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Columbia Grad School of Journalism Covers 2008 Service Nation Summit
Photo Credit - Joseph C. Lin Photo Credit - Alexandra Cheney
Welcome to Columbia Graduate School of Journalism's coverage of the 9/11/08 Obama-McCain Presidential Candidate's Forum on the Columbia University Campus.
Browse through the topics at right and be sure to check out the photos, audio, and video.
Anyone interested in using content on this site, please email the editors.
Browse through the topics at right and be sure to check out the photos, audio, and video.
Anyone interested in using content on this site, please email the editors.
Showing posts with label Summit Preparation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Summit Preparation. Show all posts
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Roone Arledge gets dressed for event
A variety of crews spent the day Wednesday preparing Roone Arledge auditorium for Thursday night’s events.
(Below is an audio clip from Wednesday’s preparations)
That made things a little tricky, noted Brian Flynn, 55, a freelance scenic designer. He said sometimes with so many crews — sound, lighting, set, television, etc. — things are harder to coordinate because perhaps the set crew can’t put something up until the lighting crew finishes its work in that area and so on. Making things trickier, Flynn said is that everything had to be set up Wednesday because the Secret Service would take several hours to inspect the building on Thursday and you can’t make the Secret Service wait while you finish something up. That said, Flynn noted that most of the crews present Wednesday have worked with each other before so coordination was easy.
Flynn and his crew have spent about two weeks designing and creating the American flag set that will be behind the candidates. He and his staff went through three different designs with the members of ServiceNation before deciding on the right one. It’s made for a busy couple of weeks for Flynn. “It’s been hell,” he said, noting that he’s sacrificed a couple weekends. Then he laughed. He said he enjoys events like this.
Most of the people setting stuff up Wednesday were not fazed by the magnitude of the event. Several workers said they set up events like this all the time. Dan McKendrick, 56, the lighting designer has “lit” all of the Presidents since Gerald Ford. Thursday night, he’ll be scrutinizing the event from the production truck making sure the lighting promotes flattering images of candidates. The key in setting up the lights, he said Wednesday, is finding the right mix of bright lights and softer lighting.
McKendrick watches television differently than the rest of us, always scrutinizing over the lighting. In fact, he said, it took his wife about three years to get used to watching the tube with him. He and his buddies are worse at the movies.
Meanwhile, Thierry Laurent, 34, and Lucanus Lackey, 31, did electrical work on the auditorium’s roof and Tommie Gonzalez set up camera stands. Gonzalez, who has been working at Fashion Week, normally does sound stuff but wore a different hat on Wednesday in order to help a friend.
(Below is an audio clip from Wednesday’s preparations)
That made things a little tricky, noted Brian Flynn, 55, a freelance scenic designer. He said sometimes with so many crews — sound, lighting, set, television, etc. — things are harder to coordinate because perhaps the set crew can’t put something up until the lighting crew finishes its work in that area and so on. Making things trickier, Flynn said is that everything had to be set up Wednesday because the Secret Service would take several hours to inspect the building on Thursday and you can’t make the Secret Service wait while you finish something up. That said, Flynn noted that most of the crews present Wednesday have worked with each other before so coordination was easy.
Flynn and his crew have spent about two weeks designing and creating the American flag set that will be behind the candidates. He and his staff went through three different designs with the members of ServiceNation before deciding on the right one. It’s made for a busy couple of weeks for Flynn. “It’s been hell,” he said, noting that he’s sacrificed a couple weekends. Then he laughed. He said he enjoys events like this.
Most of the people setting stuff up Wednesday were not fazed by the magnitude of the event. Several workers said they set up events like this all the time. Dan McKendrick, 56, the lighting designer has “lit” all of the Presidents since Gerald Ford. Thursday night, he’ll be scrutinizing the event from the production truck making sure the lighting promotes flattering images of candidates. The key in setting up the lights, he said Wednesday, is finding the right mix of bright lights and softer lighting.
McKendrick watches television differently than the rest of us, always scrutinizing over the lighting. In fact, he said, it took his wife about three years to get used to watching the tube with him. He and his buddies are worse at the movies.
