Romney Accepts Nomination

The Republican National Convention came to an exciting end Thursday night as former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney formerly accepted his party's nomination for President.

"Mr. Chairman, delegates. I accept your nomination for President of the United States of America," Romney said. "I do so with humility, deeply moved by the trust you have placed in me. It is a great honor. It is an even greater responsibility."

The Tampa Bay Times Forum was buzzing with anticipation all night. But before Romney took the stage, delegates and party members heard speeches from former Speaker of the House and former Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, actor/director Clint Eastwood, and Florida Senator Marco Rubio.

Rubio introduced Romney, who made his way to the stage by walking through the thick crowd of delegates on the floor. When he finally made it to the podium, the convention went berserk.

The Forum was so loud, in fact, that Romney was unable to make it all the way through the beginning of his speech without being interrupted by roars of cheers and applause.

But once he accepted the Republican nomination, Romney launched into his remarks.

Read the rest of the story on the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps website!

—Kid Reporter Shelby Fallin

Photo: Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney acknowledges delegates before speaking at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, on Thursday, August 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) 

Mystery Guest Revealed!

Clint Eastwood just took the stage at the Republican National Convention in support of presidential candidate Mitt Romney. 

"Leave some of that for Mitt," he says as the crowd goes wild with applause and cheers.

A an actor, he began to put on a bit of a show. He pointed at an empty chair next to him and said it was President Obama, whom he supported in 2008. He began to ask the chair questions as if President Obama were actually sitting there.

The speech was short and certainly different than the others, coming from a man who has made his life on the silver screen. He brought that home with his final words: "Make My Day!" 

—Scholastic Kids Press Corps

 

Getting to Know Mitt Romney

A picture of Mitt Romney as a neighbor and citizen is beginning to emerge as his friends and business partners speak. First, we heard from a friend who served as his assistant when he was a pastor in the Mormon church. He talked about Gov. Romney's committment. He was always the last to leave the church he said, because he said to make sure everything was done. He challenged others in the church to lead by example.

Also speaking, were Ted and Pat Oparowsky, who talked about how Gov. Romney helped them through their son's death when the son was only 14 years old. He visited the son often throughout the illness, entertaining him with fireworks and helping him make a will.  

The Finalyson family then told how Gov. Romney visited them to welcome them as new members of his church. They had just moved into their new home and did not have a dryer. Gov. Romney helped them with their their laundry. When a baby was born to the Finlayson family who had a brain sickness, the young baby developed a connection to Gov. Romney who visited him often. The baby died at 18 months of age. Gov. Romney held a Thanksgiving feast for the family to help them out of their continuing depression. 

Other speakers included people who worked with Romney at Bain Capital, a private investment firm he helped found. They talked about Romney's commitment and integrity. 

Next up: The Olympians! 

—Topanga Sena and Shelby Fallin 

The Excitement Builds!

A parade of Olympians has the crowd here jumping! A mystery guest is expected next. The word is that it will be actor/director Clint Eastwood. 

—Topanga Sena and Shelby Fallin

Convention Update: Citizens Talk About Romney

So far, at the Republican National Convention several political figures such as Newt Gingrich and Jeb Bush have spoken.

The crowd is obviously excited this final night. It's 8:30 p.m. and still a few hours from the big speech, but the seats are filling up faster than the past two nights. The four of us (two kid reporters and two editors) are squeezed into three chairs, and more keep coming.

A live band keeps the crowd energized in between speakers. So far, the speeches have focused on education and the children of America.

The current speaker, Grant Bennet, worked as Mitt Romney's assistant when he was a pastor in the Mormon church. He is talking about all the things Gov. Romney has done to help others in need.

"Mitt is challenging us to find our lives by giving it in service to others," he said.

 Make sure you stay with us for more iupdates as the convention builds to the final event of the night: Gov. Romney's speech!

—Shelby Fallin and Topanga Sena

 

Paul Ryan Fires Up Convention

At the Republican National Convention last night, Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan formally accepted his party's nomination for Vice President.

Ryan's speech was the headline event at the second night of the convention. Delegates and party members also heard remarks from former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

But Ryan is who everyone came to hear.

"Mr. Chairman, delegates, and fellow citizens: I am honored by the support of this convention for vice president of the United States," Ryan began. "I accept the duty to help lead our nation out of a jobs crisis and back to prosperity – and I know we can do this."

Check out the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps webiste for the rest of the story!

—Kid Reporter Shelby Fallin

Photo: Republican vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan waves as he takes the stage to accept the nomination during the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, on August 29, 2012. (Mike Segar/Reuters) 

The youngest delegate at the RNC

At 17 years old, most teenagers are planning where they are going to college, which car they are going to buy, or if their crush likes them back. Well, not Evan Draimer. He's 17 years old, but he's also a delegate at the 2012 Republican National Convention. The youngest delegate at the convention, actually. Today I had the chance to talk with this young role model and ask him all about politics from a young person’s point of view.

—Kid Reporter Shelby Fallin

Chris Christie Delivers RNC Keynote Address

One of the most anticipated speeches of the Republican Convention is the keynote address, typically given on Tuesday night. The Republicans chose New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a colorful politician who some party leaders hoped would run for President.

Christie declined the invitation for higher office and decided to back Mitt Romney. He began his speech in support of Romney’s presidency by talking about his own background, a similar theme with every speaker during this first full session of the convention.

