The Columbia Daily Spectator was able to raise a record-breaking sum of $95,921 at their annual Blue Pencil dinner, with a little help from media mogul Arianna Huffington and celebrated author Joan Didion.

According to the New York Observer, the dinner was $250 a plate, so the near $100,000 total was aided by some truly generous gifts, including $45,000 in gifts from former White House Counsel Bernard Nussbaum and Navigant manager Ernest Brod, both alums of the college paper.

Publisher of the Columbia Daily Spectator Aditya Mukerjee announced the results in an alumni newsletter, saying that the dinner was a “watershed moment” – it was their first dinner to feature a speaker from new media.

Times are changing! We’re glad to hear Arianna is helping to spread the wealth.