Scripps National Spelling Bee on ABC

By Ally Matteodo

The two-hour National Spelling Bee championship aired Friday, May 30^th, at 8:00 p.m. on ABC.  Taking place in Washington D.C. and consisting of 12 finalists taken from a pool of 11 million competing children, the bee was hosted by the effervescent Tom Bergeron, who provided running commentary during the entirety of the show.  The final contestants hailed from all corners of the United States, ranging from California to Indiana.  As in all spelling bees, judges presented the spellers with a word, and then the contestants were required to relay the spelling orally.  They were allowed to ask for the pronunciation, the word’s etymology, and the use of the word in a sentence.  If the speller gave the correct answer, they stayed on stage and continued the competition.  If the answer they gave was wrong, the dreaded sound of the bell marked their elimination, when they joined their families in the audience.  In the final round three contestants remained.  The judges issued 25 of the most challenging words.  If all of the competitors failed to make a mistake, a three-way tie would have resulted -- with three winners.  Instead, Sameer Mishra from West Lafayette, Indiana finished in first place.  His winning word was “guerdon,” which means “reward.”

The National Spelling Bee is delightful to watch in part because it is a practice steeped in American tradition.  Spelling bees have been popular customs in the United States for hundreds of years, and it is clear that this classic tradition continues.  Although the participants are young, ranging in age from 12 to 14, they all exhibited courage and poise when spelling out the words.  The bee is a very rigorous and grueling competition, which the program demonstrated during certain segments in which the young contestants were shown pouring over dictionaries, learning different languages, and examining etymologies. The importance of hard work, perseverance, and familial support are all positive themes that ran throughout the program.  And of course, the spelling bee is very educational for the viewer.  The meanings and the etymologies of the words are almost always given, so during the course of the night a viewer will undoubtedly learn a significant number of new words.  The program exhibits the beauty and variety of the English language, as well as making clear the contributions of other languages to the development of English.  Although glitzier than the spelling bees of our forefathers, this program makes clear that the classics never go out of style.

Best TV Show of the Week

The Parents Television Council - www.parentstv.org