![]() Once Wright had done his research, he drafted a script and recorded a voiceover for the documentary, he said. He spent President’s Day weekend editing the documentary. “Once school started, I used every holiday, long weekend, and school break to read, develop my thesis, write the script, process paper, annotate the bibliography,” Wright said. Wright began working on the project last summer by researching secondary sources and consulting numerous books and articles, he said. His topic also fit with this year’s National History Day theme, being debate and diplomacy, he said. Wright was especially interested in looking into why the ASTP, which looked like an outward success and a sign of peace between the US and the USSR, was not followed up by any joint space missions in the late 70s, and 80s, he said. Wright chose to do this project because he loves learning history and always looks for new topics to explore, he said. Amid increasing tensions between the US and Russia, this topic felt particularly relevant. “The intense debates surrounding ultimately caused the program to not only fail in its mission of promoting closer collaborative efforts between the US and the Soviet Union, but actually hindered future diplomatic endeavors between the two countries,” he said. The project included a 10-minute documentary, which centered around the effects of public perception of ASTP on foreign diplomacy, Wright said. The ASTP and its effects on easing foreign relations, in Wright’s view, seemed to be overlooked by historians, Wright said. The ASTP was the first international space mission, carried out by the US and the USSR. Wright’s project explored the impact of the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) on diplomacy between the US and the USSR, he said. “His wins - and his advancement to the national competition - are well deserved.” Upper Division (UD) History teacher Melissa Morales, who advised Wright on his project, was thrilled that Wright took first place, she said. Wright’s family members were also very proud of him, he said. “It felt great that the effort I put into the project was recognized,” he said. Upon hearing the news, Wright felt honored to be representing New York State in Nationals, he said. This was Wright’s fifth time participating in NYCHD/NYSHD competitions, and his third time qualifying for Nationals, Wright said. The NYCHD tournaments took place virtually in March with results announced on March 25, and States competition took place in the second half of April with results announced on May 2. Lawson Wright’s (11) documentary “Debating Diplomacy in Space: The Handshake That Reinvigorated the Cold War” won first place in the “Senior Individual Documentary” section of both the New York City History Day (NYCHD) and New York State History Day (NYSHD) competitions. ![]()
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