Few are given the chance to experience a political national convention in their home city. We here at Charlotte did and I have to say, thank God it was the Democrats! This week I have had the opportunity to discover the DNC for myself. Through Queens University, I was able to get course credit by volunteering at the PPL. The PPL is, as I like to put it, a convention for nonconventional media. About fifteen thousand people come to Charlotte during the DNC but only a small portion are allotted the credentials to get in. The PPL hosts the bloggers, internet and independent media at the Packard Place and gives them the space to work, charge their batteries, store their equipment and watch the latest news. They also provide a stage for people to speak and share about what they do, or provide panels with leaders of the community to discuss important topics in politics. From comedians to yoga instructors to senators- all kinds of people graced the stage and provided an outlet for visitors to take a break. At The PPL, I was a part of the editorial team for inside operations. The Editorial team covered what was going on inside of The PPL. We took pictures, videos, interviewed the people around us and later uploaded it to various social media. Upon arriving, I quickly learned that I had a lot of work to do before I consider myself ready to have a career in an editorial position. I was unfamiliar with many of the sites that they were posting too, like flickr, tumblr, and wordpress. Eventhough, I assisted them as much as possible.
My jobs included covering what was going on outside the doors of the Packard Place. I took pictures of the action that manifested on the streets of uptown Charlotte including those of protesters, news anchors, the surcharge of policemen, and their onlookers. It was exciting yet difficult all at the same time. It was impossible to plan what I was going to do, but if I wasn’t in the right place at the right time, I would miss the shot. Still, I believe I captured some great ones! You can see a few that I took posted in this entry. I was also responsible for the Twitter Live Feeds during various shows and panels that were held on the PPL Stage, which UStreamed live onto their website. I was constantly posting quotes and informing followers of what was going on on stage, and directing them to watch it live on theppl.us. 
I met a lot of important figures in the media business, such as reporters from Al Jazeera-English who came to do a piece on the PPL. I also got to work directly under PPL co-founder Justin Ruckman, who has a vast knowledge about this new trend of creating workspaces for independent media, as well as the influence social media and communications play to succeed with this kind of idea. I also witnessed Chris Matthews and Michael Eric Dyson reporting for MSNBC in the epicentre and photographed them in a live setting.
All of the leaders, volunteers and attendees at The PPL were so willing to give me advice, let me pick their brain, and teach me new techniques or strategies. I have learned so much in the three days that I spent uptown during this convention. It has confirmed to me that I am on the right track even more. I loved my time spent covering all of the action, and look forward to volunteering for more interesting and unique projects in the future. I am so grateful for the opportunities given to me by the PPL and Queens, and can’t wait to see what’s next!
-Brittani Pedersen
I think that it is great that students were able to participate in the Democratic National Convention. Hosting this DNC here in Charlotte I think was an interesting idea that definitely paid off. North Carolina is a southern state and southerners are stereotypically republican. Having it here in Charlotte I think educated a lot of people. It gave people a new perspective. A lot of the time if you are part of a particular party you only pay attention to their stuff and never really hear the other sides arguments.
ReplyDeleteVirginia
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DeleteWhile North Carolina is a Southern state it it usually seen as a swing state (meaning that it has voted Democratic and Republican on many occasions). I think that it was a wise move on the part of the Democrats.It allowed a different view point to literally be injected into the people of Charlotte. With the Convention being held in Charlotte, the world was able to see that Charlotte is more than a po-dunk town, we are a thriving city that deserves recognition. I expect Charlotte to accomplish great things in the future.
DeleteSounds like you got a lot of great insight while at the PPL. The Democratic National Convention was an amazing experience, I'm sure, for those of us who were able to participate. I myself interned for WBTV News, and I had an incredible time with them. My job duties varied daily, even hourly sometimes, there was so much going on. I had the opportunity of going everywhere uptown from the Time Warner Cable Arena, The Convention Center, hitting the streets with protesters, to events uptown later at night. The event certainly changed the dynamics of our growing city, to a much more thrilling center. Over all Charlotte, I believe, did an incredible job at hosting the Convention. We surely made a name for ourselves among the bigger cities in the country.
ReplyDeleteJorge Munoz