21 Questions with... Gabriel Debenedetti '12

NEWLY-MINTED DAILY PRINCETONIAN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF GABRIEL DEBENEDETTI '12 MAKES A NEWSPAPER ON THE REG, LAUGHS/CRIES IN THE FACE OF DEADLINES, AND, YES, READS THE INK(!)Name: Gabriel A. DebenedettiAge: 20 Major: Politics, with a certificate in American Studies Hometown: Princeton, NJ Eating Club/Residential College/Affiliation: Ivy Club / Rockefeller CollegeWhat was your initial reaction when you found out about the position? I was thrilled, of course! Then, quite quickly, that turned into confusion when my glasses were knocked off in the celebratory mob and I couldn't see a thing.Who’s your favorite Princetonian, living or dead, real or fictional? F. Scott Fitzgerald '17 is most certainly up there, and Hobey Baker '14 is as well.What’s the best meal you’ve eaten in Princeton? This is difficult, because I've lived in Princeton for essentially my entire life. But let's go with the first time I had the filet mignon at the Witherspoon Grill while celebrating my birthday with my family — I'm not sure how many years ago that was. At least five.In one sentence, what do you actually do all day? On a given day, I wake up, think about making a newspaper, do reading, go to class, work on making a newspaper, go to lunch, go to more class, work more on making a newspaper, go to dinner and make a newspaper (not always in that order).What is your greatest guilty pleasure? Reading The Ink in the Prince office.What are your plans for the Prince? Of course, I have many long-term and short-term plans for the Prince, but one of the overarching themes of these plans is pushing the paper into a new and exciting age of comprehensive, high-quality journalism of, for and about the Princeton community. This needs to happen both online and on paper. Let me know how we do.Do you know all the words to Old Nassau? I think so, but don't test me.What is your biggest fear? That this town ceases to have newsworthy things occurring every day.What do you hate most about Princeton? Definitely that I only get one-and-a-half more years here.What’s your drink? Seltzer, at the moment, and Small World coffee — Grumpy Monkey, specifically.What makes you laugh? Deadlines.What makes you cry? See above.Where do you do your best thinking? Outside, on the route back to my room after a late night at 48 University Place. Alternatively, Ivy's crypt and the tables between Holder and Campbell are pretty good, but I haven't used the latter recently now that I no longer live in Holder.When’s bedtime? I've tried to make it sometime before 2:00 this year, but that's quickly changing, which makes 8:00 breakfast difficult.What’s your personal anthem? Just about whatever's playing, as long as it's not Ke$ha.What's the worst place on campus? One of the back corners of one of the basement floors of Firestone during Fall Break or the weekend of Thanksgiving.Who is your mortal enemy? I like to think of time as my greatest enemy, but I sincerely hope our relationship is not yet mortal.What’s the most dangerous thing you’ve done in the past year? Let's just say one of my late night escapades in New York or Washington this summer. That's all.In 25 years, you will be … writing, I hope.What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned at Princeton? That no matter where you are on this campus, and no matter who you are interacting with, you can be sure that everyone you see around you is remarkably good at something.What makes someone a Princetonian? At the very least, a constant desire to better one's self. That and, of course, attending the University. If you've got those two down, I'm pretty sure you've made the cut.