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Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Z-TV News Source Live Election Coverage
It's hard to believe, but it's finally here! After almost a year and a half of non-stop campaigning, Barack Obama and John McCain will face-off for the final time tonight. Who will come out on top in this race for the White House? Tune into Z-TV's live election coverage beginning at 8:00pm to find out!
In addition to the Presidential race, we will also be covering a couple of local races, as well as the issues that are on the local ballot.
You can e-mail us at ZTV@uakron.edu at anytime throughout the evening with your questions and comments.
Once again, our coverage begins at 8:00pm. Be sure to tune in for your up-to-date 2008 election coverage!
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
The End....Well not really :)
It is hard to put into words what this past week of reporting at the Democratic National Convention was truly like. The experience was amazing....yeah there were times when we first got there and thought, "oh my gosh can we really do this, or are we way out of our league?" But we proved for sure that we can play with the big kids! This experience has made me a different person for sure. I look at reporting, editing and how I carry myself in a new way. Yes even though the convention is over, and it's back to school, work, WZIP, ZTV, and somewhat of a life I try to keep, this is only the beginning for me! I plan to use what I learned over the past week to apply to everything I do during my last year at the University of Akron and then use it in the job field! As the Carpenters would say, "We've only just begun!"
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Wow. That pretty much sums it up. This week has been awesome and has with no doubt exceeded any expectations that I might have had coming into the situation. The events of Thursday surpassed everything that came before it, and I am proud to say that I was a part of something so special and so historic.
Now, next week it will happen all over again, but this time it will be the Republicans turn. What a day Friday was for John McCain and Sarah Palin! Not only was it McCain's 72nd birthday and Palin's 20th wedding anniversary, but it was the day that they made it known that they would be pairing up to face the Obama/Biden ticket. In my opinion, McCain's move to choose a woman as his vice president was a brilliant strategy. And of course, the timing was perfect as well. All eyes are now on Palin and Obama is old news.
As Thursday finally faded into dusk and everyone sat quiet and breathless anticipating Barack Obama's appearance, I must admit, the scene was inspiring. I must commend him for his speech, for even I was momentarily in awe by his presence on stage and the eloquence with which he delivered those powerful words.
Watching from a press box with a perfect view of the entire stadium, I could not help but look around me and take it all in. I think that at that moment, it hit me. I was really there. I was witnessing history, and had been all week as the events had unfolded, leading up to Thursday night's grand finale.
It was amazing to be surrounded by so many people who shared a passion for the same idea. Once Thursday hit, it didn't matter if they had previosuly supported Hillary Clinton or if that still carried bitter feelings about the primary season. All that mattered to them was Barack Obama-- the man who dazzled them with his words and bright smile, shining like a true star on that enchanted evening.
Now, next week it will happen all over again, but this time it will be the Republicans turn. What a day Friday was for John McCain and Sarah Palin! Not only was it McCain's 72nd birthday and Palin's 20th wedding anniversary, but it was the day that they made it known that they would be pairing up to face the Obama/Biden ticket. In my opinion, McCain's move to choose a woman as his vice president was a brilliant strategy. And of course, the timing was perfect as well. All eyes are now on Palin and Obama is old news.Without a doubt, the next 66 days will be hardfought and vitally important to the future of this country. I am looking forward to the debates, and am especially interested in the vice presidential one. In my opinion, it will be very interesting to watch as Biden and Palin go at it for the first time. Who will eventually come out on top to win the coveted spot as the nation's next Commander in Chief? I suppose from this point on, only time will tell.
In conclusion, I must once again stress the fact that this week has been a truly amazing one for me. This experience has helped to reassure me that without a doubt, this is what I want to do. I love reporting and I love politics, and together they are my dream. All I can say is that I'm hooked and I hope that this was the first of many more conventions to come.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Schedule of Events
I was just browsing through the schedule of events for tonight, and I must say that the line-up that is scheduled to proceed Barack Obama is quite impressive. I was excited to find that U.S. Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson will lead the stadium in the Pledge of Allegiance, while Jennifer Hudson will be singing the National Anthem. Additional entertainment will include: Stevie Wonder, Sheryl Crow, will.i.am, and John Legend. These performances will be scattered throughout the evening line-up, which will be made extra-special with a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Following the wrap-up of tonight's events, Bon Jovi is scheduled to take the stage. There is no doubt that it is going to be a truly magical night.
