Editorial: Spellbound over gifted students

Sunday, May 28, 2006 | 7:39 a.m.

On June 1 the Scripps National Spelling Bee will be televised on ABC in prime time - a first. It will be yet another milestone in the bee's amazing rise from obscure academic exercise to cultural event. In recent years the bee has been the subject of three movies, a musical and several books that chronicle the rigorous training and often unusual lives of the nation's top spellers.

What explains it? An American fascination with the event dates at least to 1925, when the national bee began. The sports network ESPN began airing it in 1994, and the bee soon developed a national following.

Perhaps we are awed by gifted spellers the way we are drawn to gifted athletes, out of simple curiosity. It is impressive to see a field of contestants at the top of their game, and all the more compelling when the best of the best are as young as 9.

These contestants, fourth through eighth graders, have become a new kind of celebrity, and America is always looking for that. It has been noted that ABC dumped the Miss America pageant last year. It would be nice to think that signals a slight shift in our national interests: Swimsuits are out, spellers are in.

Viewers also may be drawn to some of the quirky personalities of the participants, eight of whom were revealed to be fascinating, funny and at times delightfully strange in the 2002 documentary "Spellbound." The movie explores the compelling question that has brought us to new heights in bee fever: What kind of person can spell appoggiatura?

Or perhaps the bee's soaring popularity was simply long overdue. These students work hard. They are more disciplined than many adults.

It is refreshing to see bright and inspiring examples of American youth seize the spotlight at a time when too many of us often dwell on the bad habits, risky behavior and consumer interests of young people. These spellers deserve all of this recognition and more.

Last year's winner, Anurag Kashyap of California, attributed his success not to his own smarts but to training. "It just shows that if you work hard, then anything can happen," he told USA Today. In our eyes, these spellers are the real American Idols.