In 1996, in big cities and small towns across America, a new crop of teenagers entered the ninth grade. These students, the class of 2000, experienced the world in a unique way, often enjoying the benefits of a booming economy but also living through a wave of school violence, a presidential sex scandal and impeachment, the dawn of a new century, and the rise of the Internet. Since their first day of high school, the class of 2000 has been interviewed by CBS News in an unprecedented, in-depth study. CBS News's goal was to present a compelling portrait of our country's problems and promise as seen through the eyes of these students. To reach this end, the CBS News Polling Unit conducted scientific polls, revealing the thoughts, fears, and expectations of the class of 2000.
The exclusive results of this study are rendered in the e-book The Class of 2000: A Definitive Survey of the New Generation. It paints an unusally clear picture of how these teenagers, now on the brink of adulthood, see the world and their place in it. The Class of 2000 is broken down into important topics such as lying and cheating, religion, dating and sexuality, drugs, guns and violence, school quality, and race relations. Each topic includes profiles and photos of some of the young people interviewed as well as the full polling results and an analysis.