By Elizabeth Kessel

Welcome, please walk through the doors into a news world. Recently, members of the Clackamas Print had the chance to go to Washington, D.C. for the National College Media Convention.
While in D.C., I was able to explore the Newseum. Yes, you read that right, it is a museum for news! It’s most journalists’ perfect place to hang out for the day.
The Newseum is six stories tall, with the first level starting at a portion of the Berlin Wall. The excitement continued with the glass elevator that takes groups of people to the sixth story. This leads to the roof of the building with a beautiful view of the Capitol and the surrounding area.
From the sixth floor, guests can make their way down, each level including multiple interactive exhibits. In total, 15 exhibits and movie theaters are for people to enjoy.
As I walked through, I came across the front pages of newspapers from the past. This included a front page of the Daily News from 1937 when the Hindenburg exploded. Another was a cover of the Pittsburgh Courier from 1963 about Martin Luther King, Jr., with a headline that read, “I Have A Dream…Today!”
As I continued down, I came to another amazing exhibit: the “Journalists Memorial,” which was a wall of fallen journalists. I was equally saddened and inspired to look at all the lives taken. There were also blank spaces for future journalists.
One of the larger exhibits was in honor of 9/11 and displayed the needle from the World Trade Center. Surrounding the needle, and serving as a barricade from touching it, was a timeline of what occurred on that day.
On a wall above the needle were comments from people about where they were that day and what they remembered. One of the comments read, “To my sister and unborn nephew and niece I will always love you and never forget you.”
Walking down another level, the CNN political campaign allowed visitors to voice their opinions and concerns about the current candidates. This section also taught about the candidates’ stances on important issues.
At the end are two gift shops to choose from and take some history home. I bought myself a fun T-shirt that says, “Trust me…I’m a reporter.” But the gifts are not the only thing to take back home. The Newseum was full of rich history, fun exhibits, lessons and story ideas.