Day Four of the DNC
Well, the day has finally arrived! All of the events of this past week have set the stage for what we are about to witness tonight at Mile High Stadium. The scene is unimaginable, and the pictures do not do it justice. Al Gore and Stevie Wonder just entered the arena, and we have word that several other celebrities are here preparing for tonight's grand finale. Even though the guest of honor will not take the podium until later this evening, the energy in the stadium is undeniable. Be sure to check back later this afternoon for more updates! I will leave you with a snapshot of our view...
One More Day Can you believe it?
Wow...today, which is technically tomorrow at this point was so jammed packed it felt like three days in one. Yesterday went pretty smoothly, as we finally had success with all of the technical problems and got our deadline completed on time. Each day the DNC seems to get more and more crazy, which gives us a new challenge each day. But hey this is all a learning experience right? And what an experience it has been.
Today began very early as we got up around six am to make it to the Curtis Hotel to meet and have breakfast with the Ohio Delegates. And when I say meet and have breakfast with the delegates what I really mean is watch them eat a good a breakfast and wait to meet and get an interview with them. But with no breakfast we still managed to get an interview with the mayor of Akron, Don Plusquellic, Sherrod Brown and got great footage of Ted Strickland's speech. We were very excited after we got all of this footage and didn't even seem to mind that we had nothing to do with the FREE delicious breakfast that everyone else was able to enjoy.
As for the rest of the day our focus was to meet our deadline for PBS with 2 mins of video. It went very smoothly, but if you know me I have nothing but horrible luck. So of course when it ended up taking our computer one whole hour to transfer our video over to PBS I wasn't surprised. After meeting our deadline we had some spare time before the main speakers would begin so myself and Jamie decided to treat ourselves to some dinner. Well on our way to the car no other then a riot broke out. Not just a few people gathered with signs....hundreds of anti-war protesters were determined to march into the Pepsi Center. Well because of this not only were there the hundreds of protesters but about dozens of police, some were on horses as the others were in complete swat team attire. So all in all we got to experience a protest first hand, but with the parking deck now being blocked off because of this that meant no dinner for us. Now not only did we have a long walk back but a mile long line of people waiting to get through security as well as it looked like we were eating junk food for dinner again!
We forgot about having to eat junk food for dinner again when the evening of speakers began. The speakers were great with Bill Clinton and Joe Biden as the ones doing the talking. We were able to get pretty good footage of both of those as we tried to sneak in to get a good view...which we did the best we could. haha. We were able to then interview delegates on their way out of the Convention.
We had heard about a bunch of different parties happening around the city, so we went and found them! We found an outdoor concert promoting Obama with some of his speeches put to songs as the DJ shuffled them into a rap so to speak. There were all kinds of people who were all mostly in their 20s which was really cool to see. It was just like a concert that one of us would go with the same excitement and fun but instead it was promoting Obama. Then we crashed a VIP party at a club.....which was invitation only! ok so we didn't crash it but we stood outside with the other media to be ready for which ever artist would show up. And it paid off because we saw no other then Fat Joe himself! Don't Hate! haha
Well tomorrow is the final day of the DNC, and I can't believe it is over so soon. Time seems to fly in Denver, I don't know why....maybe the time thing? haha just kidding! Well until tomorrow America :)
Today began very early as we got up around six am to make it to the Curtis Hotel to meet and have breakfast with the Ohio Delegates. And when I say meet and have breakfast with the delegates what I really mean is watch them eat a good a breakfast and wait to meet and get an interview with them. But with no breakfast we still managed to get an interview with the mayor of Akron, Don Plusquellic, Sherrod Brown and got great footage of Ted Strickland's speech. We were very excited after we got all of this footage and didn't even seem to mind that we had nothing to do with the FREE delicious breakfast that everyone else was able to enjoy.
As for the rest of the day our focus was to meet our deadline for PBS with 2 mins of video. It went very smoothly, but if you know me I have nothing but horrible luck. So of course when it ended up taking our computer one whole hour to transfer our video over to PBS I wasn't surprised. After meeting our deadline we had some spare time before the main speakers would begin so myself and Jamie decided to treat ourselves to some dinner. Well on our way to the car no other then a riot broke out. Not just a few people gathered with signs....hundreds of anti-war protesters were determined to march into the Pepsi Center. Well because of this not only were there the hundreds of protesters but about dozens of police, some were on horses as the others were in complete swat team attire. So all in all we got to experience a protest first hand, but with the parking deck now being blocked off because of this that meant no dinner for us. Now not only did we have a long walk back but a mile long line of people waiting to get through security as well as it looked like we were eating junk food for dinner again!
