Politicians often talk about the importance of reaching out to young people, but the 2008 Presidential candidates haven't done much to court them as a group.
Blunt Youth Radio Project is a weekly, youth produced public affairs radio show on WMPG in Portland, Maine, featuring teen broadcasters. William Nelligan, a host and producer for the project, has been a political junkie since he was a preteen. He talks about how the television series, The West Wing, led to his interest in politics and current events.
William Nelligan is a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy Summer School and the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth, William has studied Debate, Etymology, Law, Journalism, and American History with some of the top professors in America.
In his sophomore year, he became one of the youngest people to take Early Studies classes at the University of Southern Maine, having received a special waiver from the administration. Recently, he founded the Casco Bay High School debate team, and is currently working on publishing a weekly school newspaper. William recently completed a Legal affairs article on student expression, which is currently under review.
William also advises the city, school department, and state on social and political issues involving youth. He sits on the Portland Youth Advisory Board, the College Readiness Task Force, and the Senior Year Task Force. In a few weeks, he will become one of the first teenagers in the history of Portland to sit on a city board, in this case, the Housing and Urban Development board.
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This free podcast is from our '08 Conversations series.
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