The Fountain Hopper or FoHo is an anonymous email-based student publication serving Stanford University. It consists of an irregular newsletter with original reporting and a digest of Stanford-related news. Unlike other publications serving the Stanford community, it is fully independent, taking no money from either the University or the student union.[1] The Fountain Hopper has broken several stories of national importance, including People v. Turner.
| Type | Student publication |
|---|---|
| Format | Newsletter |
| Founder(s) | Ilya Mouzykantskii |
| Editor-in-chief | Anonymous |
| Founded | September 2014 |
| Language | English |
| Headquarters | Stanford, CA |
| Circulation | 12,000 |
| Website | fountainhopper.com |
History
editThe Fountain Hopper was founded in September 2014 by Ilya Mouzykantskii,[2] then a junior at Stanford University majoring in symbolic systems.[3] The publication operated on a shoestring budget of under $5,000 for its first 24 months, and continues to be funded entirely by student donations.[4]
Notable reporting
editIn January 2015, The Fountain Hopper broke the Brock Turner story.[5][6][7] Three years later, The Fountain Hopper reported that Stanford repeatedly rejected the victim's choice of quotes for a memorial plaque that the university had promised to place at the site of the crime.[8][9]
Later in 2015, The Fountain Hopper initiated a campaign informing Stanford students to of their right to access their admissions files through an obscure provision in FERPA, a federal law governing access to educational records.[10][11][12] Over 2,800 Stanford students submitted FERPA requests.[13] Students at colleges around the US filed FERPA requests of their own, leading to universities across the US releasing previously private records relating to college admissions[14][15] and changing their file retention policies.[16]
In March 2015, The Fountain Hopper collaborated with Vice to break the story of a Stanford Medical School student who, over the course of several months, poisoned her classmates with paraformaldehyde.[17] The story garnered significant attention in Singapore, as the accused was an A*Star scholar.
In January 2018, FoHo reported on a Stanford admissions officer, Karen Alonzo, who used the official Stanford Instagram account to like her personal photographs. Stanford subsequently removed her name from the list of admissions officers, reassigning her applicant territories to another admissions officer.[18]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "The Fountain Hopper". The Fountain Hopper. Retrieved 2018-01-30.
- ^ Siegel, Nathan. "Stanford's 21st-Century Muckraker". Ozy. Ozy.com. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
- ^ "2014 – 2015 Politicos: The Ten Most Influential Students in Campus Politics". Stanford Politics. Stanford Politics. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
- ^ "Letter to the editor: Fountain Hopper responds to editorial". Stanford Daily. 7 March 2017. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
- ^ Glenza, Jessica; Carroll, Rory (2015-02-08). "Stanford, the swimmer and Yik Yak: can talk of campus rape go beyond secrets?". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ "Rape charges dropped against ex-Stanford swimmer from Oakwood". Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ "Stanford swimmer arrested, charged with felony sex assault". The Mercury News. 2015-01-27. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ Caron, Christina (6 February 2018). "Plans at Stanford Fall Apart for a Plaque at Site of Sexual Assault". The New York Times.
- ^ "Stanford Scuttles Plans For Plaque Marking Sexual Assault Over Quote Dispute". NPR.org.
- ^ "Students Gain Access to Files on Admission to Stanford". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
- ^ "THE FOUNTAIN HOPPER SPECIAL EDITION". The Fountain Hopper. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
- ^ "'The Fountain Hopper' – The Latest Example of Student FERPA Activism | JD Supra". JD Supra. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ "First students gain access to their admissions files through FERPA provision". Stanford Daily. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ "Stanford admission records released to students | The Tech". The Tech. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ "Harvard Students' Right to Read Admissions Records Confirmed | News | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ "Admissions Office changes file retention policy". Retrieved 2018-02-10.
- ^ "A Stanford Medical School Student Was Arrested for Poisoning Her Classmates' Water Bottles". Vice. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
- ^ "Stanford admissions official apparently leaves university job after questionable social media posts". Palo Alto Daily Post. Palo Alto Daily Post. 28 January 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.