Anyone can be a columnist. Really. Anyone. You don’t need to know someone at The Daily. You don’t need to have written for your high school newspaper. You don’t need to be a communication or English major. Churn out a 600-800 word opinion essay on the war in Iraq, Ugg Boots or Dormcest. Bam! A column is born, and you are now a columnist.

The Daily is looking for outstanding columnists. We want a diverse set of writers who will enthrall the jaded Row RA as he eats his morning bagel. Writers who will make President Hennessy pen a Letter to the Editor in response to a column. Writers who will inspire jealousy in online readers who are stuck at some cold, gray school where they have to read columns written by cold, gray people in their own school’s paper.

We are looking for passionate communicators who have something to write about and are not afraid to do it. Were you that person in your IHUM section? Do you love getting into debates at the dining hall table? Have you done Mock Trial or Model United Nations? Had a radio show or posted videos to YouTube? Writing a column is just another way to perform. It is your opportunity to connect with an audience on a weekly basis. And not just a Stanford audience — a global audience. An old columnist’s most loyal reader was a philosopher in Berlin (and her mother, of course).

Having a column is an outstanding way for someone to fill what he perceives as a void in content at The Daily. Do you think that student activism gets unfair coverage? Ethnic groups are marginalized? Grad student interests are ignored? This is your opportunity to lend your voice to The Daily.

It is a job that carries a lot of visibility and responsibility with it. Consider this: In yesterday’s paper, the Editor in Chief, Nick Parker, had his signature at the end of his reader welcome; columnists have their picture printed alongside their articles every week. If Rummy comes to campus, he’ll know what you look like, and we bet he will not have liked your column about him very much at all. Fortunately, to even it out, that cutie in O-Chem might recognize you, too.

Reliability is important, as well, though less glamorous to write about. A columnist needs to love tracking down a story and discovering the facts before they judge. And then there’s the weekly deadline — you need to be able to commit to turning in your pieces on time, every week.

Anyone can be a columnist. We want you. Outstanding, unique, passionate, gutsy, responsible, reliable YOU. Applications are due this Friday, Sept. 28, at 5 p.m. Show us what you’ve got, and don’t be shy.