WASHINGTON -- The space agency announced Thursday that an American journalist will be selected to fly in orbit aboard a space shuttle next September to tell the world what spaceflight and its training is really like.
The six-month selection process, which follows the pick of a teacher to fly aboard a shuttle in January, will be coordinated by the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communications and will be open to print and broadcast journalists throughout the nation.
Eight candidates will be selected by each of five regional panels of judges. The 40 preliminary winners will be narrowed down to five finalists by a national selection committee of 14 distinguished educators, journalists and one former astronaut, Terry Hart.
NASA Adminstrator James Beggs said the final journalist-spaceflier and his or her backup will be selected by National Aeronautics and Space Administration officials April 15 or 16 and announced April 17.
'I can assure you the winning candidate will not only get a round-trip ticket, but a first-class, unforgettable ride,' Beggs said.
The two winners, who must pass a NASA medical examination, will undergo flight training at the Johnson Space Center in Houston between next May and August. Beggs said the flight is tentatively planned for September although the specific mission has not yet been determined.
Dr. Albert Scroggins, dean emeritus of the University of South Carolina College of Journalism and chief program officer of the project, said the selection process will be 'as open and fair as possible.'
'In that regard, the term journalist is being defined, or interpreted, in very broad terms,' he said. The candidates must be American citizens and have five years or more professional experience as a reporter, a correspondent, a columnist, a writer, a photographer, editorial cartoonist or broadcaster.
He said the applications will be evaluated on the basis 'of being able to communicate clearly and effectively to mass audiences in both broadcast and print media although it is not necessary to have worked professionally in both media.'
Robert Hoskins, dean of the College of Communications, Arkansas State University and president of the association of journalism schools, said he guessed between 3,000 and 5,000 applications might be received.
'We're looking for someone who can communicate effectively and who is used to communicating with a mass audience and we hope that this person will be articulate enough to broadcast from space, for example, in a way that would show us what they have observed and are doing there,' Scroggins said.
Beggs said the winner will not only will be able to 'see all and hear all, but will tell all as well.' He said the only restrictions on the journalist would be to protect the privacy of crew members if requested and to agree not to reveal any classified information he or she might be exposed to.
The NASA administrator said the winner would continue to be in the employ of his news organization but would be considered to be on assignment up to a month after the flight.
Applications will be available Dec. 1 and must be submitted by Jan. 15, 1986.
Applications will be available by writing to: NASA Journalist in Space Poject, ASJMC Headquarters, College of Journalism, University of South Carolina, Columbia, S.C., 29208 or by calling 803-777-5007.
