By Emma Weidmann | Arts and Life Editor
Baylor’s new director of student media, Doug Pils, is bringing decades of experience to the journalism department on the heels of a long career at Texas A&M University.
With a background as a sports and copy editor at the San Antonio Express-News and a reporter for the Associated Press — as well as nine years as the director of student media at Texas A&M — Pils has a wealth of knowledge of sports journalism, news and college media.
Pils said he took a year between working at Texas A&M and Baylor to spend time with his family, and when he saw the opening for director of student media here, he jumped on the opportunity.
“Even if I had still been at A&M, I would have probably applied for this job, because from a student media standpoint, what’s going on here at Baylor is kind of a step above,” Pils said.
Dr. Mia Moody-Ramirez, chair of the department of journalism, public relations and new media, said the department is increasing opportunities for students interested in sports reporting, including a sports broadcast class and a sports sequence for journalism majors. Moody-Ramirez said Pils’ experience with sports reporting was another “plus” that made him a great fit for the role.
“We were excited to find someone with his background and his experience, and just to find someone who had actually been the director of student media at another university,” Moody-Ramirez said. “That just really stood out and put him heads and tails above all of the other candidates, because he actually had experience working with students and actually working with student publications.”
The department is also focusing on teaching students to be prepared for the multimedia nature of the journalism field in the digital age. Moody-Ramirez said journalists are expected to do more than just write a story — and to be able to handle social media and broadcast coverage as well.
“Nowadays, someone might stick a microphone in front of your face and say, ‘OK, now I want you to talk about it in front of this camera,’ or they might ask you to rewrite it for the website, or you might be asked to live tweet at a game, or you might want to vlog about it,” Moody-Ramirez said. “We are actually educating our students in this department to be well-rounded so that no matter what they’re asked to do, they’ll be able to do it.”
In February 2022, Texas A&M’s then-president, M. Katherine Banks, made the decision to shut down the print edition of The Battalion, the university’s student newspaper, citing that she did not understand the importance of print media to the journalism field.
Pils said he is excited to work within a journalism department that is supported by the school.
“A&M and Baylor are different in a lot of ways, because everything that student media does at A&M, from an advertising standpoint, that’s what supports what they do,” Pils said. “There’s not a whole lot of monetary support from the university for what they do, so that’s why [the print edition] is a big deal … The university doesn’t pay for any of the printing, which is totally different from what happens here [at Baylor]. I’ve been amazed by how much support Baylor provides student media here.”
The Baylor Lariat’s Editorial Board strongly supported The Battalion in its fight to remain in print. With Pils’ arrival at Baylor, that passion for print media and the importance of student journalism are here to stay.
“One big takeaway that I’m bringing from A&M to here, for me, is just the joy I get from seeing students succeed,” Pils said. “People come in that don’t know how to do certain things, or they’re interested in it, but they don’t know how to do it. And then they learn how to do it and become really good … The Lariat exists to provide that next best opportunity.”
