Since it began, The Journal has been a source for editorially independent student writers to amplify the voices of themselves and their campus peers. Succeeding former UIS newspapers like The Spectrum, The Journal has been devoted to providing UIS students and faculty with pertinent weekly features and news. As the only formal student-run newspaper on campus, The Journal has long been an integral part of the UIS community.

As the distribution of media begins to shift from physical to digital formats, The Journal recognizes the opportunity for reinvention and expansion. In 2020, shortly after the mass COVID-19 lockdown, The Journal shifted from its longstanding physical newspaper distribution model to a solely online presence and focus. It was during this period that we at The Journal acknowledged the potential of a full-fledged digital media hub instead of just a traditional newspaper.

After much consideration, a complete renovation and rebranding of The Journal was found to be a vital step in the path toward a student-centralized digital media hub. The first step in the renovation period is the mass overhaul of content uploaded to The Journal’s website and social media accounts. Acclimating to the world around us and embracing modernity, The Journal plans to expand upon the content barriers of a newspaper. Alongside written articles, sources of multimedia, such as podcasts and videos, are to be heavily incorporated in the weekly cycle of new content. This implementation has already begun during this transitional period and can be seen in articles such as this one. The capabilities of a multimedia source are endless and The Journal has only just begun.

To further fulfill the mission of becoming a multimedia digital hub, The Journal must separate itself from its newspaper slate and, additionally, its often mistaken relation to The State Journal-Register (SJ-R). Substantial change will begin with a new name and logo for the contemporary UIS Journal, ringing in the start of a new chapter.

In typical Journal fashion, the editorial staff now calls on students, as well as faculty, to take part in the reinvention of what is currently The Journal. This process will include a contest in two parts. The first part of the contest necessitates the change of The Journal’s current name, while the following part of the contest will include the change in logo.

The first part of the contest, calling for a name change, will begin on October 24. It is during this part of the contest that students and faculty are invited to submit any names deemed fit for the new multimedia hub. This half of the contest will have an open submission window until November 8.

On November 8, the logo section of the contest will be effective immediately, due to end on November 29. As with the first part of the contest, the logo contest calls on the student and faculty body to share conceptual depictions or general ideas for the new logo.

All submissions should be sent to The Journal’s email, [email protected]. All ideas and concepts are welcome.