Select students visit C-SPAN bus for presentation

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AP Government instructor Abby Maska gets involved with the interactive screens in the C-SPAN bus.

Students involved with AP Government, AP American History or journalism classes were offered the opportunity to visit the C-SPAN bus on Oct. 12.

The Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN) is an American cable and satellite television network. Their interactive bus was parked in front of the school where select students and teachers were able to participate in a lecture.

“The bus has a bunch of election coverage and resources,” AP Government instructor Abby Maska said. “C-SPAN travels to different schools all around the country. This presentation is relevant to anyone who wants to be involved with government or journalism.”

Junior Ashtyn Toepher is in AP American History.

“I hadn’t ever heard of this bus before today,” Toepher said. “It’s kind of interesting to see something like this here.”

The inside of the C-SPAN bus is filled with interactive screens and computers.

Junior Reese Lovell views the screens in the C-SPAN bus.
Junior Reese Lovell views the screens in the C-SPAN bus.

“We are traditionally known for covering Congress,” C-SPAN reporter Vanessa Torres said. “C-SPAN is a non-partisan, non-profit organization.”

Torres said the cameras C-SPAN uses to record Congress do no belong to the C-SPAN company.

“We have a fly-on-the-wall perspective,” Torres said. “Everything is shown without bias, because we believe it’s important to keep it balanced. We make sure that our viewers can form their own opinions.”

The C-SPAN channel does not have commercials, so viewers are able to watch meetings with Congress at any time, all day.

C-SPAN reporter, Torres, gives a presentation to the select group of students and teachers.
C-SPAN reporter, Vanessa Torres, gives a presentation to the select group of students and teachers.

StudentCam is C-SPAN’s annual national video documentary competition that encourages students to think critically about issues that affect communities and the nation.

Torres said students in the area should really consider participating in the contest.

The competition is open to all students in grades 6-12. Grades 6-8 will compete in the Middle School category, and grades 9-12 will compete in the High School category

Students may compete individually, or in teams of either two or three members. All documentaries must include supporting C-SPAN video that relates to the chosen topic. This year, the topic is: ‘What is the most urgent issue for the new president and congress to address in 2017?’.

“People ask questions in their videos that range from student loans to LGBTQ rights,” Torres said. “No question is too risque.”

Students exit the C-SPAN bus.
Students exit the C-SPAN bus.

The grand prize for this competition is $100,000.

“It’s honestly such a great opportunity,” Torres said. “We’d love to get some more people from this area to submit videos.”

For more information, click here.