I loved working at the Harvard Crimson. I was a photography editor (and later an associate photography chair) at the Crimson for three years (i.e., Fall 1983 – Spring 1986). My first mentor there was Nevin, the son of a very well-known movie critic at NBC’s Today Show – I first met Nevin during the Spring Semester of my freshman year at Harvard. At the end of the semester, I did not make it to the Crimson because I wasn’t ready to fully commit there. But my seed was already planted.
By the end of the Fall Semester of my sophomore year, I became an official member there (see my press card above). For the next five semesters, I took a lot of pictures – portraits, action shots, meetings, sports. I photographed several prominent figures such as Art Buchwald and Reverend Jesse Jackson and even a starter pistol, and I still have fond memories of watching Harvard Men’s Lacrosse in action.
The people with whom I worked were great….serious in what they did at the Crimson but easy to get along and work with me. There had been a very few times when egos had to clash with each other. One time, when Jeff the president of the Crimson brusquely brushed away my suggestions on editing a certain region on the front page, I told him that he wasn’t my boss. Of course, his ego was bruised, but the next morning we easily forgave each other.
On any day when it was my turn to be the photography editor for a daily newspaper edition, it had often lasted until maybe 2 or 3 AM before the crew and I could complete the next morning’s newspaper. It has been such a long time since I last worked there that I can’t remember certain terms that marked the beginning of newspaper preparation and/or the end of print before delivery to subscribers as well as to local newsstands. Maybe it’s because I did not hear these terms every time I worked there, but hey, it almost always felt rewarding to see the final product. I said almost always, because my photos didn’t always come out well in print and because there were a few times I could have taken better photographs.
Graduation newspapers often represented the best times I had at the Crimson – I participated there twice – once at the end of my junior year and the other prior to my graduation. It was pure joy to go around and take photographs of various personalities (students, alumnae, faculty and whatnots) at different locations without worrying about my academic studies.
Two particular occasions have stood the most in my memories about the Crimson. Both occurred during Turkey Shoot, an event when sophomore and/or junior editors had to run for executive offices they wanted at the Crimson every November – President, Managing Editor, Sports Editor, etc. And everyone who wanted a certain position had to interview for it with the ‘retiring’ Editorial Board. Both events directly or indirectly involved me and my hearing loss.
The first time I was involved in Turkey Shoot took place during the fall semester of my junior year. I knew I wasn’t going for the top photography chair position, but I aimed for the associate photography chair. But Ji (the photography chair – we’ve been friends since our high school days) did not know that – he wanted to be the chair for a second year in a row and he thought we were competing for the same position. So he took me out to the Hong Kong Restaurant (a popular hangout for Harvard students, especially those working at the Crimson – www.hongkongharvard.com) for a hearty and greasy meal. Ji explained at length that the chair position involved a lot of responsibility and blah blah. At that point, I realized that he thought I was going for the top chair position, and I told him I was only interested in that of associate chair. He said, “Oh.” We shook hands and that was the end of the meal.
So, after a middling interview with the retiring Editorial Board, I got what I wanted.
One main reason I didn’t want the top chair position was that there would be a lot of phone calls, and I wouldn’t be able to handle any of them. Remember there were only landline phones (more than 30 years ago, computers were new and did not have any Internet, and cellular phones were not even born). At that time, people with profound hearing loss had to rely on people with typical hearing to make phone calls for them, and I didn’t want that on my shoulders. I also didn’t even need any sign language interpreters, because I could communicate well orally with my fellow Crimeds, and I knew my way through the Crimson. If I had the technological advances and/or accommodations, maybe I would’ve gone for the top chair position, but maybe not, because I had other concerns, i.e., my academic studies. It had been tough for me to stay on top of my studies for four years.
The second time I was involved in Turkey Shoot occurred during the fall semester of my senior year. It was a much more serious one than the first Shoot, because I felt the real impact of my hearing loss – that’s where I felt discriminated. At that time I didn’t realize it, but hey, I’m getting ahead.
