CBS- the place to be during the first debate

It seems as though I have had to adjust back to reality this week after an amazing week interning for CBS media pool. Through the week the interns and I were shown the ropes of the business. I was so impressed with how friendly the whole crew was and how willing they were to answer any question, give plenty of advice and go out of their way to help you or show you something new. I was lucky enough to get to work with Director, Associate Director, Technical Director, Producer, Production Manager, cameramen, audio and visual technicians, and more. I was so impressed with the loyalty everyone on the crew had with CBS, most of them had been working for the company for 15 years or more. All of them, as I said before, offered so much advice and tips that I look back now and wish I wrote more down than I actually did. During the actual debate I was stationed in the control trailer which they referred to as “the mobile.” I was astounded with how much work goes into even the tiniest things. I was honored to be able to sit in the control trailer with such professionals and watch how everything was directed, how they worked with each other and how they communicated with the people in the actual debate hall. CBS director (and just a great guy in general) Chip Colley was wonderful at directing all the cameras throughout the debate. He claimed earlier that week that he knows how TV works and what looks good, and he most certainly did. It was really neat to hear him call the different cameras because there was always a rhythm when he would say “3 take camera 3…5 take camera 5.” One of the crew members I was sitting next to showed me a few errors while the debate was going on, such as the key lighting on Obama was not correct because it did not outline him as it was supposed to; the lights were very visible on his shoulders. Through the whole week the interns and I worked very hard but enjoyed every bit of the whole experience. It was one that I will definitely not forget.