The Badger Herald Editorial Board is composed of seven members of our staff, and represents the voice of our editorial department. Our mission is straightforward — to speak up and take a stance on the most relevant issues concerning the University of Wisconsin campus, the city of Madison and the state of Wisconsin. Everyone on this Board is engaged with campus outside of the Herald, and we work to ensure this Board continues to challenge itself with new perspectives.

If you have suggestions for topics we should cover, or have a response to anything we write, feel free to send us an email at [email protected].

Following is this semester’s Editorial Board:

Cait Gibbons, Editorial Board Chair/Opinion Editor

Also Known As:

• Politically-driven, Chinese-speaking mathematician
• Chaotic pragmatist
• Just another Excel Devotee

Hi there. I’m Cait, and I like coffee, chacos and controversial topics. I’m studying math and Chinese, and somehow, I’ve become a college senior with only 9 credits left. But before I head off to the enigmatic “real world,” I’ve got a few more things to yell about via 600-word columns. This is my fifth semester at the Herald and my fourth on Editorial Board, but I can’t promise I won’t make any Rookie Mistakes. We’re always learning. 

I have grown to love the Dairy State, but my loyalties will always lie with the Great State of Minnesota, where I was born and raised. When I’m not working under the yellow flickering lights of The Badger Herald office, you’ll probably find me trying (and failing) to do the NYT crossword or grappling with which exclamation point to delete from an email. 

At the Herald editorial desk, we aim to start productive, meaningful conversations about the issues that matter most to students. We want the things we say to be the start of a conversation — not the answer to a question. We don’t have all the answers and I don’t think we ever will, but that’s the best part. This will forever and always be the student’s paper, so if you’re angry about something or have something to say or have something you want us to say, we want to hear about it. Drop me a line at [email protected]. 

And by the way, it’s duck, duck, gray duck. 

Abby Doeden, Editor-in-Chief

Also Known As:

• Forage enthusiast and Starbucks feen
• Herald go-to protest reporter
• Adobe Suite queen

Hey I’m Abby, and I’m a news girl at heart. I’m a junior in the Journalism school with a double emphasis on reporting and strategic communications — because I can’t seem to make up my mind yet. When I’m not at the Herald office, you’ll probably find me with my Venti Iced Vanilla Latte and Forage Power Bowl at College Library. 

This is my fifth semester at the Herald, and I can’t wait to see where this year takes us. In my time at the paper, I have worked my way up the news desk starting as a reporter, to the City News Associate, Print News Editor, and now Editor-in-Chief. With my first semester on Editorial Board, I am honored to help shape the views of the Badger Herald.

I’m proud to say I have found a home at the Herald, surrounded by amazing people, talents and ideas. Writing about important topics surrounding our campus and community is my passion and I’m always down to talk about it! Feel free to email me at [email protected] to learn more, talk or just share your thoughts. 

And ditto on the duck, duck, gray duck.

Molly Liebergall, Managing Editor

Also Known As:

• Meme rat
• Middle schooler
• Knower of movie facts

Hellooo, my name is Molly and I’m a junior here at UW. I’m double tracking in the J-school and getting a certificate in Criminal Justice, something Mariska Hargitay convinced me to do after years of watching “Law & Order: SVU.”

Outside of class and the Herald, I intern for The Progressive Magazine and work as a junior investigator for The Badger Project, an investigative journalism nonprofit. And as for what I don’t put on my resume, I enjoy the simple things just like everyone else: getting the $2 spicy peanut noodles from College, watching eleven episodes of Love Island in one sitting and eating eggs every single day.

Since starting as a news reporter at the beginning of my freshman year, I’ve held positions ranging from Print News to Digital Features and now Managing Editor. I’ve loved student journalism since the beginning of high school, and writing for The Herald has only intensified those sentiments. Hit my line [email protected] if you want to talk British reality television or yolk.

Angela Peterson, Director of Public Relations

Also Known As:

• Former opera singer, current law school applicant
• Annual Softball Game Grill Mom
• Angie Petey, nickname given in 10th Grade English class

Angela Peterson is my name, studying history and music is my game. I’ll often drink a cold brew horchata, especially as I am analyzing data. I’m in my senior year and I’m graduating too, but it’s just my fourth semester at the UW. I’m a mod on Milk-Chugging Teens, and help out the Herald behind the scenes.

