Kentucky Kernel ends weekly printing, focuses on digital

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) — The Kentucky Kernel, the student-run, independent newspaper at the University of Kentucky, will end its weekly printing and shift focus to digital.

The Kernel will move to print only special sections, like the Golden Forks, with its focus now primarily on online publication.

Student media advisor Ryan Craig, 2022-2023 editor-in-chief Rayleigh Deaton and incoming 2023-24 editor-in-chief Hannah Stanley played a role in the decision, according to a press release from UK.

Deaton said the group’s decision to move away from weekly printing was not made from necessity or cost, but rather because of the media industry’s shift toward digital-first publication and consumption.

“The ways that people are consuming news are changing and it’s our responsibility to adapt how we disseminate information to best serve the needs of the public,” Deaton said.

With the idea of better serving the campus community in mind, Craig said that this change also allowed the Kernel to serve UK beyond the restrictions of a printed product.

“We are no longer just a student newspaper; we are a media company,” Craig said. “Nothing is out of bounds for us with this new model, whether that be video, interactive elements or some other new feature that the digital space allows us to explore.”

KRNL Lifestyle + Fashion, the student-produced lifestyle magazine for UK and the surrounding Lexington community, will continue publishing a print magazine once a semester while maintaining and building its online presence as usual.