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Thursday April 6, 2017 vol. CXLI no. 37
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Steinberg ’99, former Four U. students receive Goldwater Buzzfeed president, scholarship discusses media future By Hunter Campbell staff writer
By Abhiram Karuppur associate news editor
When Jon Steinberg ’99 was a freshman, the University had just installed broadband in all of the dorms — things like Amazon Pantry and Hulu weren’t even yet imagined. Steinberg, the former Buzzfeed president and chief operating officer, discussed the future of media and how viewership habits among millennials are changing the media landscape. In a lecture titled “The End and The Beginning of Television,” Steinberg began by explaining how quickly technology has come to impact people’s daily lives since the time he first arrived on campus. “Nobody had a mobile phone, and internet technology was not a thing,” he said. “The computer science building ... was not that busy, and there weren’t a lot of people taking computer science classes.” Steinberg, who is now the founder and CEO of Cheddar, a new video media company, explained that he describes
the current media landscape as multiple “bets,” since new entrants to the industry have to make a bet on what the next big platform or technology will be. He noted that the founder of modern cable, John Malone, once told a banker who wasn’t convinced that cable was going to be successful that “conventional wisdom is usually right and seldom profitable.” Steinberg noted that the takeaway from this quote is that people should pursue ideas that “are not right” because will be profitable. He said that everyone is living in a post-TV era, and displayed statistics showing the median age of viewers on certain channels. According to the Economist, viewership among 18-24 year olds has declined 45 percent over the past six years. In contrast, viewership by adults over 65 has grown by a smaller percentage. “Despite the facts being undeniable, they are so shocking that people think they couldn’t possibly be true,” Steinberg said. Another striking statistic
was the median age of viewers on specific news channels, and Steinberg showed that the median age of MSNBC viewers was 63, while CNBC had a median viewership age of 67. “Half the audience is dead, right?” he joked. Steinberg added that a small fraction of viewers on CNBC and MSNBC are below the age of 54, but despite this, these networks still pull in close to one billion dollars of revenue every year from cable companies. These cable companies pay networks based on how many customers have access to these networks, not on the number of people who actually watch the shows. “I want to pick a business that does a billion dollars a year that nobody watches,” Steinberg said. “That sounds like a good thing to compete with, for me.” He said that the bet that he is making is that in the future, nearly everyone will be watching two categories of content. One will be similar to Netflix, HBO, Amazon — long-form dramas, comedies, See STEINBERG page 2
IMAGE BY ABHIRAM KARUPPUR
Jon Steinberg ’99, the founder and CEO of Cheddar and former president of Buzzfeed, gave a lecture called “The End and The Beginning of Television.”
Four University students — Jonathan Lu ’18, Omkar Shende ’18, Sally Jiao ’18, and Lamia Ateshian ’18 — will be recipients of the 2017 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship. These students are four of the 240 total scholarship recipients out of a field of 1,286 nominees nationwide. The scholarship is awarded to outstanding candidates in the STEM fields who want to pursue vocations in which they can apply their skills to advancing innovations in the public interest. The recipients of the scholarship are undergraduate sophomores and juniors who intend
to have careers in engineering, the natural sciences, or mathematics. Scholarships are available for either one or two years, with a maximum of $7,500 in need-based aid given per year. The four University recipients each received one-year scholarships.The recipients can use the scholarship to cover tuition and room-and-board fees next year. Lu ’18, who hails from Fremont, Calif., is concentrating in computer science and pursuing a certificate in statistics and machine learning. “I chose both of these just because broadly they’re very useful, and also I’m a quantitive person,” Lu said when asked about why he chose these topics of study. See GOLDWATER page 2
S T U D E N T A F FA I R S
Whig-Clio hosts debate on prison divestment By Audrey Spensley staff writer
The American Whig-Cliosophic society hosted a debate on Wednesday, April 5, on whether the University should divest from private prisons. The ultimate vote was 24 for Whig, who supported divestment, and 12 for Clio, who were opposed. Much of the debate centered on the ethical or political implications of divestment from private prisons. Whig argued that the University should divest because of the morally egregious nature of private prisons, which they said profit from a system of mass incarceration and institutionalized racism. “The larger argument is the endemic problems of private prisons, namely the incentive to profit off of incarceration,” Whig debater Rohit Dilip ’19 explained in an interview. Clio countered that divest-
