The first issue of The Gamecock was published on January 30, 1908. Robert Gonzales, a student, was primarily responsible for the paper's establishment.
In its first semester only three issues were produced, but in the following term the paper began weekly production. The paper eventually moved to publication on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and in the fall semester of 2006 began publishing Monday through Friday publication. At this time, it was renamed The Daily Gamecock and became the first student paper in South Carolina to publish daily. In the Fall of 2014 the paper ended Friday production, producing instead a tabloid-format known as Weekender. In the Fall of 2016 the paper moved two a twice-weekly production, Mondays and Thursdays, citing declining paper readership but increased digital readership. In fall 2018, the news organization's print edition moved to a once-weekly production with a circulation of 7,000.
On January 30, 2008, the newspaper completed 100 years of operation, which it marked with prizes, a special letterhead, historical headlines, and an alumni ball celebrated the milestone.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the newspaper stopped publishing weekly print editions and moved almost entirely online in March 2020. Themed print editions now release once or twice a semester.
Content
The Daily Gamecock publishes all-original coverage of daily news, USC sports, opinion, and the arts & culture of the USC campus and Columbia, SC area daily online.
It also produces special print editions six times per year, either highlighting top content from its website or dedicated to a designated theme.
Awards and honors
The Gamecock has won many South Carolina Press Association awards and was a finalist for the National Pacemaker Awards for the Associated Collegiate Press in 1999. In October 2007, the Gamecock won the Sun Newspaper of the Year Award and ten other awards at the 2007 Southern University Newspaper Conference. The newspaper also won 31 SCPA awards in 2013. It also won first place in the "General Excellence" category (formerly "Best Overall") at the SCPA awards in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2020, and 2021.
The Daily Gamecock was awarded a "Top 10" national ranking by the Princeton Review in 2013 (#10). It was ranked No. 17 in 2011, the first time the newspaper appeared in the annual rankings.
Operations
The newspaper has a staff of more than 50 students, both paid and volunteers. It is led by an editor-in-chief and a senior staff. The current editor-in-chief, Kate Robins was appointed to the role on November 17, 2023, by the university's Board of Student Publications and Communications. The paper's senior staff are appointed by the editor-in-chief.
