Congress, Media Ready to Face Off in "Politicians vs. Press" Spelling Bee Sept. 21 at the National Press Club

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Sep 20, 2016, 04:00 ET

WASHINGTON, Sept. 20, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Politicians and the media who cover them don't always get along, but tomorrow night Sept. 21 at the National Press Club it will be all fun and games as lawmakers and reporters square off in the hilarious Politicians vs. Press Spelling Bee.

The event, sponsored by education technology leader Blackboard, Inc., is a continuation of a tradition started back in 1913, when the National Press Club held a spelling bee pitting elected officials against news reporters. President Woodrow Wilson and members of his Cabinet were among the 1,000 people who attended the inaugural event.

More recently, 2013 champion Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) leveraged his Press Club Spelling Bee victory into a 2016 vice presidential nomination. 2015 victor Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) will be back to defend his title this year against fellow lawmakers and a rejuvenated Washington press corps that is seeking its first ever victory in the history of the event (view video highlights).

Representing the Politicians Team are 2015 Champion Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va), Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill), Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif), Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif), Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Fla) and Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA).

Representing the Press Team are 2015 runner-up Karoun Demirjian (The Washington Post), Clinton Yates (ESPN's "The Undefeated"), Carrie Budoff Brown (POLITICO), Angela Greiling Keane (Bloomberg), Emmarie Huetteman (The New York Times), Carrie Johnson (NPR), Art Swift (Gallup) and Rod Kuckro (E&E News).

The Bee will be officiated by Dr. Jacques Bailly, the Scripps National Spelling Bee's official pronouncer and 1980 winner of the competition. 2016 co-champions of the Scripps National Spelling Bee, Jairam Hathwar of Painted Post, New York, and Nihar Janga of Austin, Texas will serve as guest judges for the event.

Tickets for the event are available online at https://www.press.org/spelling-bee.

All proceeds from the event will benefit the National Press Club Journalism Institute which provides training, resources, education and career development programs to media and communications professionals, awards scholarships to the next generation of journalists and continually recognizes excellence in journalism and advocates for press freedom worldwide.

Contact: Bill McCarren, 202-662-7534 or Thomas Burr, 202-662-7517, for the National Press Club.

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SOURCE National Press Club