Empowering students to think critically and creatively since 1913
VOLUME 111 ISSUE 6 MARCH 20, 2025
IN THE NEWS
SOUTH PASADENA HIGH SCHOOL 1401 FREMONT AVE, SOUTH PASADENA, CA 91030
SPEX ASSEMBLY
CAREER FAIR
CLASS OFFICER ELECTIONS
On Thursday, March 27, the SPEX Assembly will take place in the auditorium in two assemblies from 10:15 a.m. to 12:35 p.m.
SPHS will host a career fair in front of the counseling center from Tuesday, April 15 to Thursday, April 17.
Class assemblies will be held for class officer elections on Friday, April 18 from 12 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Reimagining the library and senior center “[We’ve] been using this library for a long time. It’s more than 40 years old; so is the senior center,” Billings said. “The world has changed so much [with] computers, and we don’t even have outlets for people to use their laptops. So it’s really time we think to re-look at this space and say, ‘What can we do here?’”
STORY OWEN HOU PHOTO KAITLYN LEE
T
he city of South Pasadena has embarked on an initiative to reimagine the public library, the senior center, and the library park, all located on Oxley Street. The project is currently being managed by the South Pasadena City Council, which had initially budgeted $150,000 to create a strategic plan for the space. The ad hoc committee, a group brought together to advise the site plan consisting of residents and staff from the library and community services, was created to aid the project through input and guidance.
Due to the library staff’s involvement in other tasks, the process of securing a consultant took longer than planned. While the issue has now been resolved, a few anticipated challenges remain as the project moves forward. Some are logistical, such as costs and space constraints, while others are more cultural, such as working around the community room, which has gained historical significance since its construction in 1930. Another challenge will be gaining the community’s support for the project, given the lack of success in previous years.
“If we don’t involve the whole community, it would be hard to be successful,” library director Cathy Billing said. “We really need to know what they want.” Community input is being gathered in the first phase of the process. The library sent out proposals to consultant groups beginning in December 2023, and, with the ad hoc committee’s guidance, a firm called Group 4 Architecture was hired a year later.
THE CITY plans upgrades to Oxley Street’s community infrastructure.
The consultant firm began the first round of community outreach on March 17, releasing an online survey for community input found on the official South Pasadena website.
April 10 at 11 a.m. to allow for interactive input from the community. Additional pop-up events will take place at the April 3 and May 8 farmers markets, the April 12 Spring Eggstravaganza, and the April 26 Eclectic Music Festival, to gather more of the community’s feedback.
In addition to the survey, community workshops at the library have been scheduled for April 9 at 6:30 p.m. and
After this initial outreach phase, they will take this information and continue to gather, incorporate, and implement
Turning a blind eye to news is neither good nor bad STORY RAFA ESTOLANOSRIDHARAN ILLUSTRATION DIANA LOPEZ In recent years, there has been a growing phenomenon of people purposely ignoring news that they find upsetting. Since 2015, the amount of people consuming online news daily has steadily decreased, especially among younger demographics, who were once the largest purveyors of online news. A 2025 study from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford
researched online news consumption trends from across 17 countries and five age groups from 2015–2025. The study found that online news consumption decreased among all age groups, with the most significant decrease occurring in the 18–24 age group whose daily news consumption fell from a rate of 89 percent to 76 percent. This is a lower rate that marks a reversal from 2015, when this group consumed more online news than both the 25–34 and 35–44 age groups. One of the primary reasons given for news avoidance was that the news was too negative and depressing. People reported feeling overwhelmed by the volume of negative news being covered, while others said that they no longer have the time or energy to read the news. The study concluded that increasing news avoidance can be attributed to both fatigue and lack of interest in the news. This phenomenon of news avoidance has sparked heated debate. Opponents argue that it creates an ignorant society and is a deeply irresponsible habit. OSTRICH POLITICS, see Page 7
Page 5
community feedback before eventually presenting the results and finished site plan to the city council, who will make the final decision. One key aspect of the current strategy is combining the library and senior center buildings to create a complex that fits the community of South Pasadena. On top of this, the city also plans to modernize the library’s layout.
“As the project progresses, community input will continue to be valued, as the library wants to make sure that the people are happy with the new renovations,” Billings said. The library staff, outside groups, and other involved parties will continue working towards bringing the library and senior center site plan to completion by this fall. “They’ve had this same space for [a] really long time,” Billings said. “It is old, and it doesn’t really meet [the city’s] needs. We want them to have the space that they deserve to have.”
How baseballs end up in the SPHS pool and track STORY GAVIN BARTOLOME & OWEN HOU ILLUSTRATION NATHAN FRIEZER While the baseball field may have high fences, foul balls are still occasionally hit over them both during baseball practice and in games. Just beyond the baseball fences are the swim and track facilities, which are on the third base and first base sides, respectively. The issue of foul balls has seemingly become more common, and pole vault and swim athletes have mentioned an increase in baseballs falling into their practice area this year compared to previous years.
over the fences. As such, there also will be no likely solution for the issue anytime soon, as higher fences, nets, and other solutions would cost too much and not be worth the trouble to implement. Even so, the problem remains a hazard, and the two sports that are most affected, swim and pole vault, have had to live with the issue. Members of the pole vault team, having to practice next to the baseball field’s fences, have mentioned their predicaments.
BASEBALLS, see Page 16
A high school batter can hit a ball with an average exit speed of 75–100 mph, so the rubber-and-cork ball can break 80 mph on its fall back down. It takes only 25 mph for a car collision to create serious injuries, so 80 mph by a baseball can lead to concussions or even broken bones. Currently, there is not a lot that the baseball team can do, as the occasional overthrow or foul ball may just find itself
NEWSPAPER INDEPENDENCE
RUSSIA-UKRAINE CONFLICT
SPORTS BEYOND SPHS
Tiger discusses the perils of government interference and corporate censorship in journalism, warning of the importance that media remains an impartial watchdog of democracy.
From Ukraine’s independence to the annexation of Crimea, Tiger analyzes the series of events that led to the current Russia-Ukraine conflict, and what President Trump’s election means for it.
A wide variety of sports exist outside of the 13 that SPHS offers. From surfing to mountain biking, here are some of the unique sports that nearby Los Angeles schools offer.
Page 12
TIGERNEWSPAPER.COM
Page 15