Chicago Reader Gets a Redesign by Span, Celebrating Its Counter-Culture Roots

Span, a design firm based in Chicago and headed by Bud Rodecker, has revamped The Chicago Reader, which was established in 1971. Collaborating with Noisy Creek, this initiative refreshes the publication's classic appearance while maintaining its core identity. To enhance the original wordmark's proportions and balance, Rodecker's team delved into decades of archives. The new design highlights the Reader's signature yellow hue, urgency, and independent spirit, debuting with the slogan "This is the start of something old." The redesign has garnered favorable public feedback, including praise from Rodecker's father-in-law. It also reinstates Bob McCamant's custom lettering, which was removed in 2003. Founded by Robert A. Roth with a $16,000 investment, The Reader released its first issue on October 1, 1971, despite incurring $20,000 in losses within its initial ten months.