Categories Satirical Magazine Circulation 5,000 Country USA | Frequency Triannual First issue 1899 | |
Publisher University of Pennsylvania - SAC | ||
The Pennsylvania Punch Bowl is a humor magazine published by students at the University of Pennsylvania, founded in 1899.
Contents
History
The Pennsylvania Punch Bowl was founded in 1899 by members of the Philomathean Society, making it one of the oldest college humor magazines in the United States.
The magazine was intermittently published during the twentieth century, appearing in only 70 of the years from 1899 to 1999. The magazine is currently printed three times a year, coming out at the end of each semester and when the students arrive at school in the fall.
In fall 2006, the magazine created a new website, which adds new humor pieces every day. In addition to its regular set of student columnists, the Punch Bowl features new contributors each Friday. Recurring pieces in the magazine and website include "Letter from Amy Gutmann" and "Pokémon University."
The Winter 2008 Issue - "The Racism Diversity Issue" - attracted attention and created a minor controversy on campus because of pieces inside that certain student groups saw as unfairly targeting or aiming a disproportionate number of jokes at certain racial groups., The University's campus newspaper later criticized these student groups for their overreaction to the issue. As a result of this minor ordeal and to better assuage the offended parties, the Punch Bowl made their Spring 2008 issue "43% less racist."
In answer to a question about his advice for the young, University of Pennsylvania alumnus Ezra Pound refers to the Punch Bowl in a 1962 issue of The Paris Review. "In fact the University of Pennsylvania student Punchbowl used to have as its motto, "Any damn fool can be spontaneous."