ment is only justified in the case of unequivocally immoral investments. The University has previously divested in two cases — one involving apartheid in South Africa and the other due to the genocide in Darfur. Clio argued that the question of private prisons is political rather than moral, and that the University should not make investment decisions based on the political views of a percentage of the study body. The Whigs countered that the University’s investments are never apolitical and that issues which are political are also moral. They further argued that the University should act consistently with its informal motto “in the nation’s service.” The debate also focused on the strength of student body support for divestment and whether student support should be a factor in the deciSee DEBATE page 2
NEWS AND NOTES
Slaughter ’80, Gast GS ’84, Rubin ’65 to receive honorary degrees staff writer
Three University alumni — Anne-Marie Slaughter ’80, Alice Gast GS ’84, and Donald B. Rubin ’65 — will receive honorary degrees and speak at commencement ceremonies this May at Indiana University, the University of Notre Dame, and the University of Chicago, respectively. Slaughter, former Dean of the Wilson School, will speak at Indiana University’s commencement. Slaughter is currently the President and CEO of New America, a nonpartisan think tank that works to combine research and outreach with political engagement. From 2009-2011 Slaughter served as the director of Policy Planning for the United States Department of State and was the first woman to hold the position. She is a
professor emerita of politics and international affairs at the University. Slaughter was thrust into the public eye in 2012 when she wrote a widelyread article in The Atlantic titled “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All” concerning the complex obstacles faced by mothers who are in positions of power in their work environments. Gast will speak at the University of Notre Dame’s commencement and receive an honorary degree in engineering. Gast earned both her master’s and doctorate degrees from Princeton and later conducted research at Stanford University. Her work has focused on understanding chemical reactions that occur on the surfaces of complex fluids. She is a co-author of the textbook “Physical Chemistry of Surfaces,” which has provided students with new
ways to consider colloid phenomena. Gast served as Vice President for Research and Associate Provost at MIT and later as President of Lehigh University. She is currently the President of Imperial College London. Rubin will receive an honorary degree from the University of Chicago at the school’s commencement ceremonies. Rubin’s work pioneered new statistical methods for analyzing incomplete data. Rubin’s findings, outlined in books like “Statistical Analysis with Missing Data” and “Multiple Imputation for Nonresponse in Surveys,” are well-known topics of study for statistics students all over the world. Rubin is currently a statistics professor at Harvard University, and completed his undergraduate studies at Princeton University, where he concentrated in psychology.
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Anne-Marie Slaughter ’80 will speak at Indiana University’s commencement and receive an honorary degree from the school.
In Opinion
Today on Campus
Columnist Liam O’Connor advocates for a subtle name change to West College, and Contributing Columnist Daehee Lee calls on Princetonians to be better leaders than South Korea’s corrupt elite. PAGE 4
4:30 p.m.: The panel “Reporting on the Front Lines in Greece — and New Jersey” will take place at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 6, in the Simpson International Building, Room 144.
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Thursday April 6, 2017
Carlstein: This was a great debate Juniors Lu, Shende, Jiao, and Ateshian awarded about a pressing campus issue DEBATE prestigious scholarship Continued from page 1
sion at all. The Whigs stated that 89 percent of students who voted in a referendum on divestment indicated support; Clio countered that the referendum did not meet the bar for student participation which the University requires for divestment because not enough students voted on it. Clio also expressed concern that divestment would stifle open campus debate on the is-
sue by sending a political message to students; Whig disagreed with this idea. The final major aspect of divestment the groups debated was its financial implications. Clio argued that the sole purpose of the University’s endowment is to provide money to benefit students. Whig responded that the endowment is not entirely separate from the University’s mission and that the effect on financial aid due to divestment would be minimal. Overall, the debate benefit-
ted from high turnout and participation, President of the Senate Sinan Ozbay ’19 noted. “The debate engaged in many levels of argumentation; discursive arguments, the economic impact of divestment, the morality, the actual impact,” Ozbay said. “I think this was a great debate about a pressing campus issue, and I’m glad we had it,” Joseph Carlstein ’18, who argued for Clio, said. The debate took place in Whig Hall at 5:00 p.m.
