Dear Harbus Reader:
We have 17 issues down, and this Editorial Staff of The Harbus News has 16 issues to go. First, the past seventeen issues – hopefully, in your mind as a reader, the paper has extended beyond the advent and reign of the incomparable and hilarious “That Guy”. This first semester for us at the paper wore a special mark. The previous editor of this newspaper resigned due to the conflict with the administration over the independence of the paper. Reality television flourished. The economy was still bad, and we as students questioned whether or not we could pay off our investment in this education. The administration planned to close the Library for the next year. The United States (and friends) defeated Iraq, and are in process of not only rebuilding Iraq, but also our reputation in the eyes of the world. AIDS continues to ravage the world.
The Space Shuttle broke up in mid air. Not only did our campus change but our world changed around as Julian Swearengin described in his editorial, “our bubble”.
At The Harbus, we tried to keep up with all of these changes, while adding a wide perspective of what has happening in the classroom, on the Harvard campus, in the States, and in the world at large. We’ve interviewed an array of world leaders and celebrities including Warren Buffet, Carly Fiorna, Russell Simmons, Carly Fiorina, John Malkovich, Dan Snyder, and others. We polled students on their opinions of the War in Iraq and found that students were evenly split. We allowed Gaurav Misra to write an advice column.
Personally, the experience of being Editor was a rollercoaster. The paper has been exhilarating and trying with ups and downs, but in all, I feel strongly that we have been able to produce a strong, well written, engaging, and most importantly, objective information source for the HBS community. Like a rollercoaster, its best experienced with one’s eyes open. My eyes were wide open and I’ve gained invaluable experiences.
The paper is facing numerous challenges now, beyond the limp advertising market. Students no longer need to read The Harbus. Thirty years ago, students got information from courses to what was being served in Kresge cafeteria, to what movie was playing at the theater in Harvard Square. Now we have MY.HBS, the internet, and e-mail. We recognize this and promise that for our last sixteen issues, coming in the fall, we are going to make you laugh while also bringing an angle of the university that you can’t find anywhere else. For the current first years, there will be a new “That Guy” to look forward to each week. We might even add new characters including HBS Style Guy who has made a couple of appearances. We are going to continue to work with the administration to bring you the best information on what’s really going on in Career Services, Admissions, Executive Education and other departments. We are going to poll students more on their opinions on a variety of issues. We are going to involve partners in the paper more.
And we will continue to cover events going on across the river.
In true Junior High Year book fashion (how American of me) I close this letter, saying “Have a great summer”, “Keep in Touch (KIT)”, and “Good Luck” . This has been a great year, and as promised, I think that we all have been “transformed”. I’m still going to be around and available at Harbus-editor@mba2004.hbs.edu if you have any article ideas or questions.
Take Care,
Allen Narcisse
Editor In Chief
