More than a century ago, the first campus newspaper, The Oklahoma A&M Mirror, was published in 1895. While it only lasted a few years, the Mirror proved to be the first chapter of a colorful history for Oklahoma State University journalism. In 1910, Oklahoma A&M offered its first journalism course in the English department, but it would take another 27 years before the Department of Journalism began in 1937. During those formative years, newspaper greats such as Walker Stone and Paul Miller would learn their craft on the Stillwater campus before becoming prominent names in American journalism.

In the past 100 years, OSU's journalism studies have grown from a handful of students to more than 460 majors. The School of Media and Strategic Communications (SMSC) now offers three undergraduate programs—multimedia journalism, sports media and strategic communications—in addition to a Master of Science in mass communications. To help students gain professional experience, SMSC introduced The O'Colly Media Group. Students gain practical experience working with OMG media outlets, including print, television, radio and digital platforms. The organization's mission is to offer students real-life experience in media production, distribution and advertising sales. Media outlets include an award-winning newspaper, daily television newscast, numerous live and recorded television broadcasts, podcasting and digital distribution through