Win a Trip with Nick Kristof

In an attempt to woo Gen Y and broaden their horizons, the New York Times is launching a contest on MySpace today called "Win a Trip with Nick Kristof." According to the MySpace page, the Times is looking for "two intrepid and articulate people to join Op/Ed columnist Nick Kristof in Africa this summer–and one of them could be YOU!" Though if YOU think a trip to Cancun is slumming it, better not apply.

This trip is for rugged Angelina-types only. In his Op-ed column on Sunday, Kristof gave a brief snapshot of his itinerary: Rwanda, Burundi and Congo. Last year (when the Times partnered with MTVu), he and the winner saw starvation in Ethiopia, the wake of genocide in Darfur—the two were even held up at gunpoint by bandits. This trip makes the Peace Corps look like Spring Break.

As part of the contest (we hope), the 47-year-old Kristof created a MySpace profile, which Gawker already mocked
last week. Reading it is like watching your dad try to rap. He wants to be "hip and cool" (his words), so Julia Roberts tops the list of
people he’d like to meet (the Dalai Lama is a close second). He likes Bono (a lot), Cheap Trick, and
early Madonna. He doesn’t watch TV, "just videos on the web." But the man
does have 100 friends so far—that means he’s cool, right?

In going with an online partner, the Times is hoping to draw younger users to their website. Last January, NYT.com began offering its premium TimesSelect for half price to academics, but a mere 3,800 people (2% of subscribers) signed up. Now the service will be free to college students and faculty (anyone with an .edu email address). In the release, GM Vivian Schiller explains it thus: "We want students to have unfettered access to the full, rich content of The New York Times, especially the varied opinions expressed by the 22 columnists whose voices are heard through TimesSelect." Unfettered access. Now that sounds like something the kids will love.

MySpace | Win a Trip with Nick Kristof