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GOLDWATER Continued from page 1
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“I really like using math and algorithms to try to solve real world problems, and those give me the best way to do that.” Shende, from Troy, Mich., is a mechanical and aerospace engineering major. He is currently pursuing a certificate in materials science and engineering. Furthermore, he wants to pursue a Ph.D. in applied physics or engineering, with an additional focus on aerospace propulsion. In an email to the ‘Prince’ Shende said, “after Princeton, I plan on going to a graduate program, and eventually entering academia or a Federally Funded Research and Development Center.” Shende is a Head Copy Editor for the ‘Prince.’ Jiao, from Plainsboro, N.J., is a junior concentrating in chemical and biological engineering. She is also pursuing multiple certificates — one in applications of computing and another in applied and computational mathematics. “I’m planning on going to
graduate school and getting a Ph.D.,” Jiao said. “Afterwards, I think I’d like to stay in academia; I definitely want to continue with research.” She added that she really enjoys teaching, and that is something she would be able to do within academia. Ateshian, from New York City, is pursuing a major in electrical engineering as well as a certificate in engineering physics. She would like to pursue a career in academia after leaving the University. The scholarship is provided by the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program, established by the U.S. Congress in 1986. The merit-based scholarship is meant to honor the 1964 presidential candidate and Republican senator from Arizona, Barry Goldwater. On its website, the foundation states its intended purpose, that “the Goldwater Foundation is helping ensure that the U.S. is producing the number of highlyqualified professionals the Nation needs in these critical fields.”
Thursday April 6, 2017
Steinberg now CEO of media company Cheddar STEINBERG Continued from page 1
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and documentaries. The other category will be short videos that people post on social media sites, like Facebook. “There will be nothing in between,” Steinberg said. “You will never watch cable news, you will never have a live news service, you will watch Netflix, and you will binge on garbage on Facebook.” Steinberg said that his company, Cheddar, is focused on rebooting the “ambient window-on-the-world content,” which includes traditional news and business channels that inform people on day-to-day events. He explained that the difference with Cheddar is that this content will be delivered by millennial-aged correspondents, and the stories that will be covered will include talking speakers from Amazon, selfdriving cars, and other interesting and inspiring stories. Steinberg launched Cheddar in April 2016 and uses Facebook Live to broadcast its content. Today, it have one million live viewers per day, and he noted that Cheddar had the first live 360-degree view of the Snap Inc. IPO at the New York Stock Exchange, where Cheddar has a news desk. Steinberg noted that members of Congress have also begun to appear on Cheddar’s programs. He explained that the total cost of hardware to broadcast their news service is under $800,000, since the cameras were built from scratch and are robotically controlled, while broadcasting in high definition. “That’s miraculous, since you would be hard-pressed to buy a camera from a major news network for under $120,000,” Steinberg said. “The consumer-grade technology has done better than the industrial-grade technology.” To demonstrate this point, Steinberg showed that a Cheddar reporter was able to broadcast the emergency appeal on Facebook’s Periscope by the ACLU on the first day of President Trump’s immigration executive order. He noted that MSNBC, which was unable to send a reporter to the courtroom, displayed Cheddar’s broadcast on its network. Steinberg explained that in order for a media company like his to gain traction, it needs to be aggressive. It should strategically place content and should make deals as frequently as possible. Companies should sign
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contracts with distributors rather than simply agreeing to “terms of service” agreements. He explained that Cheddar has its content on Sling TV, and has been able to partner with Twitter to have its content live-streamed every day at 3 p.m. More importantly, Steinberg noted that Cheddar’s business news content is “neighborhooded” with similar channels on Twitter, such as Bloomberg News, so that viewers who watch the channel know specifically what content to expect. “We’re thinking creatively of other distribution methods in order to replicate this,” Steinberg said. Referencing Cheddar’s purchases of broadcasting licenses in five U.S. markets, he noted that Cheddar “will be able to broadcast to cord-cutters who have an antenna to consume news in addition to ondemand content.” He noted that 70 percent of Cheddar’s viewers are under 40 years old, which shows that millennials and young people are still interested in traditional topics like finance, investing, and business news. He added that Cheddar’s anchors are all young and diverse, and that their broadcast locations at the New York Stock Exchange and the Flatiron Building provide a window to the real world outside. In the coming year, Steinberg explained that Cheddar will be launching two primetime non-news programs that aim to reboot previous proven and successful shows. One show, called “Pro vs. Pipsqueak,” will be similar to “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?” except that the show will feature a child and a Wall Street analyst, who will debate whether a particular stock is worthwhile. Another idea is “Business Court,” based off of “People’s Court,” which will feature ridiculous business controversies experienced by millennials, such as “should millennials be allowed to vape in the office?” Steinberg explained that he has been amazed at how radically the world has changed over such a short period of time, using Amazon as an example. “If you had told me five years ago that the people who ship the toilet paper to my house would win an Emmy, I would not have thought that that was possible,” he said, referring to Amazon’s Emmy wins over the past few years. The talk was sponsored by the Entrepreneurship Club, and took place in McCosh 50 at 5 p.m.
