What is the role of Outlook as a student publication? Should it restrict itself to pleasing its readers or interact with them? Is it a tool in the hands of the student body or a third party along with students and the administration? What do objectivity and balance mean? Who are the readers to whom Outlook is directed? Those are some of the recurrent subjects under constant debate within Outlook itself and within the student body.

 I think pleasing the reader is the last aim any newspaper should have. Pleasing the reader is indeed a diminishing approach to journalistic principles that undermines the importance of the journalistic mission in society. 
I think that there should be a balance in any publication, Outlook included, between a market policy of targeting the readers as consumers who need to be satisfied by what they consume and a leading policy in which the newspaper plays the role of an instrument of change in society. The first policy implies that the publication cannot disappoint its readers. In a way it has to publish what they expect it to publish. On the other hand a policy of leadership gives the newspaper a more global role as initiator of social change; it transforms the paper into a discussion forum where ideas flourish and truth and awareness prevail. The source of the description of the media as the "fourth power" in society comes from the role of newspapers, radios and TV as tools for social change. 
Various examples of such a role exist around the world: in the Ukraine the assassination of a journalist led thousands to the streets; in the Czech Republic the strike of the editorial board of the official TV station mobilized thousands of supporters; the Watergate scandal published in The Washington Post led to the resignation of President Nixon.
Narrowing the problem down to the scale of our University, I cannot but notice a disparity between the two policies in Outlook. Attention is being focused on reflecting the image of the AUB campus rather than on promoting awareness among the student body. I am neither generalizing nor categorically discrediting efforts being made towards improving the selection of the subjects being treated. I am only reflecting a general feeling after skimming through  Outlook's weekly Tuesday issues. Until when should Outlook cover receptions and dinners where "party-goers enjoy rich menus of panache salad and creamy chocolate cakes"? Aren't there petit fours in all receptions given on the AUB grounds? Outlook gives too much coverage to parties at the expense of other more important aspects of campus life. Why don't we widen the scope of the issues we tackle? I think there should be a push forward in covering issues related to student life on and off campus. Why not widen the scope of the subjects covered to include issues related to the rest of the AUB community such as the faculty or the workers and employees or the alumni?

Look at the coverage of sports events in Outlook. Do they reflect the real interest of students in athletics on campus? I think the answer lies in the small number of students attending sports matches of varsity teams. Despite this meager attendance, Outlook is making big efforts in promoting sports. thus not reflecting the interest of readers but rather leading them and driving their interest towards sports. This example of a publication being the tool of change is what should be extended in our student publication.
   Outlook is an independent student publication: it doesn't speak in the name of the student body or in the name of any of its clubs or groups. In that respect it might be compared to a student club open to all AUB students with the mission statement of issuing a student publication. It is a tool in the hands of students to drive change forward and to promote the ideas they would like to discuss or focus on and the information they would like to know. Outlook has to abide by the rules of responsible journalism as any other media, but it has also has to contend with the subjectivity of its owners and its staff. 
Hence, it is not a third party among the students and the administration: it is a student institution advocating student opinions and student awareness. It should not be a stand-alone entity in the AUB campus. I am neither promoting subjectivity nor attacking the principles of reporting. I also don't want Outlook to follow the example of Pravda under the soviet regime. All I am saying is that we as students should use this publication as a tool to promote our interests.
 Some issues might be "depressing and too serious," but isn't this sometimes the reality of the facts in AUB, such as tuition increase or recruitment? "Making people laugh" is not an aim; amusing the readers should take second place behind investigative reporting and promoting issues of  student interest. Outlook should remain a tool of change in the hands of the student body.