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National Library of Poetry Exposé

BARBARA WALTERS: Now, a nationwide contest . . . you can almost guarantee you'll end up being published. Arnold Diaz dispenses some poetic justice in tonight's "Give Me A Break."

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ARNOLD DIAZ (voice-over): Margaret answered this ad from the National Library of Poetry (a.k.a. Poetry.com), an impressive sounding name . . . Margaret entered the contest and was selected a semifinalist. She was surprised, but happy as a clam.

MARGARET BROUGH: I thought, "Well, maybe I'm better than I think I am."

ARNOLD DIAZ (voice-over): However, Margaret began to think something was funny when the National Library of Poetry asked her for money. Fifty dollars to publish her poem, for her biography, another $20. She paid and the company encouraged her to enter more of its contests, which she did. She was very ambitious.
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ARNOLD DIAZ (on camera): Well, we at 20/20 are nobody's fool, so we came here to the Thomas Jefferson Elementary School to conduct an experiment. We hoped it would show it, that even a second grader can be an award-winning poet.

MISS SILIO (ph), Teacher: Who can tell us what a poem is?

ARNOLD DIAZ (voice-over): Miss Silio's class hadn't studied poetry yet, but the kids agreed to write a poem about their pet.

1st STUDENT: My dog has a black tail. My dog saw a blue whale.

2nd STUDENT: My dog barks all night and all day. When we leave the park, he wants to stay.

ARNOLD DIAZ (voice-over): We entered all the kids in the National Library of Poetry contest. Would any of their rhymes be among those judged the best? Well, what do you know? The answer was yes. . . . All . . . received the same letter saying we have picked you. Out of the thousands of poems, we have chosen your notable work for publication. The classroom was filled with jubilation. Then the job of breaking the bad news fell to me.
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ARNOLD DIAZ (voice-over): The so-called National Library of Poetry admits [that] almost everyone who enters is selected a semifinalist as long as their poem is 20 lines or less. At 50 bucks a piece, the thousands of poems crammed in each of its anthologies brings in hundreds of thousands in fees. The company says it has tougher standards for the finalists awarded cash prizes each year. But the real winner of the contest is the company, that's clear. (on camera) So to the National Library of Poetry -- if you want to pay them to publish their poems, they're willing to talk about how much it would take. But ask them to pay you? Come on...

ARNOLD DIAZ and STUDENTS: ...give me a break!

BARBARA WALTERS: OK. Stay with us. We're right on track. In just a moment, we'll be back.

HUGH DOWNS:  OK, give me $50 and you're a poet.  Stay with us.