Centennial Edition: 1970s

During the ’70s, protesters, feminists, Richard Nixon, the Vietnam War, the construction of… During the ’70s, protesters, feminists, Richard Nixon, the Vietnam War, the construction of Posvar Hall and Tony Dorsett all took center stage, with disco as a backdrop.

“It was the disco era, although I believe no one would admit to this,” said Tom Waseleski, who worked at the paper from 1974-77 and was editor in chief his final year.

“Streaking was hot in the ’70s,” said Waseleski, who is currently the editorial page editor for the Post-Gazette. “The Pitt News covered its fair share of streakers. They would just run across campus nude. Some of them were staged at large gatherings, like rallies or bonfires where there was a built-in crowd.”

But the news wasn’t alwasy so light-hearted.

In 1977, two students were killed during a fatal explosion in an animal physiology class at Langley Hall.

Officials cited gas as the most likely cause, but the Feb. 11, 1977, edition reported that some people involved in the investigation still expressed doubts.

“Tests done by William McElligot, plumbing supervisor at Pitt, revealed only two small leaks in the one-inch gas line which supplied the two auditorium rooms,” The Pitt News reported.

Waseleski remembered this as one of the biggest stories while he was at The Pitt News.

“It was an accidental thing I believe, two people died. So that was a huge story,” he said. “It was the same month when the Pitt football team won the national championship — Tony Dorsett beat the University of Georgia.”

Pitt Stadium was located on the hill where the Petersen Events Center stands today.

Bob Lederman, business manager from 1970-71, said, “Sports brought a lot of people together and having a stadium on campus made it very easy to attend. The Pitt Band was a very popular tradition.”

The Pittsburgh Pirates’ stadium, Forbes Field, was also located at Pitt.

“The Pirates played on campus for 60 years. They played their World Series there. We used to sit on the 4th floor of the Hillman and watch games in the ballpark. Students would go between classes to watch as well,” Lederman said.

In 1975, Pitt expanded its campus and began construction, turning the ballpark into Posvar Hall. Construction ended in 1978.

The Pitt News did not limit its coverage to aesthetic transformations on campus. When the politics of an unpopular war began to affect campus, The Pitt News was there to report it.

“It was not uncommon to have demonstrations because of the Vietnam War,” Lederman said. “Nor was it uncommon for groups of thousands to gather on the Cathedral lawn to hear different people speak.”

The Pitt News often participated in the outspoken politics of the decade, occasionally taking sides in national issues.

On Nov. 7, 1972, the date of Nixon’s re-election, The Pitt News ran a completely black page with a white heading that read “Four More Years.”

A year later, The Pitt News demanded that Nixon be removed from office.

The front cover, which was a completely black page with the question, “Three More Years?” expressed doubt over Nixon’s ability to continue to hold office.

“Today, on the anniversary of President Nixon’s re-election, we have reached an impasse. The American people’s disillusionment with their government is so complete that there remains only two courses of action: resignation or impeachment.”

Feminist views were also visible on campus.

In 1971, professor Ina Braden sued Pitt claiming that her employment was terminated because of affiliations with the University Committee for Women’s Rights.

“Pitt is accused of hiring women at a lower rank and pay then [sic] men of similar qualifications, giving smaller wages to women than to men of similar qualifications, failing to promote women to higher professional rank,” The Pitt News reported.

The Pitt News also wrote about another underrepresented community at the time — homosexuals.

An Oct. 15, 1975, article recounted the story of Nancy, who told people she was a lesbian. “I want to go far in business. If I’m found out, I can’t,” she said. The article spoke of the “in the closet-ness” of the era.

With the strong presence of political and societal activism on campus, The Pitt News had more than enough material to fill the pages.

Lederman said the staff kept busy, either in the office on the fourth floor of what is now the William Pitt Union, or around town selling ads.

“I had a staff of people, and we would hit the streets to sell ads,” he said. “Everything was very hands-on. Even photographs were developed in dark rooms in the bathrooms where the developing chemicals were. You didn’t know what the photographer had till it was in the soup [chemicals]. If you didn’t have a good picture, then you went without a picture.”

The Pitt News staff of the ’70s put out 15,000 copies three times a week — Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

“We did paste-ups of the pages where you would roll out the print from a machine and wax down the columns on the back,” Waseleski said. “At about 2 a.m. we would bring the pages down to the printer Type Craft on East Liberty, where they would put it on presses and print the paper.”

Maria Sciullo, a staff writer and then sports editor who now works for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, said the limited technology reduced the scope of the newspaper’s coverage.

“It was a real hassle not having the Internet, e-mail or faxes,” she said. “So we had to only cover campus events.”

The extensive process of putting together a paper meant staff members spent a lot of time in each other’s company.

“We spent a lot of hours even on the weekends just in the office with each other. The staff at our newspaper was very diverse in all respects, and we really had our characters. Everyone was a little bit different, but we really enjoyed the friends we made there,” Lederman said. “I knew a couple that even came out of the staff, and that didn’t even surprise me.”

Love wasn’t the only thing students gained from working at The Pitt News.

“The Pitt News was the perfect training ground for everyone who wanted to be in journalism. There were semesters when I put more time into Pitt News than any of my class work. It is where you learn how to work in the news business,” Waseleski said.

Additional headlines include:

Sept. 4, 1970: “Could it Happen Here” — (reflection on Kent State shootings)

March 1, 1970: Pitt Track sets world medley mark

July 29, 1971: University formally approves Women’s Studies program

Oct. 12, 1973: Bob Woodward talks about Watergate at Pitt

Jan. 11, 1974: ‘“Family planning’” programs begins (i.e. birth control, gynecologist services)

Oct. 30, 1974: Smith resigns black studies chair after a week of protest against his appointment

March 26, 1975: Council approves one-way Forbes-Fifth

Sept. 24, 1976: University prohibits leafleting for election

Jan. 5, 1977: Front page declaration of Pitt football winning Sugar Bowl

May 16, 1979: ‘“Union Programming Council’” formed

Jan. 21, 1980: Steelers win fourth Super Bowl