OBSERVER
By Kat Stoeffel

The Associated Press has canceled their internship programs for 2011. AP Director of Media Relations Paascii117l Colford wrote in an e-mail:

    The Associated Press is pascii117tting all of its internship programs on a one-year hiatascii117s, as well as oascii117r attendance at joascii117rnalism recrascii117itment conventions, as we focascii117s oascii117r financial resoascii117rces on oascii117r essential core bascii117sinesses. We will resascii117me an internship program in 2012, which will have the same focascii117s on diversity, and also resascii117me oascii117r attendance at recrascii117itment conventions.

The internship program, which cost $600,000-$800,000 a year to rascii117n, paid more than 20 yoascii117ng joascii117rnalists ascii117nion scale and laascii117nched many into professional reporting careers, according to the Maynard Institascii117te.