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Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Bella Nordman

Bella Nordman, Senior Opinion Columnist

Latest from Bella Nordman
Illustration Kellyn Taylor

There are no online spaces for kids anymore

By Bella Nordman, Senior Opinion Columnist / April 23, 2025

Lately, I have been reflecting on my relationship with the internet: From fandoms to reaction videos and subsequently trying to get offline, but I really...

Illustration Ben Putney

Breaking free from the digital grip

By Bella Nordman, Senior Opinion Columnist / April 9, 2025

There has always been pressure to be online. I remember first getting Instagram when I was 13 because the YouTubers I watched had it. I wanted to fit into...

Thousands gather in City Hall Plaza in Boston at the Hands Off 2025 protest on Saturday, April, 5, 2025. (Arthur Mansavage/ Beacon Staff)

‘We do not agonize in Boston; we organize’: ‘Hands Off!’ protest, matching nationwide movement, drives thousands to City Hall

By Madalyn Jimiera and Bella Nordman / April 5, 2025
The streets of Boston leading to City Hall were flooded as thousands of signs, held high above heads, made clear the demands of the people: “Beware of DOGE,” “Stop Fascism,” and “Dump Trump.”
A spring break scene on a crowded beach. (Courtesy of Prescott Horn)

Diving into spring break culture

By Bella Nordman, Senior Opinion Columnist / March 26, 2025

Spring break is a time for college students to break free from bending over backwards in the library. So many elements collide over this break—escapism,...

Illustration Rachel Choi

For better or worse, fandoms shape social change

By Bella Nordman, Senior Opinion Columnist / March 20, 2025
I grew up chronically online and stumbled into corners of the internet that someone so young should not have been in.
Liam Payne memorial tree in the Boston Common on Oct. 28, 2024 (Nick Peace / For The Beacon)

Liam Payne dead at 31, along with my 13-year-old self

By Bella Nordman, Senior Opinion Columnist / October 30, 2024
I grew up loving One Direction. My childhood best friend and I danced around her room listening to “Midnight Memories” on her Disney Princess CD player.