“I am the son of an Irish father and a Sicilian mother,” he said. “Mom was tough as nails and didn't suffer fools at all. The truth was she couldn't afford to.  She spoke the truth—bluntly, directly, and without much varnish.”

That’s a characteristic Christie is also famous for, which proved true as he took on the Democratic administration’s handling of health care legislation and the national debt. He drove home the evening’s message of “We Built It,” by defining a list of differences between the Republican and Democratic party philosophies.

"We believe in telling seniors the truth about our overburdened entitlements," he said. "We know seniors not only want these programs to survive, but they just as badly want them secured for their grandchildren."

He then drew comparisons between the Democratic and Republican parties.

"We believe in telling seniors the truth about our overburdened entitlements," he said. "They believe seniors will always put themselves ahead of their grandchildren."

Delegates seemed inspired by Christie's speech as they filed out of the convention center after the speech, which ended around 11 p.m.

“When he was talking about some of the problems that we have right now and what we need to do to correct them, I think he was very straightforward with it and that’s a good thing," said California delegate Maurice Lieberman. "We need more of that.”

Victor Marani, also a delegate from California, agreed.

“Governor Christie is the most genuine person you are ever going to see in politics," he told Scholastic News. "He’s straightforward, he tells it to you the way it is, and he speaks right to you, which is very important."

—Kid Reporter Shelby Fallin

PHOTO: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie addresses the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla. on Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012. (CREDIT: Charles Dharapak/AP Images)

A media tour of the convention

This year at the Republican National Convention (RNC), media is swarming. Nearly 5,000 journalists and media-types from news networks such as CNN and CBS and others around the world are taking refuge in miniature newsrooms all across the Convention Center and the Tampa Bay Times Forum. NBC is one of these many stations that are here at the RNC making sure that they get the information their viewers need to know. Luckily, fellow Kid Reporter Topanga Sena and I got a behind the scenes tour of this major news network’s RNC setup.

NBC runner Daniel Johnson took some of his time to lead us through NBC’s makeshift workspace at the Convention Center and the sets at the Forum where their talent air live reports. The first one we saw was the set for NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams at the Forum. It looked over the event floor where the delegates sit and guest speakers address them. It creates a realistic backdrop. Many editors and directors sat behind enormous monitors recording and editing footage from the Forum and interviews with delegates. They were also creating graphics for the live show, like name bars to run at the bottom of the screen. When Topanga and I visited, the anchors were not present in the room so we got to sit in the broadcasting booth!

NBC also has another network called Telemundo for worldwide productions and the Hispanic population. At the Telemundo booth, we got to meet producer Marcos Santana. He told us about Telemundo and how it airs all over the world and is broadcast in Spanish instead of English. Sadly, we were not able to sit on the set this time, but we were able to see where the talent sits to broadcast. Before we left, Mr. Santana told us he would see us in a few years on NBC!

So, in the end, that thought-out and put-together show that NBC airs for the RNC is filmed in various places and times all over the Convention Center and the Forum. Even though it may not seem like much space to film entire segments, NBC has some of the most rooms occupied in the center, according to Mr. Joshnson.

Obviously, NBC and every other news network this year is prepared for the RNC.

—Kid Reporter Shelby Fallin

Photo: NBC runner Daniel Johnson gives Kid Reporters Shelby Fallin and Topanga Sena a tour of NBC's workspace at the Convention Center. (Dante A. Ciampaglia)

The Making of Dolphin Tale

The trip to the Florida Marine Aquarium was not my first. Previously, I visited to write stories about Winter the dolphin when the book about her, Winter's Tale, came out. Later I returned for a story about the Scholastic Essay Contest winner, Jessica Rendleman, who was inspired by Winter to overcome her battle with cancer. So this trip, I expected to enter the lobby, as usual. However, this was not the normal aquarium.

Winter could not go to Hollywood, so director Charles Martin Smith brought Hollywood to Winter!

Staff members carried film equipment and large coolers full of fish — payment for the star. Of course, Winter was not the only cast member. The roster included award-winning actors Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick, Jr., Kris Kristofferson, and Ashley Judd. The younger stars included Nathan Gamble (Sawyer Nelson), Cozi Zeuhlsdorff (Hazel Haskett), and Austin Stowell (Kyle Connellan).
 
Filming a movie is not easy, especially when you are a kid. Not only do they have to put in nine hours of work, the same as the adults, but they must also fit in three-and-a-half hours of school. One thing that stands out in my mind is the constant repetition when filming the scenes. Actor Nathan Gamble spent over an hour in the water filming the underwater ballet scene. He was exhausted because he had to hold his breath and swim repeatedly in order to perfect the scene.

Actually the majority of the filming day was spent on this one scene. Fortunately, my job was easy and the view was spectacular. As the scene was filmed with special underwater 3-D cameras, I sat with editors and engineers in a room with multiple monitors. Several monitors showed the 2-D version image of the filming, while the other monitors displayed the mind-boggling 3-D images. In fear of missing a moment of this awesome experience I was constantly slipping my 3-D glasses on and off to see all that was happening. 

As I interacted with the stars and sat with the cast at lunch, I realized they were just normal people. They were down-to-earth and humble. Interviewing them was like talking to friends from school. As a matter of fact, Austin Stowell’s mom is a teacher just like mine. And by the way, movie set food is AWESOME!

The cast of Dolphin Tale works to make the best movie possible, both on and off camera. Their hope is to inspire others as much as Winter has inspired them.

Check out my behind-the-scenes video report from the set of Dolphin Tale!

—Kid Reporter Shelby Fallin