We are all aware of the new Twitter account that has caught Bucknell by storm. The Fucknellian has more followers than the Bucknellian Twitter account, and is a daily topic of conversation. This anonymous tweeter has called out just about every fraternity, sorority, class year, and faculty member at one point or another this semester.
But who is the Fucknellian? Whoever he/she is, they are quick-witted and have a lot of commentary to make on the people on this campus. Through much investigation, I was able to track down this mysterious figure and get some questions answered.
1. How did you develop the idea for the Fucknellian?
The original idea for The Fucknellian was that it would be a monthly publication, in the vein of The Onion or The Colbert Report. It was inspired by the fact that, in my opinion, The Bucknellian is a dishrag. At its best, it’s a blog on paper. It is neither informative, nor subversive. Its opinion pieces are wimpy drivel, its news pieces are late, misinformed, and unhelpful, and the comic strips are literally the worst things I have ever read (that’s not hyperbole. I’m dead serious). My aim is to create something that people actually care about, that’s funny and yet somewhat informative, and doesn’t have terribly dry reviews of each Breaking Bad episode in every issue. Really, guys? Really?
2. Some people have tweeted back at you, clearly offended by your tweets. What do you have to say to them?
It’s all out of love. I love Bucknell more than most, and basically everything about it. My job as a satirist, to be cliché, is to hold up a mirror to Bucknell society. If you don’t like what you see, don’t try to break the mirror. That’s seven years’ bad luck. Instead, change yourself or learn to love yourself.
3. Is there anyone/thing you have yet to make fun of or are afraid of singling out?
I’ve typed out and deleted a couple of tweets about sororities. Fraternities are all in fun and good taste, but for some reason, making fun of sororities is a much more delicate matter. My meanest tweet yet was probably at the expense of ADPi, and it was so hilarious and so accurate that I just felt terrible. Seeing girls cry year in and year out over rush has softened me up a bit, I guess. I’ve also been a little wary to call out a specific student, both worrying about hurting them and revealing who I am personally. I don’t know if that will change over time.
4. How does it make you feel that you get more views than the Bucknellian twitter account? Did you expect such fame?
I believe that what I’ve accomplished is not at all synonymous with the word “fame”. The idea of “Twitter-fame” and “Vine-fame” are concepts that I personally loathe. I’d phrase what I’ve created as “influence.” With my words and humor, I can subtly sway opinions, especially of malleable freshmen. There was no greater moment than hearing some Fiji guy in my lecture class try to reuse a Fucknellian joke as his own, and then have his friend call him out on it. But I will say that getting more views than The Bucknellian was our first goal, and we accomplished it in under a month. Not only that, but a bunch of Bucknell humor accounts have been springing up in my success, and some of them are actually pretty funny. @JudyMickanis and @ThanksBravman are pretty funny.
5. Will you ever tell people who you are?
Will I ever? I’m the worst secret keeper I know. When I first started the account, I didn’t really think of it as something that I would need to keep secret, so I just told a handful of people, “Yo, I made this, check it out.” But as it became more and more apparent that this is something that could get me in hot water, I started trying to obscure my identity as much as possible. But, again, I’m a horrible secret keeper. I’ve accidentally tweeted from my personal account few times and gotten called out on it. It’s probably the worst kept secret on campus; I approximate about a hundred or so people know. I’ve heard people (especially my friends at The Bucknellian) try to figure out who I am due to the tweets, and I like to heavily mislead these conversations. The best theory I’ve heard is that The Fucknellian is run by the school to help gauge the social scene and figure out how to handle the fraternities. That was a funny one.
To answer the question though, probably not. It’s better not to have a face behind it. I try to be as unbiased as possible: I make fun of my own friends, values, fraternity, and even myself. To put a face to the project would simply cause people to write The Fucknellian off for one reason or another.
6. If you could write a Fucknellian tweet about yourself, what would it say in 140 characters?
“Fucknellian editor gets interviewed by Her Campus Bucknell, secretly disappointed that he wasn’t asked to be Campus Cutie.“
7. You’re very critical of Bucknell life, but you claim it’s totally out of love. What’s your least favorite part of Bucknell?
Gender issues are a major problem on our campus. The way that women are discussed and treated is frankly at times appalling. I can’t pretend that I’m never part of the problem, but I like to think that in both my personal life and The Fucknellian, I’m taking strides to work against that. LGBT representation is another major problem that, though improving, really has a long way to go.
That being said, one of the bajillion things I love about Bucknell is that there is a place for everyone. I have so many friends who left Bucknell because they couldn’t find a place here, and they weren’t looking hard enough. Bucknell is my home and my family, and I will make good fun of it until TKE finds out who I am and beats the living crap out of me.
8. If you could only follow one person on twitter, who would it be and why?
I’ve always been a big fan of Total Frat Move and just how ridiculous it is. To pinpoint a person, comedians like Patton Oswalt and Mike Birbiglia always make me laugh. But I’m actually not huge into Twitter, I didn’t use it a ton until I started The Fucknellian.
9. If you could have anyone tweet back at you, who would it be?
I would love if anyone in the administration would tweet back at me, but I doubt they will. I’ve openly tweeted to Dean Lantz and others, but obviously having the word “Fucknellian” on their Twitter account alone would be bad press. Still, a man can dream. @ShitNo1@BUSays and I have a little Twitter beef, but it’s fine because I think my form of humor is a little more refined. Overall, I love it when people tweet at me, especially when they’re angry. Please, readers, send your thoughts.
Although some may get offended by what this writer has to say, it’s comforting to know that it’s all in good fun. Most of these thoughts have crossed our minds at some point, and now here is a figure not afraid to put them out there, concretely, for the world to see. Be sure to follow The Fucknellian on Twitter if you’re looking for a good laugh. You’ll never know what to expect. Each day someone new will be singled out, someone you may not have expected. As shocking as it may seem, there is no doubt you will get a good laugh out of it.