Northern Star

 

Advertisement

 

 
Northern Star

Northern Illinois University’s student news organization since 1899

 

Ensure student journalism survives. Donate today.

The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

An illustrated hand types on a smartphone as social media likes, comments and other alerts emerge from the screen. Opinion Columnist Kahlil Kambui believes people should avoid oversharing online. (Courtesy of Getty Images)

Don’t overshare online

By Kahlil Kambui, Senior News Reporter | November 29, 2023

You just turned 21, and you wanted to share your birthday dinner online with some of your followers. Perhaps you made a new account and decided to share your full name. This seems harmless enough, but it’s not. We live in a generation where social...

From left: Aaliyah, Lauryn Hill, Mariah Carey and Brandy form a collage. Who is your favorite ’90s female R&B singer? (Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons (left), Tony Felgueiras, Pickpik, and Colson Griffith, The Cosmopolitan)

Poll: Who is your favorite ’90s female R&B singer?

By Lexi Nebel, Opinion Columnist | November 28, 2023

The 1990s and early 2000s saw the rise of some of the most iconic and game-changing female R&B voices in music history, inspiring some of the newer artists loved today.  With powerhouse vocals and unique lyrical skills, these women changed the...

A hand scratches out the Facebook logo on a smartphone with a digital pen. Senior Opinion Columnist Emily Beebe believes social media platforms infringe on the freedom of speech when they limit what users can post. (Thought Catalog | Pexels)

Freedom of speech should extend to social media

By Emily Beebe, Assistant Editor | November 28, 2023

Freedom of speech should extend to social media, so individuals can express their ideas freely on various platforms. Facebook, X – formerly known as Twitter – and Instagram have connected people over continents. Today, social media isn’t a place...

A skeleton stands surrounded by smoke. Opinion Columnist Jescenia Calderon believes vapes and e-cigarettes should be illegal. (Christa Kim | Northern Star)

Vaping should be illegal

By Jescenia Calderon, Opinion Columnist | November 27, 2023

The health and addiction risks of vaping are dangerous enough that vapes and e-cigarettes should be illegal.  Some flavorings of vape include diacetyl, a chemical that leads to bronchiolitis obliterans, or popcorn lung, according to Illinois Department...

Mission II stands in a field of grass in 2021. Opinion Columnist Alberto Briones thanks Mission II for his service and bids him a farewell. (Sean Reed | Northern Star)

Farewell, Mission II

By Alberto Briones, Opinion Columnist | November 27, 2023

NIU’s mascot Mission II has retired.  The NIU community is saddened by the announcement made Nov. 14 during the NIU football game against Western Michigan University. After three years of service, the Huskie is stepping down due to skin allergies,...

A group of students gather outside an SGA meeting. The Northern Star Editorial Board is disappointed that the SGA would let another petition, aimed as helping students, fail. (Eleanor Gentry | Northern Star)

SGA disappoints by failing another petition

By Northern Star Editorial Board | November 26, 2023

NIU’s Student Government Association has failed students again by overthinking approval of another petition.  The SGA now has two failed petitions, proving its failure to help students.  A petition is the SGA’s highest form of authority; and...

Mike Johnson (left) walks with former President Donald Trump, who is wearing a red U.S.A. hat, on Aug. 30, 2020. Senior Opinion Columnist Emily Beebe believes Johnson’s far-right ideologies make him a dangerous speaker. (Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Mike Johnson should not be House Speaker

By Emily Beebe, Assistant Editor | November 26, 2023

Mike Johnson, the recently elected House Speaker, is yet again another example of failure in politics.  Johnson’s conservative stances on issues like same-sex marriage and abortion are concerning and detrimental to true progress. Elected officials...

A microphone and a set of headphones hang among recording equipment in the Northern Star’s recording studio. Opinion Columnist Kahlil Kambui believes shorter albums are more meaningful. (Joey Trella | Northern Star)

Long albums ruin music

By Kahlil Kambui, Senior News Reporter | November 20, 2023

Albums are getting too long. Some of the top albums of 2023 from artists such as Drake, Taylor Swift and Morgan Wallen all total well over an hour long. There is no need for an album to have that many songs. Too many songs on an album can make it feel...

Cameras point towards the set for the Central Perk cafe from the hit ‘90s show “Friends.” Which “Friends” Thanksgiving episode is the best? (Clément Proust | Pexels)

Poll: Which ‘Friends’ Thanksgiving episode is best?

By Angelina Padilla-Tompkins, Editor-in-Chief | November 20, 2023

The iconic ‘90s sitcom “Friends” had one Thanksgiving episode in each of its 10 seasons; but unfortunately, all of them could not be included in this poll.  Which of these five “Friends” Thanksgiving episodes is the best?  “The One...

A woman in a yellow jacket touches her mask. We want a world with clean oxygen, so we need to take care of the planet. (Robin Gamboa | Northern Star)

Cartoon: Toxic

By Robin Gamboa, Cartoonist | November 20, 2023

Three colorful food trucks fly above a purple background. Food trucks need to come back after Spring Break. (Eleanor Gentry | Northern Star)

Editorial: Food Truck Wednesdays already an NIU staple

By Northern Star Editorial Board | November 19, 2023

Each Wednesday, an array of local food trucks lined Normal Road, selling delectable food and drinks that ranged from burritos to frozen custard to lemonade. Dozens of students could be seen eating in MLK Commons or huddled around the trucks. This amount...

A woman speaks at the Take Back the Night rally. Everyone deserves to exist safely all day. (Sean Reed | Northern Star)

Everyone deserves to exist all day

By Ashley Vargas, Opinion Columnist | November 18, 2023

Everyone can attest to the lessons we learned about safety when we were little kids. We were told to look both ways and not to take candy from strangers. But about half of the population remembers a second set of rules that shouldn’t only apply to them. As...