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Programs
The Daily Prophet
Established: January 23, 2000
The foundation of Prophet Incorporated, The Daily Prophet is an online newspaper for children based around the magical world of the 'Harry Potter' book series by J.K. Rowling. By utilizing the excitement surrounding pop culture, children latched onto the idea of becoming columnists for a faux newspaper where they could pretend that their favorite characters were real. All the while, they didn't realize that by submitting weekly articles, answering to a boss, and working in a professional environment, these children were not only developing their creative writing skills, but they were also learning how to operate in a professional working environment.
Over three hundred children have been tutored and mentored by Ms. Lawver through the Daily Prophet since its inception. Ms. Lawver's revolutionary approach to online education has been applauded by industry leaders the world over. She was awarded the 2001 ArsDigita Prize for Young Webmasters of Web Services, sponsored by Professor Philip Greenspun of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 2003, The Daily Prophet was recognized with the first annual BBC Newsround Viewer's Choice Award, and Ms. Lawver received first place in the Individual Category of the Cable & Wireless Childnet Awards.
The Daily Prophet's achievements in education have also been recognized by such media organizations as USA Today, The Washington Times, The BBC, The Mirror, MSNBC, MIT Technology Review, and many more. It has also received the full endorsement and recommendation of Dr. Henry Jenkins, Director and Founder of the Comparative Media Studies Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "There have been lots of idealistic claims made about the transformative powers of cyberspace," says Dr. Jenkins. "The Daily Prophet... is one of those places which lives up to those claims."
Still, The Daily Prophet is poised to evolve even further, to become a free online tool for educators everywhere. With the help of fellow ArsDigita Award Winner and international entrepreneur, Simon Carstensen, the world renowned educational benefits of this pop-culture-based faux newspaper will be available to the public. Now the opportunity of becoming a published author will be opened to thousands of children all over the world, and the thrill of knowing their work will be read by their peers will encourage them to excel. Teachers will guide them through their experience, serving as the newspaper's "Editor". Just like the three hundred plus children who have grown as members of the current Daily Prophet's staff, soon every child will have the opportunity to take charge of their own education.
We need your help. In order for The Daily Prophet to be as widely available as possible, we intend to provide this service entirely free of charge. This will open up its benefits to inner city schools, students in third world countries, and any child anywhere who has access to a computer and a desire to learn. To learn how you can help, please email Prophet Incorporated's President - Heather Lawver at hlawver AT gmail DOT com - for more information. (In order to prevent spam, we ask that you please remove the spaces and add the required punctuation in order for the email address to work. Thank you very much for your cooperation.)
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