The 2026 fall quarter marks the unofficial 75th anniversary of The Highlander. The Highlander is a student-led newspaper that was founded at the University of California Riverside (UCR) in 1954. Since its founding, The Highlander has served both UCR and the Inland Empire by reporting on issues pertinent to the community, such as local politics, campus government and student protests. The organization also draws attention to campus life through features ,voices student perspectives through its opinion section, recognizes student athletics through sports and highlights the arts in the local community through its radar section.
As an award-winning publication, The Highlander represents UCR in nationally acclaimed journalism competitions every year, namely the California College Media Association’s (CCMA) Best of Student Media Awards. In 2026 The Highlander won two CCMA awards. Henya Dadem, a Highlander Marketing Intern at the time won third place for best online advertisement. Ian Palma, former radar editor and current managing editor won first place for best Arts & Entertainment story, beating out over 15,000 competing colleges and universities participating in each.
Many of the Highlander’s alumni have gone on to pursue prestigious careers in the creative fields. Steve Breen, Pulitzer prize winning cartoonist, began his career as a cartoonist for The Highlander. Emily Wells, a UCR alumni, started her journalism career as a contributing writer for The Highlander and later became the arts & entertainment editor before going on to work as an editor of fashion and art magazines and as a reporter for the Press Enterprise. She currently teaches writing at the University of California Irvine and is a published author.
The Highlander, was known as the UCR Cub for its first two years before being renamed.The organization was founded in 1954, despite having existed for 72 years, its 75th anniversary issue releases in coincidence with the start of its 75th annual volume, due to the release of multiple publications in certain school years.
Nearly as old as the school itself, The Highlander has served as a record of campus history and issues relevant to the UCR community. In 1970, The Highlander covered Governor Ronald Reagan’s visit to campus along with the student protests and police confrontation that followed, reflecting The Highlander’s continued coverage of student protests and activism In 2024 the Highlander covered 7-months of pro-Palestinian student protests, encampments and negotiations, highlighting student discontent and advocacy.
Since its founding, The Highlander has remained an independent news organization, prioritizing the “pursuit of truth, the free exchange of information and ideas and maintaining a fair and independent student voice.” For most of its history, The Highlander has been entirely self-funded until 2001, when ASUCR passed a referendum to provide it with funding. The Highlander remains primarily self-funded through advertising revenue.
