Student Journalists Handpicked To Cover DNC
By Kristen Johanson
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- In just two weeks, hundreds of journalists will descend on Philadelphia for the Democratic National Convention and two dozen of them are budding reporters from Philadelphia.
The Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement has teamed with the Philadelphia School District, selecting 25 middle school and high school students to cover the DNC.
"We decided we wanted to leave a legacy in young people, so we decided to recruit and have a contest about young people who wanted to be reporters," said Former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, who is Chair of the 2016 DNC Host Committee.
"We had over 400 applicants, and we picked the best 25. Five are 8th graders and the other 20 are in high school."
A number of local media organizations, including KYW Newsradio, have signed on to help mentor the student journalists.
"The kids are really excited because it's a big deal to get a report and write and file and speak about on KYW," Rendell said.
The students will be in media training 'boot camp' for the next two weeks. They will start reporting on the first day of the DNC, on July 25th.