The Spectrum’s editorial board elected Reilly Mullen, a junior English and political science major, to a second term as editor-in-chief for the 2021-22 academic year on Monday.
Mullen ran unopposed and won the election in a unanimous 16-0 vote. Her platform was grounded in strengthening the paper’s role as a soundboard for UB’s student body — a university newspaper run “by the students, for the students.”
Mullen said she seeks to realize her vision for the paper by driving up content, increasing the publication’s online presence and encouraging Spectrum staff to engage with the campus community in an effort to generate more reader-based content.
Generating content, in particular, is one of Mullen’s major priorities, especially as The Spectrum continues to move into the digital world.
Managing editor Justin Weiss called Mullen’s re-election a “great day for our publication and for student journalism in the UB community.” He said Mullen’s compassion and tenacity make her an obvious choice for the editor-in-chief role.
“Reilly is one of the most talented and hard-working people I know,” Weiss said. “She is an incredibly skilled writer, editor and communicator. We are all looking forward to another year under her guidance. I am proud to call her a friend and a mentor, and I can’t wait to see what she does in her role next year.”
Mullen hopes to increase the staff’s retention rate by enhancing mentorship opportunities for staff writers and editors. She said that guiding her staff through personal and work-related challenges has — and will continue to be — the priority of her tenure.
“I’m really looking forward to working with the staff again next year and I’m really looking forward to making that positive change on campus that I know we can make,” Mullen said. “We've had so much staff turnover, but still, I appreciate the work of every single one of our editors and staff writers. I really appreciate my time at The Spectrum. It's given me a lot of perspective as far as people who come from different walks of life.”
Elizabeth Napolitano is the senior news editor and can be reached at elizabeth.napolitano@ubspectrum.com
Elizabeth "Liz" Napolitano is the senior news editor for The Spectrum. She's an optimistic pessimist who found her love for journalism in Ecuador. She likes late night walks and reading Twitter threads in their entirety.
Photo: Ryan Hagen | UB Athletics