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Opinion
Thursday April 6, 2017
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Noblesse oblige: Failure among Korea’s elite Daehee Lee
contributing columnist
M
arch 10, 2017 was more than just a regular Friday for the Princetonians who have been following South Korea’s presidential corruption scandal. It was the day when the South Korean Constitutional Court upheld the National Assembly’s decision to remove exPresident Park from the office of the presidency. Park was removed on charges of disrespecting the duties of the presidency. Park’s national policies were established by Choi Soon-sil, a mere civilian without any authority, who acted as if she were the true president of South Korea. This was a day when democratic principles prevailed over the powerful, and the government recognized the will of the South Korean people’s collective. The Court’s decision shows that no one is above the law and that South Korean democracy will not perish. I was ecstatic when I heard of the Court’s decision; I had been following the scandal for months. I had pored over any credible news I could find online, and fully supported the massive protests against Park. I rejoiced in the South Korean people’s reclamation of their basic freedom to select leaders
and in the justice dealt out to those affiliated with the scandal. More importantly, I celebrated the heroism of the few journalists on the Korean news channel JTBC who were brave enough to endure the wrath of the government while investigating such a politically explosive scandal. By choosing to use their privileged education for public benefit, these reporters show that educated elites, not unlike students at Princeton, should work not for the sake of their own egos, but for the fulfillment of their social responsibility. Although the Choi scandal is now a widely accepted reality, five months ago it was a secret known only by a few individuals. These individuals were comprised of the best and the brightest that the Korean educational system had to offer. They were the people in control of the government and of the nation’s businesses. They were the aristocrats of South Korean society, who prided themselves on being the uncontested leaders of South Korea. These “leaders” knew of the unhealthy relationship between Park and Choi, but stood by and did nothing as Park and Choi flagrantly violated the foundations of Korean democracy. Some even participated in the corruption: Lee Jae Yong, the vice chairman of Samsung, South Korea’s largest corporation, paid Park 43.3 billion won,
or roughly 38 million dollars, for illegal governmental protection of Samsung interests. The academic and social elites’ inability to uphold the idea of noblesse oblige is not surprising. It often seems that people are ruled predominantly by their self-interests, whether they are educated at the finest universities or born into the most prestigious families. But the journalists who uncovered the Choi scandal challenge this pessimistic outlook. The reporters worked tirelessly, sacrificing hours to piece together a single shredded document to retrace the corruption and crimes committed at the highest level of the South Korean government. They put their livelihoods on the line, as their investigative work could have landed them on a careerending government blacklist. Their courage in braving such a risk to find the truth for the Korean people provides a shining example of what elites could be. These reporters were at the forefront of their field, honed by years of high education, with their careers on the line, but they did not back down. Princeton has the capacity to inspire this kind of social responsibility in its elite students. The University has produced leaders, scientists, and intellectuals in every field. Our alumni are at the forefront of the political and academic arenas. Our
education alone, however, does not make us true elites, not the kind that responsibly lead society. We must also understand our responsibilities to humanity, making sure that we are not blinded by our elevated status. The Choi scandal shows us that we cannot stand by and tolerate corruption when we, as elites, have the capacity to put an end to it. We cannot hide from the troubles of the world behind our diplomas and the skills we have learned at this institution. We must use what we learn here at the University to improve the lives of others. The Korean politicians and business people who called themselves the elites thought their comfort was more important than the greater good of the South Korean people. They led the Korean people in directions that did not reflect the people’s wishes. They failed in their responsibility, as elites, to support the people and to make sure that their wishes were reflected in the general direction of society and politics. But we at the University can do better. Like the JTBC reporters who risked their careers to make sure that the public had all the facts, we have a responsibility to be public servants. Daehee Lee is a freshman from Palisades Park, NJ. He can be reached at daeheel@princeton.edu.