We forgot about having to eat junk food for dinner again when the evening of speakers began. The speakers were great with Bill Clinton and Joe Biden as the ones doing the talking. We were able to get pretty good footage of both of those as we tried to sneak in to get a good view...which we did the best we could. haha. We were able to then interview delegates on their way out of the Convention.
We had heard about a bunch of different parties happening around the city, so we went and found them! We found an outdoor concert promoting Obama with some of his speeches put to songs as the DJ shuffled them into a rap so to speak. There were all kinds of people who were all mostly in their 20s which was really cool to see. It was just like a concert that one of us would go with the same excitement and fun but instead it was promoting Obama. Then we crashed a VIP party at a club.....which was invitation only! ok so we didn't crash it but we stood outside with the other media to be ready for which ever artist would show up. And it paid off because we saw no other then Fat Joe himself! Don't Hate! haha
Well tomorrow is the final day of the DNC, and I can't believe it is over so soon. Time seems to fly in Denver, I don't know why....maybe the time thing? haha just kidding! Well until tomorrow America :)
Day Three of the DNC
Well, today was quite a busy one to say the least. Our morning started at 6:00 a.m. after three whole hours of sleep. After readying ourselves and attempting to somewhat organize our overly cluttered and insanely disasterous hotel room, we headed into Denver. We received a tip from our buddy Gavin (a Kent-stater who is out here working for the school paper) that members of the Ohio Delegation meet at the Curtis Hotel every morning. So, needless to say, we headed in that direction hoping to run into some local members of the state's delegation. Fortunately for us, we immediately ran into Mayor Don Plusquellic. He chatted with us about his reaction to Hillary's speech, the importance of Ohio in this election, and how he met Senator Joe Biden for the first time when he was a student at the University of Akron. We also caught up with Sherrod Brown and caught a quick glimpse of a speech being given by Governor Ted Strickland. Overall, the morning proved to be a success, even though we did miss out on the breakfast and were forced to pick at remnants of fruit and leftover croissants.
Later in the afternoon, as we exited the Pepsi Center, we were greeted by a rather large group of demonstrators who had decided to riot right outside of the security gates surrounding the site of the DNC. What seemed to be an anti-war protest drew several dozen police to the site who appeared to be more than qualified to come to the rescue in the case of an angry outburst. I'll let the photos do the talking... it was unlike anything I have ever seen.
Following our adventure at the Curtis Hotel, we made the trek over to the Hampton to pick up our credentials and then took off towards the Pepsi Center. Once inside, we attempted to make our way down towards the floor of the arena as we had yesterday, however this time we were denied access. Apparently, we somehow managed to sneak in yesterday without even realizing it. Either way, we were able to take some amazing pictures of the floor. The scene was enough to leave us in utter amazement.
Later in the afternoon, as we exited the Pepsi Center, we were greeted by a rather large group of demonstrators who had decided to riot right outside of the security gates surrounding the site of the DNC. What seemed to be an anti-war protest drew several dozen police to the site who appeared to be more than qualified to come to the rescue in the case of an angry outburst. I'll let the photos do the talking... it was unlike anything I have ever seen.
Unfortunately for us, due to the massive swarm of people that had invaded the area, we were unable to get out of the parking deck, which meant that we would once again be confined to the over-priced food that the Pepsi Center had to offer. So instead of momentarily escaping the madness for a quick bite of "real food," we reluctantly settled for a basket of pricey chicken tenders and fries (although I must admit that they were much better than the $7.00 hot dog I ate two bites of on Monday night).
After re-entering the arena, it was utter chaos. Although I didn't think it possible, the site was more chaotic than it had been at any time during the previous two days. The combination of Bill Clinton and Joe Biden was enough to send cameramen into a frenzy and cause women in heels to run as if sprinting to the finishline in the last leg of a marathon race. Needless to say, the place was buzzing withn an energy unimaginable. This became especially true when Obama made a surprise appearance following Biden's speech.
