WEEK EIGHTEEN OF FRIENDS OF FRIDAY FORUM

Working in the Media during and Election year … Hello all! Well it's been an interesting week. I thought that I would describe what its like to work for the media during a presidential and/or national election. To start with, as a reporter/photog (that's what I am) you have to be neutral when you go out into the field to get your story. It's hard to stand there and hear something that you disagree with, and not say anything; it’s not fun at all. This week, on Tuesday, Bush "graced" La Crosse with his presence. I got my first taste of having to deal with a presidential speech. We had to be at the center where the speech was at by 6:30 am (I'm not a morning person). We had to stand in line to get our passes (I now am the owner of an official White House press pass) then it was time for the search. We had to put all of our bags, cameras, tripods, etc down a hall, and then walk away to be searched our selves (we could not watch our gear being checked over by the Secret Service). The only negative thing that happened was the chief photog forgot his knife cutter in his bag, so that raise an alarm, but it was alright in the end. I stayed inside long enough to see the podium, and the national network set-up. But, I got kicked back out side to cover the protester/Demo response to the visit. It was great getting to cover the protesters. One of the guys was dressed up wearing a Bush mask, cowboy boots and a cowboy hat (I had the Pearl Jam song "Bushleager" in my head the whole time). It was a peaceful protest, and it got their message across. They also had several dairy farmers there to bring attention to the Milk tax that Bush is planning (they also brought a HUGE inflatable dairy cow along). I wanted to be a part of this protest so bad. I hate not being able to say anything when I see stuff like this. It’s hard; I question alot, actually everything that the Bush administration has done in the last 4 years. I did know some of what I was going to get into when I went in this direction, TV news, but I didn't know it was going to be this hard to be quiet. Michelle [Wisconsin]

QUOTE OF THE WEEK … Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it. George Bernard Shaw