Running of the interns

The running of the interns was a Washington, DC, tradition, sometimes called a race,[1] involving interns of news outlets running to deliver results of major decisions by the Supreme Court of the United States to the press.[2][3] Many media outlets have made note of this, including BuzzFeed, Newsweek, NPR, and Cosmopolitan.[4][5][6][7]

Runners carrying the Supreme Court's Obergefell v. Hodges decision on marriage equality (2015)

In recent years, the Supreme Court has released PDF opinions on supremecourt.gov around the same time as the majority opinion is announced from the bench. For instance, in the SCOTUSblog live coverage of opinion announcements of 10:00 a.m. ET on June 26, 2018, news that Justice Thomas was announcing the decision in National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra was posted at 10:01, followed by a link to the official PDF at 10:02,[8] during Thomas's opinion announcement, which lasted about five minutes.[9] In contrast, for Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015, those times were 10:01 (announcement) and 10:05 (PDF),[10] with interns delivering paper copies at 10:01.[11] From March 2020 to June 2022, opinions were released exclusively online.[12]

History

Since 1946, recording devices have been banned inside the courtroom of the United States Supreme Court Building.[13] Thus, hand-delivered paper copies were the fastest way for news organizations to receive a particular landmark ruling.

The Supreme Court's decision is printed and delivered to a clerk's office, where it is handed to members of the press. Interns are not credentialed and must therefore wait in the hallway outside the press room.[1] Producers hand the paper copy rulings to their network interns who sprint to deliver them to their respective organizations. The run itself is approximately 1⁄8–1⁄4 mile (200–400 m), from the courtroom to broadcasters awaiting outside.[14] Supporters and protestors alike cheer on the delivery of the opinions.[15] According to one intern, justices may still be announcing the decision by the time they are back inside.[2]

The interns often run wearing sneakers and business casual suits or skirts in 90 °F (32 °C) heat.[16]

In 2015, the interns were briefly removed after a CNN intern was caught by Supreme Court Police recording video footage with a GoPro camera.[17]

In 2016, interns relayed 13 decisions over three mornings.[1]

Notable decision coverage

References
  1. Briker, Greg (June 27, 2016). "The 2016 running of the interns". CBS News. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  2. Greenberg, Julia. "Why Supreme Court Interns Still Sprint to Deliver News". Wired. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  3. Dooley, Erin. "Running of the Interns: This Is What a Mad Dash Outside the Supreme Court Looks Like". ABC News. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  4. Johnson, Benny. "The 2013 Running Of The Interns". BuzzFeed. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  5. Gorman, Michele (June 27, 2015). "Photos: The Running of the Supreme Court Interns". Newsweek. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  6. Breslaw, Anna (June 26, 2013). "Wendy Davis' Working Girl Sneaker Is Sweeping the Nation". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  7. Hensley, Scott (June 29, 2012). "Supreme Court Health Care Ruling Prompts Foot Race In Press Corps". NPR. NPR. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  8. "Live blog of opinions". SCOTUSblog. June 26, 2018. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  9. "National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra: Opinion Announcement – June 26, 2018". Oyez Project. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  10. "Live blog of opinions". SCOTUSblog. June 26, 2015. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  11. SCOTUS Rules In Favor Of Marriage Equality. YouTube. MSNBC. June 26, 2015. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  12. Amy Howe (December 12, 2022). "Court will resume opinion announcements from the bench, but won't provide live audio". SCOTUSblog. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  13. Kessler, Robert (March 28, 2013). "Why Aren't Cameras Allowed at the Supreme Court Again?". The Atlantic. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  14. Johnson, Benny. "The 2016 Running of the Interns". Independent Journal Review. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  15. Pilkington, Caitlyn. "What Is The Running Of The Interns?". Women's Running. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  16. Stebner, Beth. "Running of the Interns: News assistants pictured making mad dash to deliver DOMA decision". Daily News. New York. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  17. Byers, Dylan. "CNN's GoPro antics rile Supreme Court". Politico. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  18. Le Conte, Marie (June 27, 2015). "The 'Running of the Interns' is the weirdest and funniest tradition you've never heard of". metro.co.uk. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
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