A consummate professional, I began my time at The Badger Herald after fellow Editorial Board member Abigail Steinberg walked into the Fifth Floor Kitchen in Smith Hall and recruited me to write for the Hump Day column. Since then, I have served as the Arts Associate Editor, Banter Editor and Arts Editor. This year, I am the Director of Public Relations in addition to serving on the Editorial Board and the Board of Directors. This is also my first semester on Editorial Board. I’m hoping my time here will help it grow from a board to a full-blown, 100 board wooden floor!

The Herald is an amazing place that continues to help me develop skills to gain opportunities at the highest level. I’m always down to chat about any current issue affecting our campus community or how to become a part of our Herald family. Feel free to slide into my Google Hangouts at [email protected] if you’d like to learn more.

Matt O’Connor, New York City correspondent

Also Known As:

• Washed up guy
• J-School complainer
• Chronic nuisance

So if last year made me the designated New Guy on the editorial board, this year makes me the designated Washed Up Guy. I was the editor-in-chief last year, but I still have a year of complaining left to do at the J-school, so here I am. This is my fifth semester at the Herald, but our motto isn’t ~bh4lyfe~ for nothing. So I guess I’ll be here for a few more semesters.

I’m a senior majoring in political science and journalism. It’s an interesting time to be studying those things, all things considered. I’ll leave it at that.

Throughout the year, this board will be writing its collective thoughts on the big news of the day as we try to make sense of the nonsensical. So as this year progresses, even if you disagree with the opinions of this board, I hope you’ll respect our right to hold them. And for those reading, dissenting opinions in the form of a Letter to the Editor go a whole lot further than Facebook comments and tweets.

So as this board delivers its own opinions, I’d love to hear yours. If you’re looking to get involved in this experiment in student media — as a writer, graphic designer, photographer, videographer, coder, etc. — shoot me an email at [email protected] or message me on Twitter at @moconnorBH.

Lucas Johnson, Copenhagen correspondent

Also Known As:

• Other washed up guy
• Aspiring Rebecca Solnit
• Human parrot

Hi. I’m Lucas and I’m in Denmark. From over here, I’ll be taking plenty of photos filled with natural light and trying to stay up until 2 a.m. so I can watch my beloved Minnesota Twins fill my heart right up. But, I’ll also be studying communications in a European context, reading my morning briefing from the Times and doing my best to avoid the constant flood of bikers streaming down these narrow streets.

The Herald has an exceptionally special place in my heart — it’s essentially what kept me in Madison. So even on another continent, I can’t help but to do my part and weigh in on the news of the day back home. Especially considering the opinion section kick-started my Herald career, it’s only fitting it’s what keeps me connected to our valuable publication.

Our board acts as a jumping-off point. Discourse gives way to growth, and we see this board as integral to that process. So talk with us, let us know what you think, we wouldn’t want it any other way.

Abigail Steinberg, Washington correspondent

Also Known As:

• Madison’s best Danny Devito impersonator
• Chaotic neutral
• Tiny Jewish Goblin

Shalomie my homies! It’s ya girl Abby, back for another semester at UW’s ~premier~ student newspaper. I’m a junior majoring in political science and journalism. After two long years of writing, editing and section-heading for the opinion section, this little birdie has spread her wings and flown the coop to our nation’s capital to participate in the Wisconsin in Washington D.C. Program. When I’m not writing press releases or being a cog in the bureaucratic machine, I’m probably inhaling another Margaret Atwood novel, crying to the musical Hadestown or trying to get Matthew Gray Gubler to follow me back on Twitter. 

This is my fifth semester with the Herald and my fourth (maybe last?) semester on the Editorial Board. It’s been a hot minute, and I feel as if I have a good gauge as to what makes you people tick. But if I’m wrong (and I quite often am), I want to hear from you. Write for the Herald, submit a Letter to the Editor, email at [email protected], tweet me @AbbyRSteinberg or message me on JDate. That’d be a funny story. 

The Editorial Board serves to represent the voice of the Badger Herald editorial department, distinct from the newsroom, and does not necessarily reflect the views of each staff member.