Ethan M. Tucker '97, former Hillel chair, believes some reporters and executives may have been biased or misinformed about stories.

"Even worse were the times when Jewish executives of The Crimson were clearly providing behind the scenes, somewhat faulty and inaccurate information, about an organization with which they had contact, but in which they were not really involved," Tucker says.

Jennifer A. Goldberg '94, PBHA president and now a Winthrop House resident tutor, says more dedicated coverage of the organization's summer programs would be appropriate.

"It is more difficult to cover longer-term sustained programs, although long-term programs are the heart and soul of PHBA," Goldberg says.

Student leaders from years past say their interactions with Crimson reporters helped prepare them for the real world.

"When [The Crimson] interviews students, it gives those students a chance to learn how to speak to the press," said Mukhlis S. Balbale '92, who was the vice-chair of the IOP SAC in 1992.

Rosovsky describes meeting with Crimson reporters as a "fencing match."

"I look at these young men and women dressed in T-shirts, sweaters, and jeans, and wonder which one I will first encounter in a three-piece suit or its female equivalent," he writes. "Is one of them a future Franklin [D.] Roosevelt ['04], Cap Weinberger ['38], or Anthony Lewis ['48]?"

Former Crimson reporters also remember a somewhat adversarial relationship with the Faculty and the Administration.

"There was a good healthy tension," says Miller, who now works at the Wall Street Journal. "We had the impression that Dean Rosovsky was spitting out coffee and cursing the jackals at The Crimson."

Reflecting Campus Diversity

In recent years, many student leaders have complained that diversity at The Crimson has not kept pace with that of the campus in general.

As a result, many students active in minority student organizations say that The Crimson at times did not fully cover important issues and events.

"Although The Crimson does a pretty good job of keeping its internal politics under wraps when reporting stories, it is true that some stories get more emphasis over others because they strike the personal interests of the board members," says Jay F. Chen '00, co-president of the Asian American Association (AAA) and a Crimson executive.

Chen tied the lack of coverage of minority groups to the dearth of minorities on The Crimson staff.