In addition to the excitement found in the routine line-up of the day, Becca and I ran into a few notable people during our all-too-frequent trips from the press filing room to the upper levels of the convention center. We spotted Katie Couric walking out of her dressing room, ran into Luke Russert while on the convention floor, and saw CNN's chief national correspodent John King on a number of occassions.
Following the conclusion of the night's festivities, we set out to find a couple of events that we had heard about throughout the day. The first one we stumbled upon felt more like a garage band concert than anything else and was complete with praise for Obama and everything but for Bush and McCain. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the entire event was the sign that stood atop a warehouse building behind the stage. Illuminated against the tranquil night sky stood dozens of bike tires that spelled out the word HOPE. A very clever idea indeed, however the message being conveyed by the Obama pictures hanging below the spectacle don't have me convinced.
Although I did not agree with anything that was said throughout the duration of the event, I must admit that it was nice to witness young people coming together for a common cause. When it comes to politics, I am not concerned with convincing others to take my side. In my personal opinion, it is more imporant to evaluate all candidates and make an informed decision based on the issues that you feel are imporant. Your decision to back a candidate should be rooted in what you believe in and your confidence in that person to uphold those beliefs, whatever they may be. It was refreshing to see people rally behind a shared ideal, even if I don't necessarily share their perspective.
Well, that about does it for tonight! Stay tuned for more... tomorrow will be historic.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Our First Day at the Democratic National Convention
Well like Jamie mentioned we made it and completed our first day...not all went as smoothly as we thought. As you may know media is a very competitive field and nothing ever goes as planned...let me emphasize NEVER. Today began for myself and Jamie at 4 am when we prepared to catch our flight to begin our journey to Denver. Everything went well travel wise...our flight was on time, all of our baggage got off of the plane, and then we picked up our rental car. So we were all set! We had to go pick up our credentials which was very exciting, especially when we arrived to the right place at the right time, after getting lost about three times!
Now the time to go to the Pepsi Center was here and we were ready to do our thing so to speak, which we thought would take.... lets see about one hour or so to get to....well all in all with getting lost, trying to find parking and getting on the shuttle at the wrong time when all of the media are on it...our trip to the Pepsi Center took about 3hrs. Our reporting skills were for sure put to the test today as our deadline came sooner then we could imagine. All in all we were under pressure but got the job done!
Today has been crazy, amazing, exhausting, frustrating, but definitely one of the best hands on experience I have received as a reporter. I can't wait to see what the rest of this week brings. This week will truly be a life changing experience that I can't wait for.
Stay tuned as Jamie and I will continue to bring you first hand coverage of the Democratic National Convention through video, pictures and our personal blogs!
Now the time to go to the Pepsi Center was here and we were ready to do our thing so to speak, which we thought would take.... lets see about one hour or so to get to....well all in all with getting lost, trying to find parking and getting on the shuttle at the wrong time when all of the media are on it...our trip to the Pepsi Center took about 3hrs. Our reporting skills were for sure put to the test today as our deadline came sooner then we could imagine. All in all we were under pressure but got the job done!
Today has been crazy, amazing, exhausting, frustrating, but definitely one of the best hands on experience I have received as a reporter. I can't wait to see what the rest of this week brings. This week will truly be a life changing experience that I can't wait for.
Stay tuned as Jamie and I will continue to bring you first hand coverage of the Democratic National Convention through video, pictures and our personal blogs!
Well, we finally made it into Denver where we were greeted by a city draped in an extravagant display of red, white and blue upon a majestic backdrop of mountainous skies. The energy within the city was immediately evident, as you couldn't walk down the street without bumping into a fellow member of the media or someone dawning a delegate badge. The scene laid out in front of the Pepsi Center was incredible, however its interior was even more of a spectacle. The cheers of the crowd as various speakers took the stage resonated throughout the entire building, while the moment when Senator Ted Kennedy made an appearance was extremely powerful and equally emotional. Although all of the night's speakers were well-received, no one was given a more thunderous applause then that of Michelle Obama. Overall, our first night at the Democratic National Convention was an amazing experience and we look forward to all that will unfold in the upcoming week. Be sure to check back periodically throughout the week for more extensive updates and political footage straight from the 'Mile High City.'
Monday, August 25, 2008
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Welcome to Z-TV News Source!
Welcome to Z-TV News Source's coverage of the Democratic National Convention. Check back here starting August 25, 2008 to see daily updates from Denver's Pepsi Convention Center.
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