I feel that in your January 2016 issue of the Harbinger, you misrepresented Harry’s Restaurant and Dairy Bar and what type of food they specialize in serving. When my eye caught the ad, I first noticed the line, “When you think you’re about to freeze, come to Harry’s for some mac n’ cheese!” Personally, I thought this was the most clever part of the ad and I praise the editor for creating it, but the pictures that compliment it do not do the restaurant justice. Firstly, when you arrive at Harry’s, one of the first things you see on their sign is “FRIED CLAMS”, but in the advertisement, the pictures show students enjoying pancakes, pasta, and fries. Yes, Harry’s does serve those foods, but that is not what made them well known. It was their seafood and ice cream that made them who they are today. Students looking at the ad may get the wrong idea about the restaurant and may become disinterested or interested for all the wrong reasons.

Also the advertisement had a few discrepancies that were overlooked in the publishing process. Firstly, you show a picture of 3 students outdoors that are about to “freeze” (mentioned earlier in first paragraph), but they are all wearing 5 layers of clothing each. It comes off as a little silly. Another discrepancy I found was with the actress taking the photos with the pancakes. In the other pictures, the picture taker had this great pattern in which the actors/actresses would not look at the camera, and it would create a great omniscient point of view for the reader of the ad. But in the picture with the girl and the pancakes, she is staring directly into the camera. With her looking directly into the camera, she creates an awkward situation for the reader and downplays the rest of the ad because the reader has to look directly back at her while she takes a bite of food.

Knowing that the Harry’s ad is a staple part to every Harbinger issue, the improvement of it will not only bring more business to the diner, but also become more appealing to the reader. Because of its current state, I suggest in your next issue to have more shots with students enjoying seafood and talking with each other, rather than shots with a single focus and with a not as good representative food. I do not think it properly models what Harry’s is all about, good seafood and ice cream.

From,

Joe San Clemente