Since it was first published in 1924, WKU’s Talisman has captured the life and spirit of the Hill and the surrounding Bowling Green community. Generations of staff members have covered everything from Homecoming to student-run plays, and the heart of the human experience.
From yearbook to website and magazine, Talisman staffers have built a legacy of greatness, even in the face of financial instability.
However, in the 2024-2025 fiscal year, that legacy was threatened through budget cuts affecting the quality and quantity of Talisman productions.
According to a collection of records gathered by Student Publications, in the last decade, Talisman’s financial foundation has been eroded. In the 2013 fiscal year, the program received over $220,000 in university funding. In our centennial year of 2024-2025, that number is just $54,000. This has resulted in fewer pages, lower print quality, lower salaries for staff and smaller circulation of what this publication offers – a relic of history.
When universities chip away at student publications, they do more than tighten a budget. They compromise one of the most visible and independent sources of truth on campus.
Talisman operates editorially independent from the university to investigate campus issues and provide space for student voices that might not otherwise be heard. These are not auxiliary tasks, but the core functions of a healthy academic environment that dates back to the inception of our university.
Recent changes in WKU’s budget practices suggest a departure from valuing that environment.
Nearly all non-salary dollars have been eliminated from Student Publications’ operational budget, according to our records. Of the $54,000 allocated for 2024-2025, only 2%, around $6,700, is available for daily expenses like transportation, repairs or basic insurance.
Meanwhile, revenue generated by our student staffs through ad sales, events or distribution of our print publications seemingly disappears from our reach.
Since 2017, WKU has withheld nearly $150,000 in carry-forward funds. That’s money that was earned through the hard work of students on the Talisman, Herald, Cherry Creative and Student Publications Advertising staffs. Over decades, our staffs have worked hard to spend responsibly and keep our expenses below our revenue each year. When our predecessors have done that, the excess revenue would be carried forward as a safety net that we relied on in lean years with advertising downturns. WKU has instead taken those carry-forward funds away from us.
Starting this July, the university plans to implement a 10% tax on the revenue we earn. This is not only stifling, but a slap in the face for the students who have put forth that entrepreneurial effort every year.
When student journalists are under-resourced, campus communities lose access to publications that reflect them — not only in content, but diverse makeup of teams covering them. They lose institutional memory. They lose a record of life.
For more than 100 years, Talisman has reflected the soul of WKU, its people, traditions, challenges and triumphs. What began as a yearbook became a magazine, a website, a brand, and, most of all, a community. It’s been a home for storytellers — a training ground for journalists, designers, photographers, marketers and creatives who care deeply about telling stories that matter.
We’ve covered everything from campus quirks to complex issues. We’ve celebrated Hilltopper spirit and confronted moments of hardship. We’ve preserved the essence of WKU, year after year, through shifting styles, mediums and generations.
The Talisman’s centennial print issue in the fall was printed with half the pages and 40 percent fewer copies than editions published in 2019. The students who produced it did so with passion, gusto and pride.
But we believe it’s fair to ask if that passion and gusto will outlive a dying budget. How many years until pride isn’t enough?
As the current co-executive editors, we are humbled to carry that legacy into its 100th year. But even as we celebrate this milestone, we must acknowledge the challenges ahead. Like many student-run publications across the country, the Talisman is facing significant budget cuts that threaten our ability to continue this important work.
We believe the university has a responsibility to protect and invest in independent student media. The Talisman is not just ink on a page or pixels on a screen. It’s a living archive. It’s a space where students find their voice, challenge perspectives and build community. And it is, above all, a testament to the power of storytelling.
If WKU values storytelling, memory and true reflection, it must invest in the platforms that foster those values. That means not only restoring funding, but also allowing the Talisman and Student Publications as a whole to retain the revenue we earn.
To our readers, alumni and supporters: Thank you for believing in Talisman. Your continued support ensures that this publication remains a vital part of WKU’s story, not just in the past, but far into the future. We urge university leadership to recognize that value, not only as a piece of history, but as a promise to the generations still to come.
The people who are cutting support for student publications have been decisive. It’s time for those who believe in them to be just as clear.
Talisman deserves more than survival. It deserves to thrive for another 100 years and beyond.