Meanwhile, Thierry Laurent, 34, and Lucanus Lackey, 31, did electrical work on the auditorium’s roof and Tommie Gonzalez set up camera stands. Gonzalez, who has been working at Fashion Week, normally does sound stuff but wore a different hat on Wednesday in order to help a friend.
Obama McCain Event Production Schedule Revealed!
A minute-by-minute schedule discovered in plain view of the farmer's market on Broadway.
Highlights include:
7:20 - L. Ward and Bill Novelli Welcome Message
7:29 - Lee Bollinger Remarks
7:33 - Governor David Patterson Remarks
7:40 - Tobey Maguire Speaks
7:47 - 9-11 Family Testimonials
7:53 - John Huey Delivers Introduction
8:01 - John McCain Speech
9:00 - Barack Obama Speech
10:00 - Event Ends
Highlights include:
7:20 - L. Ward and Bill Novelli Welcome Message
7:29 - Lee Bollinger Remarks
7:33 - Governor David Patterson Remarks
7:40 - Tobey Maguire Speaks
7:47 - 9-11 Family Testimonials
7:53 - John Huey Delivers Introduction
8:01 - John McCain Speech
9:00 - Barack Obama Speech
10:00 - Event Ends
Campus political groups to register students to vote tomorrow.
Columbia University campus Republicans and Democrats will unite for one cause tomorrow afternoon: voter registration. The Columbia Political Union, an organization that aims to increase student involvement in the political process, will assist in signing up voters.
From 4 to 6 p.m. College Republicans will be tabling on College Walk and encouraging people to write letters to the troops in Iraq, said Lauren Salz, executive director of Columbia College Republicans, over e-mail.
From 4 to 6 p.m. College Republicans will be tabling on College Walk and encouraging people to write letters to the troops in Iraq, said Lauren Salz, executive director of Columbia College Republicans, over e-mail.
The Day Before
A mixture of Columbia security, NYPD, and secret service agents discuss security Wednesday morning.
Workers follow a tight schedule to make Thursday night's forum possible.
Click for fullsize slideshow.
 |
| From Security |
Workers follow a tight schedule to make Thursday night's forum possible.
Click for fullsize slideshow.
Auditorium Sneak Preview
Clockwise from the top left photo: the big screen is prepared for the main event; tech staff comply with a Secret Service request to seal off visibility from Broadway; workers prepare the stage for the main event; Columbia students walk towards the Journalism building through the limited access gates, which will be manned by security on Thursday.
Monday, September 8, 2008
"Lottery winners will be notified via e-mail on Monday, Sept. 8"
So... anybody win the golden ticket yet?
Columbia on Highest Security for McCain-Obama visit.
Columbia will be treating the security alert level at Thursday's Service Nation event “almost like [we would for] a sitting president,” said Public Safety Director John Murolo.
Security will be shared between groups from campus public safety, several branches of the NYPD, secret service, state troopers and private security details.
Attendees will have to go through magnetometers (think airport security wands) and may not be allowed to bring bags into the event.
Several campus entrances and streets including 114th with be locked down, but Lerner Hall's Student Center will continue to be open during the event.
Murolo said that he and his department started security preparation nearly two weeks ago, before Columbia was finalized as location.
Security will be shared between groups from campus public safety, several branches of the NYPD, secret service, state troopers and private security details.
Attendees will have to go through magnetometers (think airport security wands) and may not be allowed to bring bags into the event.
Several campus entrances and streets including 114th with be locked down, but Lerner Hall's Student Center will continue to be open during the event.
Murolo said that he and his department started security preparation nearly two weeks ago, before Columbia was finalized as location.
Columbia's John Murolo Does Auditorium Walk-Through with Gov Paterson's Security Team
NYPD Checks Security Procedures at Columbia University
Representatives of the New York Police Department toured the Columbia University campus Tuesday with a member of the Columbia campus safety team in preparation for a visit by senators John McCain and Barack Obama.
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