Interview with Beverly Brown (email correspondence)

What got you involved in the HPR? What was your initial understanding of/ assumption about what HPR--how did they change (or not)? I first heard of the HPR at Visitas. I went to a meeting where they told us a bit about what the HPR was, then we split into sections. I really enjoyed these sections because we talked about current events in a really analytical way. I had never written anything like an HPR article so I was joining a lot for the conversation and a bit for the writing. Now I am mostly in it for the writing which I discovered I love, and the conversations are a bonus.

2. What do you see as your role in the HPR?  I am a staff writer. Basically I just produce articles to fill up the website and magazine.

3. Could you describe the place of HPR in your Harvard experience? I spend a lot of time writing articles, but it isn’t that big of a part of my experience. I don’t really go to the social events. But learning and growing in my political knowledge by writing the articles is something that I am really glad is part of my college experience.

4. Thoughts on the comp process? And what do you think is the relationship between staff writers/compers and Masthead? It was rigorous, but I enjoyed being forced to write so many articles. I don’t think there is much of a relationship really, but that is not necessarily bad.

5. Do you feel connected to the HPR as an organization? Does it ever feel like a "community"? Or does it primarily feel like a publication to which you contribute through your writing? Not really. I definitely feel it is more of just a publication.

6. Could you describe the experience of drafting/submitting and presenting your pitch to the covers meeting? I came up with the idea a couple of weeks before the applications were due. I actually looked at some articles I was already planning on writing and identified a common theme which I thought would make a cool cover. I spent a lot of time thinking of a bunch of articles then picked the best ones. I drafted my application which took me a good bit of time because I liked the idea and wanted to give it a good shot. I think presentation at the covers meeting is almost more important than the idea. If you aren’t there to present it and someone reads for you, there is no way it will make it. I don’t think I presented mine very well because I was super nervous. The feedback can be pretty harsh so it definitely was nothing like I had experienced before.

7. Anything you’d like to see HPR achieve or improve upon? I think the move towards columns is great because it will hold people accountable. I definitely need that.