Publication Report Card by Our Staff

Publication Report Card

By Our Staff

At the end of every year, Binghamton Review looks at all the student publications and the content they provide before giving a grade on the quality of the writing. Unfortunately, this year was quite different for school publications, considering all publications ceased printed publication. Well, almost everyone. Anyway, most content being moved online anyway, we decided to review all the student publications, so you don’t have to! Presenting: Binghamton Review’s Publication Report Card for 2020-2021!

Free Press/Asian Outlook/Ellipsis: F

Little to no content produced this year. Kind of hard to give an actual grade and feedback when there is nothing to give feedback on. We’d blame it on the pandemic; however most of these publications have been ghosting us and all Binghamton students, long before the pandemic even existed. Sorry, guys.

Pipe Dream: D-

STOP WRITING ABOUT TIKTOK, GOD DAMMIT! -Matt Gagliano Another year of disappointing articles from Pipe Dream. As someone who has been working on Press Watch almost every issue, I have to say, there is nothing that pains me more than reading whatever garbage Pipe Dream published each week. Whether they’re writing their fifteenth article on why TikTok is great, or writing about why we need to wear masks even after the pandemic, or why we should abolish the Senate, or why BU should institute a marriage pact program, or about how guys are apparently measuring the diameter of their penis, it gets more and more painful the more you read. Even after pleading with them for years, Pipe Dream still refuses to use the Oxford Comma in their articles. It’s annoying, painful to read, and hurts me physically. You see what I did there? I used a fucking OXFORD COMMA! Take notes, Pipe Dream, it’s really not that hard! They also still haven’t responded to our diss track. We would give them an F, but they are one of the only other publications to actually publish content consistently this year, albeit online only, so we bumped them up to a D-.

The BUTT: D

You would think that a publication called The BUTT would actually be funny...and produce articles consistently...or produce any articles for the semester at all. While solely an online publication, they stopped publishing articles after the fall semester. What a twist! The few articles that they did publish were subpar at best. Their funniest article, “The University Hand Sanitizer is Delicious, No Sign Will Stop Me”, was shockingly boring for satire. Their only saving grace this year was a photoshop parody of a Pipe Dream article advocating for the abolition of the Senate ala Emperor Palapatine, which genuinely gave most of us a hearty chuckle. For this reason, the BUTT gets the D.

Binghamton Review: A++

I mean, really, was there any doubt that we would be at the top of the class? Not only has Binghamton Review printed in spite of the pandemic, not only has Binghamton Review maintained a strong online presence via our website and Twitter, but we didn’t even have an office to begin with! Great job, SA, on the space allocation! We’re sure getting kicked out of our office in favor of other publications that have not produced a single printed issue was worthwhile this year, huh? You would think that so many difficulties, from a world-wide pandemic to administrative incompetence, would cause Binghamton Review to stop printing, but apparently not! Regardless, an ever-expanding list of contributors, fun and creative articles, and a dedicated staff easily earn Binghamton Review its high grade.

Next Year’s E-Board

By Our Staff

Editor-In-Chief: Matt Gagliano

What’s up gamers! My name is Matt Gagliano and I have finally made my way through the ranks to the Editor-in-Chief position. Last year I was the Copy Desk Chief, and this year I’ve had the honor of being the Managing Editor. You may recognize this picture as the same one that I used in my E-board intro last year. However, if you look closely, you’ll notice that unlike the poorly edited one from last year, this one has been properly photoshopped, and doesn’t look like shit. That is my plan for next year: to produce issues that don’t look like shit. After spending the past two years in editing positions for the Review, I believe that I have learned much about the editing process, and now have the skills required to lead Binghamton Review to another year of outstanding issues, dunking on Pipe Dream, and occasionally uploading subpar videos on our YouTube channel. I believe we have a very strong E-board set for next year, and I can’t wait to continue to work with all of them.

Managing Editor: Madeline Perez

Greetings, faithful Bing Review readers! I, Madeline Perez, am back for another successful year on the E-board. While it was a great honor being the Copy Desk Chief, I knew in order to fulfill my lifelong dream of writing emails, I needed to become Managing Editor. As some of you may remember, I am a neuroscience major and will be a Junior next year, so calling me a “baby” will be both hurtful and factually incorrect. My hobbies include reading, writing, and rolling around in the mud to stay cool during the warm summer months. Chances are you may find me around campus walking or eating, so don’t be afraid to say hello!

Copy Desk Chief: Joe Badalamenti

Hello Everyone, it’s me, Joe Badalamenti, here to introduce myself again. I am leaving my role as Business manager for a position along the front lines of journalism. Personally, I would have preferred a bigger role for next year, but I believe I can make do with what I have. I am an engineering student but I do have interests in cultural and economic issues which I will write about throughout next semester. As for my plans, my first goal is to improve the editorial process at the Review, the past two semesters have not been as smooth, editorial wise, as I would prefer. In executing my role, I will see it that every article published by the Review meets a standard of grammatical quality to defend our reputation as a college publication. Moreover, I would like to expand our role in reporting on campus matters. Throughout my time in both the Review and Binghamton, the most significant articles published by Binghamton Review relate to reporting information which was unknown to the public. The continuation of this tradition is necessary in order to maintain our principles. Finally, I will continue to write articles which present different ways of thinking about society.