Editorial: Celebrating 100 years in the face of looming budget cuts
Since it was first published in 1924, WKU’s Talisman has captured the life and spirit of the Hill and the surrounding Bowling Green community. Generations of staff members have covered everything from Homecoming to student-run plays, and the heart of the human experience.
From yearbook to website and magazine, Talisman staffers have built a legacy of greatness, even in the face of financial instability.
However, in the 2024-2025 fiscal year, that legacy was threatened through budget cuts affecting the quality and quantity of Talisman productions.
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According to a collection of records gathered by Student Publications, in the last decade, Talisman’s financial foundation has been eroded. In the 2013 fiscal year, the program received over $220,000 in university funding. In our centennial year of 2024-2025, that number is just $54,000. This has resulted in fewer pages, lower print quality, lower salaries for staff and smaller circulation of what this publication offers – a relic of history.
When universities chip away at student publications, they do more than tighten a budget. They compromise one of the most visible and independent sources of truth on campus.
Talisman operates editorially independent from the university to investigate campus issues and provide space for student voices that might not otherwise be heard. These are not auxiliary tasks, but the core functions of a healthy academic environment that dates back to the inception of our university.
Recent changes in WKU’s budget practices suggest a departure from valuing that environment.
Nearly all non-salary dollars have been eliminated from Student Publications’ operational budget, according to our records. Of the $54,000 allocated for 2024-2025, only 2%, around $6,700, is available for daily expenses like transportation, repairs or basic insurance.
Meanwhile, revenue generated by our student staffs through ad sales, events or distribution of our print publications seemingly disappears from our reach.
Since 2017, WKU has withheld nearly $150,000 in carry-forward funds. That’s money that was earned through the hard work of students on the Talisman, Herald, Cherry Creative and Student Publications Advertising staffs. Over decades, our staffs have worked hard to spend responsibly and keep our expenses below our revenue each year. When our predecessors have done that, the excess revenue would be carried forward as a safety net that we relied on in lean years with advertising downturns. WKU has instead taken those carry-forward funds away from us.
Starting this July, the university plans to implement a 10% tax on the revenue we earn. This is not only stifling, but a slap in the face for the students who have put forth that entrepreneurial effort every year.
When student journalists are under-resourced, campus communities lose access to publications that reflect them — not only in content, but diverse makeup of teams covering them. They lose institutional memory. They lose a record of life.
For more than 100 years, Talisman has reflected the soul of WKU, its people, traditions, challenges and triumphs. What began as a yearbook became a magazine, a website, a brand, and, most of all, a community. It’s been a home for storytellers — a training ground for journalists, designers, photographers, marketers and creatives who care deeply about telling stories that matter.
We’ve covered everything from campus quirks to complex issues. We’ve celebrated Hilltopper spirit and confronted moments of hardship. We’ve preserved the essence of WKU, year after year, through shifting styles, mediums and generations.
The Talisman’s centennial print issue in the fall was printed with half the pages and 40 percent fewer copies than editions published in 2019. The students who produced it did so with passion, gusto and pride.
But we believe it’s fair to ask if that passion and gusto will outlive a dying budget. How many years until pride isn’t enough?
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As the current co-executive editors, we are humbled to carry that legacy into its 100th year. But even as we celebrate this milestone, we must acknowledge the challenges ahead. Like many student-run publications across the country, the Talisman is facing significant budget cuts that threaten our ability to continue this important work.
We believe the university has a responsibility to protect and invest in independent student media. The Talisman is not just ink on a page or pixels on a screen. It’s a living archive. It’s a space where students find their voice, challenge perspectives and build community. And it is, above all, a testament to the power of storytelling.
If WKU values storytelling, memory and true reflection, it must invest in the platforms that foster those values. That means not only restoring funding, but also allowing the Talisman and Student Publications as a whole to retain the revenue we earn.
To our readers, alumni and supporters: Thank you for believing in Talisman. Your continued support ensures that this publication remains a vital part of WKU’s story, not just in the past, but far into the future. We urge university leadership to recognize that value, not only as a piece of history, but as a promise to the generations still to come.
The people who are cutting support for student publications have been decisive. It’s time for those who believe in them to be just as clear.
Talisman deserves more than survival. It deserves to thrive for another 100 years and beyond.