Evan O'Dorney, a 13-year-old from Danville, Calif., became the 2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee champion last night. His winning word was "serrefine" -- a noun describing small forceps used for approximating the edges of a wound -- which he successfully spelled after a long, tense final showdown with Nate Gartke of Spruce Grove, Alberta. Gartke had hoped to become the first Canadian to win the bee. more ›

DCist is currently recruiting new contributors to join our fast-paced, exciting, fun-filled blogging lifestyle. Do you love to write almost as much as you love Washington, D.C.? Think your style would fit in with ours? We want to hear from you. These are the positions we're currently looking to fill -- and by positions, we of course don't mean we can actually pay you cold hard cash, but rather the opportunity to join our community,... more ›

(Editor's Note: Sometimes, technology issues can slow down even the most tech-savvy DCist. Fortunately, DCist's backup communications network using courier pigeons has brought us Hemal Jhaveri's weekly "West Wing" roundup.) more ›

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You won't be able to escape it, so don't even try. The first of the three Presidental debates airs tonight at 9pm on just about every network. While we bet that NBC is none too pleased about having to shuffle its Thursday night cash cow line up, they too will postpone an another helicoper-falls-out-of-the-sky episode of ER, to bring you Kerry vs. Bush. Or Bush vs. Kerry. Whichever you prefer, really. more ›

(From DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) Is George Clooney going to the be the next Arnold? We, and every other media outlet, can only speculate. The Reliable Source gives us a heads up that the former ER doc will be hitting the Hill tonight:Washington's favorite celebrity hunk, George Clooney, is back in town. Tonight he'll be at a fundraiser at Lounge 201 on Capitol Hill for his father, Nick, who's running for Congress as a Democrat... more ›

(By DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) more ›

(From DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) more ›

(By DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) more ›

(By DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) more ›

(From DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) more ›

(From DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) more ›