From the Editor’s Desk: Loyola, reconsider terminating newspaper subscriptions

After Loyola students walk out of their final exams and submit their final papers in early December, a countdown will begin. A few weeks from then, students will lose their free access to The New York Times and Chicago Tribune Dec. 31. 

In March, they’ll lose their Washington Post subscriptions, and in May, their Wall Street Journal access, News Writer Isabella Grion reported this week. 

University Libraries Dean Jamie Wittenberg cited budget pressures and the libraries’ declining purchasing power as the reason for the termination of subscriptions.

While access may still be free or affordable through alternative methods — like University Library databases, the Chicago Public Library system and student subscription rates — cancelling student access discourages them from engaging in current events, devalues the importance of media literacy and disrespects the journalism professors and students, like myself, who rely on these materials for classwork and our careers nearly every day. 

With more and more people, especially younger audiences, turning to social media instead of credible outlets for their news, universities are a place where students should be able to expand their understanding of the world and participate in critical conversations. 

Loyola needs to remember their important role as an educational institution and should be looking for ways to foster worldly knowledge and encourage community participation, not complicating information access. 

Journalistic reporting is integral to a democratic system, and journalists provide context and comprehension to complex subjects — an asset Loyola should see as incredibly valuable for young adults preparing to go forth and set the world on fire.

Since my first year at Loyola, I’ve been using my student subscriptions daily. Whether annotating a Wall Street Journal article for a politics class, keeping up with transportation news for the next issue of Mosaic Magazine or following headlines for The Phoenix, reading the news is a requirement for me. 

I couldn’t do my job as a student, a journalist or an editor without access to other news outlets. 

In my personal life, these subscriptions are just as valuable. When I wake up, I read The New York Times morning newsletter, and on my afternoon shuttle rides, I scroll through NYT Reporter Matt Yan’s Extra Credit newsletter, which features university news around the country. In the evenings, I pick out a recipe from NYT Cooking and attempt to replicate it in my apartment. 

Perhaps I’m just a journalism student with an abnormal attachment to the news and a deep admiration for the work of professional reporters, but I don’t think I’m alone in valuing these resources for the betterment of both my career and myself. 

I urge Loyola to rethink their decision to end student subscriptions and understand the way this choice will impact students seeking to learn about the world around them.