary of — all news boxes are being plucked from the George Mason University campus.
According to Express’ circulation department, Mason will no longer have dispensers because the paper’s circuit area has been drastically reduced; exact calculations of all Express cutbacks are still in the works.
“I liked . . . Express because it was free and you were given the opportunity to find out what’s going on [in] the news without having to go to the grocery store,” said senior government major Asia Odum, who read Express while en route to the Metro over the summer.
When asked whether other area universities were affected, the Express circulation department was unsure whether or not specific universities and associated news boxes were affected like Mason.
Express, best known for its bright yellow news boxes, was popular among Mason students for its short news articles, as well as for its area entertainment listings and puzzles.
“What happened to . . . Express?” questioned senior government and international politics major Billy Graessle. “I want it back. Mostly for Sudoku, though. I read most [of] my news on the Internet.”
Despite its absence at Mason, Express will still be available for free at the Vienna Metro station, as well as online.
However, now that Express has disappeared, Patriots have been noticing green news boxes containing the weekly satirical newspaper The Onion in its place. Some students are not too keen on real news being replaced by fake “info-tainment.”
“I like The Onion, but I think they should have kept . . . Express,” said senior communication major Chanel Dority. “I think both are appealing to college students — The Onion because it’s entertaining, and . . . Express because it provides news in shorter pieces.”
Students and faculty are still able to purchase the full edition of the daily Washington Post at on-campus dispensers for 75 cents a copy.
Visit Connect2Mason.com for more information regarding this story and other occurances at Mason.
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