OROVILLE — After 54 years of print, Butte College’s student run newspaper, The Roadrunner, is now online.
In recent semesters, The Roadrunner did a couple print editions each semester. For its 55th year, the staff is printing a special magazine, while also uploading stories to their new website, thebcroadrunner.com.
“All of the feedback we’ve gotten has been really positive,” Teya Silkman, staff writer for The Roadrunner, said.
Though the 55th edition magazine will be printed on glossy paper, the staff plans to go back to newsprint editions in the fall.
The Roadrunner produces, “all kinds of articles and opinion pieces,” Silkman said. “We don’t really kill stories.”
The Roadrunner’s website is free to access with content uploaded multiple times a week.
“We’re a small team that has a lot of fun doing what we do,” Silkman said.
There are currently six staff writers on The Roadrunner and one faculty adviser, Kelly Fredericks.
Advising
“I love it. It’s transformed my career,” Fredericks said about her position.
Fredericks teaches English at Butte College in addition to advising the paper. She enjoys advising The Roadrunner because it is a class students elect to take, while the freshman composition class she teaches is required for students.
Advising The Roadrunner gave Fredericks the opportunity to interact with students in new ways. She said the position has been “transformative” in her teaching.
“We have really robust conversations and debates and arguments … I learn more from the students than what I give them,” Fredericks said.
Advising the student run newspaper has come with challenges. Fredericks said sometimes the content produced by the staff writers doesn’t align with what she or her generation would consider journalism.
“They’ve been pushing some boundaries, but they are super passionate,” Fredericks said.
The Roadrunner’s motto is “A newspaper by students for students.” Fredericks said the staff holds her accountable to that motto.
“I want them to have integrity … but I want to understand that language and writing evolve,” Fredericks said.
Moving forward
Editor-in-chief of The Roadrunner, Nathan Espindula, pushed for online content for multiple semesters before he became editor-in-chief. Before the website, Espindula put effort into The Roadrunner’s social media.
“Nathan has really been the primary force in our social media that has added a whole new dimension,” Fredericks said. “He really has a gift for that kind of content.”
The staff is excited about the new website. Staff writer Jackson Hutler said he likes it because they can publish more often, instead of waiting to put out their print paper.
“For a student newspaper, I just really think it’s cool that we can write about anything … it just feels very real,” Hutler said.
Hutler writes about current events and often contributes opinion pieces. “Karma finally Kicks Draymond In The Nuts” and “Why The Sacramento Kings Are Not Improving” are two articles he is particularly proud of.
“We’re just trying to have fun with it and kind of do something different,” Hutler said.
The Roadrunner’s 55th edition magazine will be out sometime in April for free. The magazine will be available at all Butte College campuses.
“In a world where journalism is being critiqued and undervalued, we see that when students are given an opportunity to share their voices, that people care,” Fredericks said.
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