West is Best Liam O’Connor columnist
I
n the aftermath of the Black Justice League’s protests last spring, the University has undertaken several initiatives to satisfy their demands. One of these initiatives was started at the Board of Trustees’ meeting on Sept. 26, 2016 when it launched the Committee on Naming. The Committee is charged with “naming buildings or other spaces not already named for historical figures or donors to recognize individuals who would bring a more diverse presence to the campus.” Currently, the Committee is accepting suggestions to name the atrium of Robertson Hall and to rename West College. While I approve of the former, I am against the latter. West College should keep its name for two reasons: First, West College’s name ought to remain unchanged to save money and avoid unnecessary confusion. Altering a building’s name at the University is not as simple as waving a magic wand. If
the Board of Trustees were to approve a new name, the University’s staff would have to correct all references to its old name. There are a significant number of publications that would have to be changed, ranging from campus maps to University websites. Even the University’s smartphone app would need an update to accommodate the change. While amending all of this is feasible, it would require a great deal of time and money that could otherwise be spent on services that more directly benefit students. It is also likely that there would be widespread confusion. The old name will probably continue to circulate through the vernacular of students and alumni in the years following the change. This could prove problematic for prospective applicants on campus tours or new students during orientation week when they ask for directions. Second, the building’s name can already commemorate a historical figure who would add to campus diversity as well. I propose that it
should be named “West College” for Dr. Cornel West GS ’80 instead of its geographic position in relation to Cannon Green. West attended Harvard College as an undergraduate and was the first African American to graduate from Princeton with a Ph.D. in philosophy. He has taught at the University of Paris, Union Theological Seminary, Harvard University, Yale University, and most recently here at Princeton University. Dr. West has been active in civil rights demonstrations across the country, such as the 2013 protests in Ferguson, Missouri. His book Race Matters altered the course of dialogue on race relations on a national level. In politics, Dr. West has aided several candidates in their presidential campaigns, including Barack Obama, and was a prominent member of several social movements, such as Occupy Wall Street. At the University, Dr. West has distinguished himself as a professor, having received over twenty honorary degrees. He taught a number of courses in the religion
vol. cxli
Sarah Sakha ’18
editor-in-chief
Matthew McKinlay ’18 business manager
BOARD OF TRUSTEES president Thomas E. Weber ’89 vice president Craig Bloom ’88 secretary Betsy L. Minkin ’77 treasurer Douglas J. Widmann ’90 Gregory L. Diskant ’70 William R. Elfers ’71 Stephen Fuzesi ’00 Zachary A. Goldfarb ’05 Joshua Katz Kathleen Kiely ’77 Rick Klein ’98 James T. MacGregor ’66 Alexia Quadrani Randall Rothenberg ’78 Annalyn Swan ’73 Michael E. Seger ’71 Richard W. Thaler, Jr. ’73
141ST MANAGING BOARD managing editors Samuel Garfinkle ’19 Grace Rehaut ’18 Christina Vosbikian ’18 Head news editor Marcia Brown ’19 news editors Abhiram Karuppur ’19 Claire Lee ’19 opinion editor Newby Parton ’18 sports editor David Xin ’19
and African American studies departments. In the fall semester, he taught a freshman seminar (FRS 195) that analyzed the legacies of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel and Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. Along with Dr. Robert George, he has traveled to numerous universities to promote the value of a liberal arts education. Leaving West College’s name unchanged would provide an opportunity to accomplish the Committee’s task of recognizing individuals who would bring a more diverse presence to the campus without having to spend much money. There are few noteworthy people, living or deceased, who have such close ties to the University and have contributed as much to societal progress as Dr. West. Although I do not know whether the Board of Trustees would approve of my proposal, I am certain that it would bring muchneeded diversity to the campus’ iconography. Liam O’Connor is a freshman from Wyoming, Del. He can be reached at lpo@princeton.edu.
