Since 1899, students at NIU have committed themselves to serving the greater populace of their campus by regularly putting out a newspaper. Now that over a century has since passed, the Northern Star as we know it today is moving to a more digital-based product. The May 4, 2022 print publication of the Northern Star marks the final weekly print edition of our paper.

Print publications are not going away for good — we will still print special editions — but consistent weekly papers are about to become a thing of the past.

It pained our management board to make this decision, but after weighing the pros and cons, we realized it was no longer feasible or rewarding to continue weekly print. 

On a practical level, less and less news outlets print physical papers because it’s time consuming and expensive. As a small student organization, we have neither the time nor the money.

On a global level, the COVID-19 pandemic also factored into our decision. It was one of many catalysts for this choice, as it became less safe to create a print product in-person and as people’s stress levels became overwhelming.

We refuse to believe that journalism is dying; instead, we believe it is evolving, changing with the times. People join journalism because they want to make a difference in their community. For this group of journalists, all firmly Generation Z, most of our community is online now. Social media has opened doors that preceding journalists never even knew existed. We are able to connect to international audiences with our work, extending far past our quaint DeKalb campus, and often we take this for granted.

However, the Star plans to adapt with social media in mind, as our main output going forward will be TLDR, our free email newsletter. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, our top editors select the best content of the morning to send to your inbox. Not only do we feature at least one piece from every section, but we also include the day’s weather forecast and events on-campus that you can attend. 

To subscribe, there is a box on the right hand side of the home page of our website (northernstar.info). Simply fill in your email address, and click the “Sign up” button.

It has been an honor and a privilege for us at the Star to provide readers with quality, entertaining print. Now, we must turn the page and welcome in a new era of journalism. We appreciate your continued readership, in whichever form it takes now and in the future.