Column Idol finalists

The Media Trust and the Sun have named journalism graduate Lee Price, 21, as the winner of the first Column Idol competition.

Price (second row, third from left) was chosen from six finalists aged 16-21 years old, whose columns appeared in the Sun. Each candidate was assigned a mentor from the paper's journalists, including Trevor Kavanagh, associate editor for politics and Caroline Iggulden, deputy features editor.

According to his LinkedIn profile, the University of Brighton sport journalism graduate works as an assistant editor for Pedigree Books, where he is responsible for social networking content for the group and Shoot magazine.

His winning column covered a range of topics from an addiction to social networking to footballers' wages. As part of the judging process, Price had to pitch his idea to Sun editor Dominic Mohan.

“The six finalists were all exceptional entries and it was very difficult to pick a winner. I was very impressed by the finalists’ passion about representing young people in a positive light. We shall be channeling their energy and enthusiasm into the paper," Dominic Mohan, Sun editor, says in a release from the Media Trust.

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