Letters

QUOTE/UNQUOTE "You've given the Alumni Magazine back to the alumni. Thanks." JOHN FERRIES '59

The Makeover

I'VE JUST READ THE LATEST ISSUE of the Dartmouth Alumni Magazine [Sept/Oct], and I want to compliment you on an impressive upgrade. It's easier and more enjoyable to read. I am in the advertising/media/communication business and have seen more magazine redesigns fail than succeed. Yours succeeds.

Moreover, the editorial content of this latest issue seems more focused on Dartmouth than it used to be. That's good. You've given the Alumni Magazine back to the alumni. Thanks.

Wilton, Connecticut ferriesj@macmanus.com

I'VE LOOKED THE NEW MAGAZINE over several times to compare my likes and dislikes.

Cover: It's too damn heavy. The dull varnish deadens what should be a lively, open-me-up cover. Go back to a lighter weight glossy cover and save some dough. The display title of the magazine used to be what always caught the eye. Your old covers worked like a New Yorker cover, unmistakably Dartmouth, no matter what the photograph or illustration. This new display title looks like it was swiped from an old government affairs journal cover.

Line borders and underscores inside text personally drive me crazy, kind of a cute trend that appears to be the current rage. Give me a William A. Dwiggins-designed page any day; his work is timeless.

What I like: lead story, okay; "Commencement Sketchbook," good; "Fox Trot," very good. (See, you don't need the lines!)

As much material as the class of'65 sends, it's the magazine that I enjoy most. The improvements to the look of the magazine through the years have been commendable. Don't overdesign the Thunderbird.

Cohasset, Massachusetts jim.hamilton@upgraphics.com

THE REDESIGN IS GREAT. IT IS change, which is tough for some of us, but this change has made a fine publication even better. The magazine is well written, well designed and contains interesting information about a school which, though quite different from the one I went to, is nevertheless very much one I would go to now if I had the chance. Thank you for bringing Dartmouth into our home in such an effective way.

Littleton, Colorado jeff.welborn@wmc.com

AS A FORMER MEMBER AND CHAIR of the DAM editorial board and also as a professional journalist, I say "way to go" on the makeover of the magazine. I think it's terrific. There used to be a time when alumni objected to anything on the cover except Baker Library and Dartmouth Hall. Those times are long past, I hope. With more younger alums than older, the magazine has to appeal to them as well. I think you've done it.

Bethesda, Maryland dessoff@erols.com

THE NEW DESIGN IS ABSOLUTELY top-notch. The new cover—both matte paper and typeface—are pleasing to the eye. The "Big Picture" at the outset is a great use of photographic talent, and the layout is attractive. Thanks and keep up the good work.

Greenwich, Connectictut

CONGRATULATIONS ON WHAT IS clearly more than a magazine makeover. I salute the imagination, creativity and focus: the layout, photography, typeface and most significantly, since we are an academic institution, the main articles. They were well written, interesting, refreshing and substantive without being pedantic. Keep going. More changes. Be bold!

Rockport, Maine robert.binswanger@dartMOUth.edu

Perfection

OUR SOCIETY TENDS TO PLACE A high value on intelligence. Thank you to Mary Cleary Kiely '79 for reminding us that unused intelligence is worthless, and intelligence used malevolently is dangerous ["What is Perfect?" Sept/Oct].

Many people might view a Down syndrome child as a burden. Yet, for Mary Cleary Kiely, her child is a great blessing, "the vox clamantis in deserto" of her life. Kiely's essay should make us all think twice before we presume to assign lower value to the life of a human being we perceive as imperfect.

Charlottesville, Virginia debprum@cstone.net

Rhyme and Reason

THE PIECE ABOUT TOM SLEIGH ["The Art of Darkness," Sept/Oct] was remarkably evocative of the English poet Francis Thompson (1859-1907). Sleigh experiences "the power of language to transform your own world," and his "salvation" bears much resemblance to what Thompson experienced. Thompson was educated at a seminary and later studied medicine. Dissatisfied, he wandered off to live a Bohemian life in London. There, destitute and ill, he fell prey to opium. While working in a bootmaker's shop, he wrote his first poems, which he sent to Wilfred Meynell, editor of the magazine MerryEngland. Meynell and his wife, Alice, also a poet, recognized his merit, aided him in recovering his health and self-respect and in gaining recognition as a poet. "Hound of Heaven," published in 1893, is considered one of the most remarkable and powerful poems in all of the English language.

Derby, Vermont

Who's Biased Now?

JIM KUYPERS IS GUILTY OF THE same biased distortion for which he criticizes the "liberal" media ["Framing the Election," Sept/Oct]. He claims that all reporters, writers and editors demonstrate a liberal bias, but he characterizes The Washington Times as "an editorially conservative yet reportorially neutral paper." C'mon, Jim. The reporters at TheWashington Times are no more "reportorially neutral" than the reporters at TheWashington Post or The New York Times.

Kuypers's entire article is based upon the ultra-conservative myth that the mass media is "liberal." I am certain such a characterization would astound both Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and the staff of The Wall Street Journal. Only an ultra-conservative would consider a major media corporate conglomerate to be a "liberal" institution. At best, these institutions present a "moderate" viewpoint that seems "liberal" only because the center is always left of the far right.

Kuypers's main point, that everyone should read with an understanding of the bias of the author, is good advice. Kuypers should learn to write that way, also.

Cleveland, Ohio andschulman@mindspring.com

Write to Us We welcome letters. The editor reserves the right to determine the suitability of letters for publication and to edit them for accuracy and length. We regret that they cannot be returned. Letters should refer to material published in the magazine and include the writer's full name, address and telephone number. Write: Letters, Dartmouth Alumni Magazine, 80 South Main St., Hanover, NH 03755 E-mail: DAMletters@dartmouth.edu Fax: (603) 646-1209

QUOTE/UNQUOTE "Thanks to Mary Cleary Kiely for reminding us that unused intelligence is worthless." DEBORAH M. PRUM, MALS '82