Cultural Vistas to Welcome U.K. Teens for Student Journalist Exchange Program
NEW YORK (PRWEB) July 31, 2013 -- As new technologies become more predominant, the task of engaging and providing information to the public continues to evolve and present new challenges and opportunities.
Technology's profound impact on the journalism industry and its future is just one of the central themes that nine British high school students will explore firsthand during the Student Journalist Exchange: Update America program, which gets underway this weekend in New York City.
This two-week exchange program is funded by the U.S. Embassy in London's Cultural Affairs Office and will be administered by Cultural Vistas.
The objectives for the students' reporting tour is to learn about current issues in American foreign policy, to experience U.S. culture firsthand, and to report on areas of interest concerning American society at large. Their reports will be submitted to the BBC News School Report this fall.
The nine students, ages 14-16, were selected for this scholarship opportunity through an U.K.-wide essay competition. Following a briefing session in London, the group, which includes students hailing from England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland, will arrive in United States this Saturday, August 3.
The two-week program begins in New York City and includes visits to several U.S. communities before concluding in the nation's capital on Saturday, August 17.
Cultural Vistas has assembled a diverse program itinerary designed to expose the students to not only an in-depth view of the journalism industry, but also to the American people and culture.
While in the United States, Cultural Vistas staff will accompany the students on visits to an array educational institutions, news and media organizations, and NGOs.
The students will be afforded the opportunity to meet and engage with American high school and university students involved in campus journalism, as well as an evening of home hospitality.
Among the activities and discussions scheduled are visits with BuzzFeed, the Wall Street Journal, and the Pew Charitable Trust's Project for Excellence in Journalism; a town hall discussion at Yale University with fellow exchange participants in the Fulbright/Sutton Trust Scholars Program, and a dinner reception with the organizers of the Occupy Sandy disaster relief network.
This initiative will provide ample opportunities for the group to gain a deeper understanding of American society, U.S.-U.K. relations, and how news and media organizations disseminate information from a variety of perspectives – including endeavors that leverage citizen journalism, as well as real-time and social media platforms.
Participating organizations include:
In the New York Metropolitan Area
•Activity Works
•BuzzFeed
•City of New York, Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre, and Broadcasting
•Facing History and Ourselves
•Idealist
•Museum of Moving Image
•Wall Street Journal
•Yale University
In Washington, D.C.
•Foreign Policy Magazine
•Pew Research Center Project for Excellence in Journalism
•Mobilize.org
•National Public Radio
•The Newseum
•Office of Senator Ben Cardin (D—MD)
•Rock the Vote
•University of Maryland Phillip Merrill School of Journalism
•University of Maryland, The Diamondback Newsroom
•Vox Media
In Richmond and Charlottesville, Va.
•I Have a Dream Foundation
•Local Office of Senator Tim Kaine (D—Va.)
•Richmond Cycling Corps
•Richmond Times-Dispatch
•Morven Program
About Cultural Vistas
A non‐profit organization, Cultural Vistas has facilitated professional exchange programs and services for visitors coming to the United States, and Americans seeking overseas experiential learning opportunities since 1950. – Learn more at culturalvistas.org
Follow @CulturalVistas on Twitter
Anthony Naglieri, Cultural Vistas, http://culturalvistas.org/, 212-497-3500, [email protected]
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