This is a contest aimed at people who have read a column in a newspaper or watched a talking head on TV and thought: "Hey, I could do that." It's for people who may already regularly voice their opinions -- but wouldn't mind a bigger audience. It's for people who want to have more of an impact on the national debate.

The entries.
About 4,800 contestants entered, each sending us a short opinion piece and bio. Among the entrants were people from all 50 states and D.C.; students in their late teens and retirees in their 80s; people boasting Washington insider knowledge and people claiming to represent average Americans; devoted Democrats and die-hard Republicans and all political perspectives in between. We editors enjoyed reading. Some submissions made us smile. Many made us think. Collectively, they were inspiring. Having to narrow the field to ten finalists wasn't so fun.

The challenges.
But now, those ten finalists will get to compete for the title of America's Next Great Pundit, facing off in challenges that test the skills of a modern pundit. They'll have to write on deadline, hold their own on video and field questions from Post readers. After each round, a panel of Post personalities will offer kudos and catcalls, and reader votes will help to determine who gets another chance at a byline and who has to shut down his or her laptop.

The prize.
The ultimate winner, to be announced on or around Nov. 24, will get the opportunity to write a weekly column that may appear in the print and/or online editions of The Washington Post, paid at a rate of $200 per column, for a total of 13 weeks and $2,600. Our Opinions lineup includes a dozen Pulitzer Prize winners, regulars on the national political talk shows and some of the most influential players inside the Beltway. We'll set our promising pundit on a path to become the next byline in demand, the talking head every show wants to book, the voice that helps the country figure out what's really going on.