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street editor Jianing Zhao ’20 photography editor Rachel Spady ’18 web editor David Liu ’18 chief copy editors Isabel Hsu ’19 Omkar Shende ’18 design editor Rachel Brill ’19 associate opinion editors Samuel Parsons ’19 Nicholas Wu ’18 associate sports editors Miranda Hasty ’19 Claire Coughlin ’19 associate street editor Andie Ayala ’19 Catherine Wang ’19 associate chief copy editors Caroline Lippman ’19 Megan Laubach ’18 editorial board co-chairs Ashley Reed ’18 Connor Pfeiffer ’18 cartoons editor
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Thursday April 6, 2017
Sports
page 6
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Women’s basketball home game attendance correlated with success By David Liu
sports editor emeritus
With the conclusion of another college basketball season on Monday, a fresh wave of data from the NCAA fills the archives. Of the numerous stat lines and trends, one in particular stands out for Princeton: attendance.
A priori, it has been well known that attendance at Ivy League basketball games is smaller than that for the nation at large. Just this past year, the average Division I men’s basketball game tallied over 4,700 attendees. By comparison, the average Ivy League game in the same year barely eclipsed 1,700. Furthermore, it is also widely
recognized that the men’s teams generally attract larger crowds than the women’s teams at every level of competition. For Princeton, the crowd at men’s basketball games frequently doubles, even triples, that for women’s games. Yet beyond these broad generalizations lies an even deeper trend: a closer look at attendance rates to
For over a decade, attendance at men’s basketball home games (orange) has far eclipsed that for the women’s team [black].
women’s games — over the span of a decade — shows attendance is a function of the team’s record while the men’s team, on the other hand, draws a consistent showing regardless of performance. Starting on the men’s side, we analyze the correlation between attendance and the team’s winning percentage over the past decade, where attendance is defined as the average number of attendees per home game, as maintained by the University’s official athletics department. The findings show that, for the men’s varsity team, attendance has been largely independent of success over the past decade. Specifically, the correlation coefficient was under 0.01, suggesting little to no relationship. For the women’s team, however, the analogous data shows a correlation coefficient of 0.572. As a stark example, we can look at the 2009 and 2010 seasons. In 2009, the women’s basketball team balanced a very respectable 50% winning percentage. But, the following year, the Tigers went undefeated in the Ivy League and advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament, during which the team averaged over 2,500 attendees per home game, a mark that was nearly equal to the average for the men’s games.
Before translating the correlation between winning and larger audiences into a causal claim, we will analyze a few potential confounding variables. First we observe that attendance at women’s basketball games is in fact not a function of time. Since 2006, the average attendance has increased and then decreased on an annual basis. Furthermore, average attendance to women’s basketball games has remained amazingly stagnant in the past decade, suggesting that large variations in attendance are unusual and in need of explanation. In fact, since 2006, the national average at women’s basketball games has been 1,569 with a standard deviation of just 33, a minuscule fraction. To explain such grand variation in attendance at women’s basketball games in Jadwin Gymnasium, we are left to believe that success remains a crucial draw for attendees. On the other hand, regardless of the season, attendance at men’s games has been remarkably stable. While the underlying economic and social causes for this correlation can only be inferred, basketball fanatics should think carefully about which games they attend in the future.
Attendance at men’s basketball games has been consistent over the past decade and independent of the team’s on-court success.
Unlike the men’s team, attendance at women’s basketball games has been correlated with the team’s winning percentage, with greater success paralleling greater attendance. GRAPHICS BY DAVID LIU AND SAM GARFINKLE
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The Collegiate Water Polo Association announced today that after a 2-1 weekend at Bucknell, the Princeton Tigers remain No. 10 in the conference.