Business Manager: Charles Forman

Hey everyone! My name is Charles Forman, and I am a rising sophomore at Binghamton University. I am an English major who intends to pursue a career in Law, likely in a business law-related field. In high school, I started a blog called Disclosed Gamer which received thousands of views every month and had a following of over 40,000 across platforms. I am so excited to become the business manager of the Review and use my previous experience to help advance our school’s paper to new heights. I write about Business, Politics, and Pop culture, and school-related issues. I enjoy watching television (a little too much), reading the news, and playing sports (Tennis, swimming, running, and biking). I am so excited to see what the future holds, and I am more than ready to be a part of this journey.

Social Media Shitposter: Arthur O’Sullivan

Ahoy. My name is Arthur O’Sullivan. My pronouns are I/you/he/she/it/we/you all/ they. I am a rising sophomore, and my major is…I’ll get back to you on that. I am the Social Media Shitposter for the Review, meaning that I post the articles, e-magazine, and other review-related (and unrelated) things on our social media. I write about the society in which we live.

Parting Advice

By Jake Schweitzer

Frankly, I can not believe that four years have passed since I began my education at Binghamton University. To me, it doesn’t seem real; I still remember waking up and being packed into my parents’ car, before being driven four hours across the state while the sky was still kissed pink-rose, thinking it was just another day before high school. The anxiety and, to a lesser extent, homesickness, really hit me a week after staying in my cramped, three-person dorm in CIW. Beyond the unideal room situation, I knew practically nothing about Binghamton beyond the brief tour I was given. While I did know some distant acquaintances that went to this University, we always stood on the periphery of each other’s lives, meaning that any close friendship between myself and them was highly unlikely, despite my best efforts. Nonetheless, I took solace from the fact that this was a new setting, and over time I gradually became acclimated to my new home, made new friends, and pushed myself to do well in class. Over this time, I’ve read books ranging from Jonathan Haidt to Marcus Aurelius, and think I have learned a lot from my time here. Therefore, I want to leave Binghamton University with some parting advice for those that may have been in a similar situation to me. Who knows, you may learn something from the advice I provide. They go as follows:

I. Understand your limits.

Entering Binghamton for the first time felt like an ambitious undertaking and, the truth was, it wasn’t something to be overwhelmed with. Between the academic aspect of doing well in classes, knowing practically no one when first arriving here, and trying to get by day-to-day, managing my time was extremely difficult. I noticed, especially during my first two years at Binghamton, that you had to understand “time management” in order to succeed. While this in and of itself is sound advice, it is missing an important caveat: manage your time with things that are actually worthwhile or can provide you with feasible benefits. Sometimes this could include doing work or simply engaging in hobbies that you find enjoyable. However, if you find yourself being stretched thin, even with your schedule in order, only for you to engage in something you have no interest in, why do so? From my own experience, this results in you becoming stressed, tired, and miserable. Don’t just simply “manage” your time; understand HOW to use such time effectively. Find what works for you within your abilities and stick with it.

II. Assume good faith.

It is very easy to become lost within the machinations of one’s own perspective. We can think of this in a political sense. Given that we live on a college campus, the dominant school of political thought skews towards the left, although there are certainly some voices (albeit few) from the political right. At the very extreme ends of the spectrums, the most polarized voices from the far left and far right engage in a dualistic sense of thinking that reminds me of the religious wars of old. Does someone hold right-of-center views? Then obviously they are evil bigoted authoritarians, says the polarized far-leftist. Does someone hold left-of-center views? Then obviously they must be evil communists, says the polarized far-rightist. From this point of view, it’s merely a battle of good versus evil, a “cosmic war”, if you will. Of course, this can be applied in a more general sense, when we automatically assume a drastic extreme about someone or something without evidence. The solution to this social ill that you may encounter on campus and beyond? Assume good faith; assume that the person you are interacting with can teach you a thing or two, and that their perspective is not influenced by a genuine sort of malice. Try, instead, to truly consider things from their point of view. Not only does this sort of thing help with understanding political opposition that you disagree with and humanizes their perspectives, but it can be applied in everyday life. Think of this when you may be having difficulties with roommates. I know I have had such issues at Binghamton.

III. Reject iconoclasm.

Iconoclasm is defined as the destruction of images or statues for some religious or political goal. The term has often been applied to mean that such images are denigrative to the practice of one’s faith, and thus must be destroyed. Obviously, when I am discussing iconoclasm, I am not referring to the literal destruction of icons on campus or even the mass trashing of Binghamton Review issues that I’ve seen firsthand. Rather, I use iconoclasm in the sense that some simply seek to have their own opinions validated, and those that choose not to conform to this validation are to be excommunicated from the social sphere, or, as some people say with varying levels of seriousness, become “canceled”. Again, while this could be applied in a political context, it could also be applied to an absolutest mindset that is inculcated within us from a lifetime of comfort and yes-men. My point is that you, as a Binghamton student, should not expect such affirmation constantly for every opinion you hold from everyone under the sun. Rather than holding a desire to remove any opinion that does not automatically validate yourself, as would be the norm for iconoclasts, approach such arguments as being a vehicle for understanding. The added perspective could give you a real sense of gravitas to the opinions you hold, why you hold them, and a good look at the true face of those who disagree with you. It may even convince you that perhaps you hold your views based on irrational premises and that it is better for you to adjust or change your argument for your benefit.

These are rather general recommendations, though I think that, had I had this advice before coming to Binghamton, I would have been better off knowing such information. Nonetheless, I see it as my responsibility to pass what I have learned to you, the average Binghamton student. Always remember that you can succeed and that you are not alone.