I was part of the retiring Editorial Board, and every retiring member was responsible to interview sophomore and junior editors who wanted higher positions. All these interviews were done by voice. As retiring executives, we sat in a large circle, and every potential office holder would sit in the chair closest to the entrance doors in the second floor of the Crimson building. The first three editors came for interviews, one of which was for the Sports Editor position – I couldn’t remember what the other interviewees were gunning for. Even when I knew what position they wanted, I could not follow what an interviewer asked or how an interviewee had responded to the query. Of course, I’d vote on the applicant like everyone else. After the third interview, I decided not to waste any more time and left the interview room.
The next day, Jeff invited me to his office because he was concerned about my ability to participate in the interview process. I accepted his invitation, and asked him if I could help elect certain people for all photography chair positions without participating during the interview process. I knew all the candidates for these positions because I knew who they were, how they worked, and their photography skills. Jeff replied no, and asked me what could have been done to facilitate my comprehension, if any, of all the coming interviews. I replied that a few people in the interview room could have taken notes for me and/or that the Crimson could have hired a sign language interpreter for the remaining interview process. Jeff had me get up and leave the room without saying anything more after my reply. I was really puzzled as to why he would not say anything, much less offer any resolution to that issue, but I was initially relieved that I wasn’t involved any more.
At the end of Turkey Shoot, certain people were elected to certain positions. When I saw those celebrating or crying over what they got or did not get, I realized that I could have done more in the election process. At first, it was a minor nagging inside my mind, but when the American with Disabilities Act was passed in the early 1990s, that Turkey Shoot loomed much larger than I would have liked.
I realized that Jeff could have done much more for me, because he was the President of the Crimson. Hell, he became the President and CEO of NBC Universal and now he is the President of CNN Worldwide – he has since had a lot of power to move the world in so many ways. Maybe he didn’t know how he could have helped me during Turkey Shoot, but he could have foreseen that something needed to be done to facilitate or encourage my participation in Turkey Shoot. He could have asked around.
The lingering question is, did Jeff invite me to his office out of his concern for me or for the sake of the Crimson?
Henry- Wow J. Zucker- Did not realize. I believe that Jeff wanted to do the right thing. I believe there was a timing issue, And I wouldn’t expect even Harvard to comply with that issue in a campus activities scenario then… you bring up a very important time in history prior to the Americans with Disabilities Act. For Audiologists this act is drilled into the curriculum for their training. If it had been in place things could’ve been very different. You would’ve had an interpreter. But then would it have made a difference in your career? Perhaps you would’ve become a journalist instead of a scientist? Actually I think not.;)
Yvonne — actually, Jeff could have wondered how I could manage with class attention and everything else at Harvard. He could have asked me how and what I did, and I could have raised certain actions such as note taking. I could have added that the administrative offices had someone taking care of accommodations for people with disabilities. All in time before Turkey Shoot — but it doesn’t matter any more now. It’s now part of history, but I am more than certain that Jeff’s experiences working with a person with hearing loss have affected him professionally as well as has had given him more human interest ideas for NBC and beyond. There was David Davis, an oral deaf Harvard junior who was interviewed for an article in the Harvard Crimson (he graduated one year after me). There was Terence Parkin, a deaf South African swimmer who won the silver medal in Sydney Olympics in 2000 while being televised by NBC under Jeff’s leadership. Could you ask yourself if Jeff would have done these stories if he had not worked with me at the Crimson?
Henry- you absolutely did the right thing, advocating for yourself and others with hearing impairment. I can’t agree more. You helped pave the way. Frankly there’s so much more advocating to be done for example for individuals in assisted-living settings who frequently lose their hearing aids.
One thing or two about my statement “So, after a middling interview with the retiring Editorial Board, I got what I wanted.” First, there’s a big difference between being able to understand one another on a one-to-one basis and that ability in a group conversation. It’s much easier to communicate with someone alone (or two) than with a group of three or more. Second, I did not have any accommodations (e.g., no notetakers or sign language interpreters) for my ‘middling’ interview. I didn’t understand most of the questions they asked me — there were too many people asking me. When I finished my interview, I didn’t feel good about my chances of getting what I wanted. But I’m glad I got it and did the best job I could there.