The Newseum, Washington, DC

Several friends who have been to DC said that a stop at the Newseum was a must.

The Newseum is not part of the other Smithsonian Museums in the area, and it is also one of the rare museums in the area that is not free.

We took the advice of our friends and checked the place out.

The newseum is incredible.  Every inch of the place is interesting.

We were impressed to see a huge section of the Berlin Wall on the first floor.

The Newseum has a large display of relics relating to true crime.  The unibomber's cabin and many other items connected to major criminal events were there.

There are a couple of impressive large displays relating to 9/11, including newspaper covers from the day after the attacks.  Personal items from some of the victims were there also and it was very emotional seeing them.  Cell phones from the site (with the write up about how rescuers heard them ringing for several days) were displayed in a case.  The museum actually had tissue out as you walked through the display.

Obviously, news and the way news is reported is a big part of the Newseum.  Many papers (new and very old) were there.  The current days paper is displayed on your way in, so the Newseum is updated daily.

A news studio is inside the Newseum.  There is a lot of activity there, and during the orientation video before your tour, they show a clip of President Obama walking out of the studio.

Another display that I enjoyed was on the top floor.  Various political buttons, signs and other items could be viewed.  Various gifts presented to presidents were displayed (like a football jersey presented to Ronald Reagan).

They also had several props and costumes from Saturday Night Live presidential parodies.  A TV next to the props showed the actual SNL videos.

Oh, I enjoyed the "4-D" movie they show too!  They have prepared a very cool film about some interesting moments in history and it is in very vivid 3-D.

http://www.newseum.org/