Stop the presses! Literally. And for good.
Inside Illinois, the faculty-staff newspaper, which has served the Urbana campus for 36 years, will this fall transition to an online-only news source.
Inaugural edition
When Inside Illinois was introduced 36 years ago as IlliniWeek, the newspaper said items “should be submitted in typewritten form.” Much of the content of the newspaper remains the same today as it was then with the introductory article stating the publication would contain “general news stories, in-depth feature articles highlighting the achievements and contributions of members of the faculty and staff, a calendar of events, job listings, notices of honors and awards, information on the receipt of grants and contracts, and various official announcements.”
Distributed by the News Bureau, Inside Illinois started as the weekly tabloid IlliniWeek on Jan
26, 1979, and was renamed Inside Illinois in 1990 as it became a semimonthly paper.
According to the first issue of Inside Illinois in 1979, the campus newspaper was to serve “as an informational service for all full-time employees on the campus and was created to improve and facilitate communication among employees.”
Doris Dahl, the editor of Inside Illinois since 1996, said campus news coverage would be affected by the change – but in a positive way.
“The change will allow us to be more responsive to campus news and to deliver our stories to our readers in a more timely way,” she said.
Inside Illinois covers employee news, campus initiatives, events and achievements, research and campus government – including the U. of I. Board of Trustees – and feature stories on interesting people and campus happenings.
The new online newspaper, which will be compatible with mobile devices, will be unique on campus as it will “live” on a .info website, thereby allowing the inclusion of online advertising. The campus policy allowing ads on a .info site is being finalized.
Notices, updates and breaking news will be delivered to campus by massmail, directing readers
to the website for details.
Dahl said the move will also benefit advertisers, who now will be able to use online analytics to directly track the ad viewership.
Inaugural issueWhen Inside Illinois was introduced 36 years ago as IlliniWeek, the newspaper said items “should be submitted in typewritten form.” (Click for full caption.)
“We are still the main source for campus news and the only advertising entryway to the campus audience,” she said. “I think advertisers are going to be very excited and will see the transition as a new opportunity.”
Robin Kaler, the associate chancellor for public affairs, said the department has discussed for some time making the newspaper an online product, but had to sort out the details before proceeding.
“Faculty and staff members have told us for some time that they prefer we offer a more robust
Semimonthly
IlliniWeek becomes Inside Illinois on Aug. 23, 1990 as it moves to its twice-a-month format. The announcement in that issue boasted the paper would expand to up to 16 pages per issue. “The paper’s new schedule – and the resulting name change – are part of the campuswide efforts to reallocate money to academic units,” said the article. It was requested information be submitted through the campus’s electronic mail system.
online solution. The newspaper was becoming too costly to print and didn’t fit into our campus vision of promoting environmentally sound practices where possible,” she said.
Dahl said the decision to go “online only” was not easy, and that the news was received with mixed emotions among staff members.
“We’ve had an online presence for many years,” said Dahl, “but most of the writers and editors either started their careers in print journalism or have worked in print their whole careers. There was a bit of sentimentalism over the passing of an era. But we’re looking forward to the challenge of something new and being able to better serve our readers.”
Jeff Unger, a lifelong print journalist who retired last year after 23 years as the U. of I. News Bureau director, said he was saddened by news the paper would be going online, but far from surprised.
He said he doesn’t remember the exact moment he realized print was in trouble as a medium. It’s something that just crept up as more and more digital tools started making their way into the newsroom.
“When you’re involved in the day-to-day work, it’s hard to pinpoint a moment, if there was one, when things began to change,” he said.
This article was imported from a previous version of the News Bureau website. Please email news@illinois.edu to report missing photos and/or photo credits.
