E-mail Lists Proliferate in Houses

“Sophomore philosophy concentrator, 6’3’’, blonde, blue-eyed Chicagoan. Likes long walks on the beach, soft kisses, and talking about feelings. Seeking meaningful relationship with mature, independent, intelligent, and charming woman.”

Patrick T. Smith ’04 meant his personal ad mostly as a joke, but two Winthrop House women have already responded to his Sept. 28 message on Throptalk, Winthrop’s new open e-mail list.

Nine of Harvard’s 12 houses have begun open e-mail lists, through which residents send messages to one address that everyone in the house receives. Many of these lists have started in the last few weeks or months, prompting annoyance from some students who were receiving masses of unwanted e-mails.

“We just wanted a forum where students could share opinions,” said Andrew P. Nikonchuk ’02, also a Crimson editor, who runs Quincy’s open list, which started at the end of last year. “It’s about half and half between selling stuff [and discussion].”

The open lists are not moderated, and students send messages ranging from advertisements for used books to notices about lost items to responses to political discussions, some of which can grow heated.

“There’s a mass of rage and a frenzy of political discussion,” said Jesse R. Andrews ’04, who estimates that he receives 20 to 40 e-mails a day from the Adams House Schmooze, one of the oldest open lists.

And Ting Wang ’02 said that the Cabot list discussions had been abused by personal taunting of some contributors. “One person would write a sincere message and another would undermine it by attacking them,” Wang said.

Nevertheless, Wang said that these messages were in the minority and that the open list had contributed to a closer house community.

“I’m surprised to see people who are generally shy writing passionately about their beliefs,” he said. “We didn’t have it last year and people tended to be secluded in blocking groups.”Those who are unhappy with the flood of e-mails, which can vary in number from 10 to 40 per day, can unsubscribe from the lists.

“When [Cabot House’s list] first debuted, I got really annoyed and unsubscribed,” said Paul B. Kingston ’02. “The first day or two it was just a lot of random stuff. People were asking about [wall] posters, and people were responding that this was ridiculous.”

Others choose to remain on the list and just ignore the unwanted messages. “It’s worth the trouble,” said Keith A. Berkoben ‘04. “It’s not like someone’s banging on your door. It’s just your inbox.”

Kaitlyn M. Choi ‘02, co-chair of the Cabot House Committee, said Cabot did have a voluntary e-mail list last year but only began to automatically subscribe residents at the start of this year. While she said most people who were annoyed by the e-mails had unsubscribed, some list discussion has focused on whether Cabot should have the open list at all.

“It became a big debate about whether we should have the list,” Choi said. “When people just ask quick questions, it’s less annoying than opinionated statements about the list itself.”

Lowell, Dunster and Currier are the only houses that do not have open lists, but both Dunster and Currier’s House Committees are currently considering the possibility.

Dunster currently has a moderated list to which about one-third of residents subscribe. Students send announcements to the House Committee, which forwards them to subscribers anywhere from zero to three times a day.

“The benefit [of an unmoderated list] is that it can be a lot of fun,” said Vanessa G. Henke ‘02, co-chair of the Dunster House Committee.