[4] Wasserman voluntarily stepped down six months before his expected departure in response to criticism by students about the lack of diversity in the administration.

Pulitzer Prize-winning American media critic Ben Bagdikian also served as a past dean of the UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism.

In 1981, actress Carol Burnett won a $1.6 million (later reduced to $800,000) libel award from The National Enquirer over an article that she said implied she had been intoxicated in a Washington restaurant.

She donated a portion of that to the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism saying she hoped the suit would teach aspiring journalists the dangers of defaming individuals in articles.

The name is derived from the general area in front of the school called "North Gate," represented by two stone pillars.

North Gate Hall was built in 1904 as a 1,800-square-foot (170 m2) building known at the time as the "Ark" to house the architectural department.

The new addition was built further up the hill (easterly) and houses what is known today as the Greenhouse and upper and lower newsrooms.

In 1936, Walter Steilberg designed a library wing composed of reinforced concrete-panel, a stark contrast to the dark shingled appearance of the original building.