TV Show to Broadcast in Yard

Good Morning America will host its Thursday morning show on a platform in Tercentenary Theater, in what may be the first-ever live television broadcast from Harvard Yard.

The program, which will be devoted almost entirely to Harvard, is part of week-long bus tour of New England.

President Neil L. Rudenstine is slated to be the first guest, appearing shortly after the 7 a.m. start of the two hour show. Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons '67 will also appear, in addition to the Harvard Krokodiloes and an array of undergraduates.

Good Morning America has arranged to have 250 folding chairs set up near the stage for students and faculty. Others may watch the broadcast from anywhere in the Yard.

Press release from ABC, as well as statements from Harvard spokesperson Peter Costa, advertise the event as the first-ever live broadcast from the Yard.

But John Shattuck, vice-president for government, community and public affairs, said the show is by no means the first, since television broadcast were quite common during Harvard's 350th anniversary celebration in 1986.

"Television is by no means a stranger to Tercentenary Theater," Shattucksaid.

Shattuck said his only requirement for the showwas a commitment to serious programming. He saidthe University regularly denies the privilege ofbroadcasting from the Yard to entertainment shows,situations comedies and films.

Both Shattuck and Costa said theGood MorningAmericabroadcast was an experiment of sorts,to see whether television could portray thecomplex issues of higher education.

Judging from Rudenstine's agreement toparticipate, the show is likely also an effort toput a personal face on a University which isclouded in longstanding myths and often criticizedas a research institution that cares little aboutteaching.

Fitzsimmons' interview on the show will bedevoted to "debunking myths," about admissions tothe College. It appears that Fitzsimmons willpresent often cited statistics about the highpercentage of students from public and onfinancial aid.

According to Costa, the program may also bringa blimp to Cambridge to take aerial shots of thecity and the University.

Joan Lunden and Charles Gibson, the show'shosts, have been in Cambridge filming pieces thatwill be produced for the Thursday show.

Lunden and Gibson will conduct interviews froma temporary stage in front of Sever Hall. And theshow's weather forecaster Spencer Christian willdo his half-hourly reports from one of Harvard'stwo boathouses on the Charles River.

The show will also feature a report on Harvardcrew and a panel of undergraduates who will,according to the press release, "voice theirconcern about the issues facing the country."

The program was not allowed to take cameras inclassrooms, Shattuck said.

Shattuck said the only lingering concern of theshow's interference with students' lives istraffic through the Yard on an exam day.

TheGood Morning Americatour will alsotake the show to Portland, Maine; Fitzwilliam,N.H.; Gloucester, Mass; and Newport, R.I

Shattuck said his only requirement for the showwas a commitment to serious programming. He saidthe University regularly denies the privilege ofbroadcasting from the Yard to entertainment shows,situations comedies and films.

Both Shattuck and Costa said theGood MorningAmericabroadcast was an experiment of sorts,to see whether television could portray thecomplex issues of higher education.

Judging from Rudenstine's agreement toparticipate, the show is likely also an effort toput a personal face on a University which isclouded in longstanding myths and often criticizedas a research institution that cares little aboutteaching.

Fitzsimmons' interview on the show will bedevoted to "debunking myths," about admissions tothe College. It appears that Fitzsimmons willpresent often cited statistics about the highpercentage of students from public and onfinancial aid.

According to Costa, the program may also bringa blimp to Cambridge to take aerial shots of thecity and the University.

Joan Lunden and Charles Gibson, the show'shosts, have been in Cambridge filming pieces thatwill be produced for the Thursday show.

Lunden and Gibson will conduct interviews froma temporary stage in front of Sever Hall. And theshow's weather forecaster Spencer Christian willdo his half-hourly reports from one of Harvard'stwo boathouses on the Charles River.

The show will also feature a report on Harvardcrew and a panel of undergraduates who will,according to the press release, "voice theirconcern about the issues facing the country."

The program was not allowed to take cameras inclassrooms, Shattuck said.

Shattuck said the only lingering concern of theshow's interference with students' lives istraffic through the Yard on an exam day.

TheGood Morning Americatour will alsotake the show to Portland, Maine; Fitzwilliam,N.H.; Gloucester, Mass; and Newport, R.I