Lt. Gov. Newsom wants the old UC logo restored

Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is a UC regent, has joined the opposition to the controversial new UC logo and wants the traditional one restored.

The new streamlined logo, which shows a sculptural U containing the letter C, “fails to respect the history and the prestige of the University of California,” Newsom wrote in a letter Tuesday to UC system President Mark G. Yudof.

The traditional one -- which features a circular shield, an image of a textbook, and the words “Let There Be Light,” along with the date of UC’s founding, 1868 -- will still be used on diplomas and official letters. But UC officials say the image does not reproduce well on websites, so something more contemporary was designed for new fundraising and public affairs campaigns.

Noting that thousands of students and alumni have signed online petitions calling for the new design to be dumped, Newsom said that that logo, even in limited use “has backfired.” “Instead of being creative with the University of California logo, we should be searching for creative solutions for funding the University of California,” he wrote.

 A spokesman for Yudof said the university administration had no comment on Newsom’s letter.

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-- Larry Gordon

Photo: Many are criticizing a new University of California logo, right. Credit: Associated Press.