Constructed Utopia and the ‘Culture of Deception’: the Harvard Expansion towards the Charles River, 1902-1932

Benjamin J. Sacks (Class of 2010) Research Advisor: Felipe Fernández-Armesto

A June 11, 1997 Boston Globe article on Harvard’s expansion into Allston, revealed Harvard’s “secret land purchases, mostly along Western Avenue [in Allston], took place by proxy over several years without the knowledge of abutters or city officials. The university's desire to buy low apparently outweighed its obligation to establish trust with its neighbors.” Although controversial at the time, the practice of secretly buying land was not new to Harvard. Between 1902 and 1932, Harvard employed this tactic in order to construct a series of large residential houses along the Charles River, away from the traditional enclave of Harvard Yard. In particular, both the University and the Harvard Riverside Associates actively employed the strawman approach to gain the necessary land: the utilization of proxy real estate agents to deceive a property owner into believing that they were selling their land to an individual with no Harvard affiliation, when in reality they were selling their land to the University. Fearful of a precipitous loss of tax income and influence, the city of Cambridge and the Massachusetts State Legislature both attempted to intervene in Harvard’s land grab, but with ultimately little success. This narrative adds a new perspective upon the Harvard administration of Abbott Lawrence Lowell, shedding light on his anti-Semitic beliefs, discrimination against religious, ethnic, and immigrant groups, and the continuation of admissions policies that placed class and perceived social rank above merit. This work is currently under review by the New England Quarterly for possible publication.

9. American Studies & Media Studies: This abstract explains the significance of the title of the paper.

The View from the Island: How Al Jazeera English Constructs an Imagined America

Michael Snyder, American Studies (Class of 2009)

Research Advisors: Sarah Sobieraj and Jeanne Dillon

In Arabic, the word “Al Jazeera” means “the island” or “the peninsula.” It’s also the name of the first international news station based out of the Middle East, rivaling media giants like CNN International and BBC World. Despite its success and its launching of an English-language news station in 2006, Al Jazeera has come under fire by US political officials for its biased reporting and “America-hating” agenda. My paper investigates these claims of anti-Americanism by applying a critical lens towards one Al Jazeera English news magazine program called “Inside USA,” launched in the run up to the 2008 US Presidential elections. Through an analysis of television media techniques, such as narration, interviews, cinematography, editing, music and sound, and graphics production, I argue that “Inside USA” crafts a simplified narrative that pits the hardworking and virtuous American people against the greedy and power-hungry elite, who are abstracted in the form of the US government, the military, and big business. Considering the binary nature of this interpretation, I argue that the label “anti-American” does not accurately reflect the journalistic agenda of “Inside USA” nor account for the alternative journalistic lens that truly distinguishes “the View from the Island.”

10. International Relations & Community Health: This abstract summarizes the author’s analysis of a marketing strategy gleaned from internal tobacco-industry documents.