OXON HILL, MARYLAND (AP) – As the final pre-competition meeting of the Scripps National Spelling Bee’s word selection panel stretches into its seventh hour, the pronouncers no longer seem to care. Before panelists can debate the words picked for the bee, they need to hear each word and its language of origin, part of speech, […]
As the final pre-competition meeting of the Scripps National Spelling Bee’s word selection panel stretches into its seventh hour, the pronouncers no longer seem to care. For decades, the word panel’s work has been a closely guarded secret. This year, Scripps a Cincinnati-based media company granted The Associated Press exclusive access to the panelists and their pre-bee meeting, with the stipulation that The AP would not reveal words unless they were cut from the list.