Want Some Cheese to go With that Whine? Ann Althouse's Latest Silliness. Ever Heard of a Press Pass? There's a Good Reason for Them, Honey.

Now this one sub part of the issue was in my mind, as I was heading downtown for the rallies, on Saturday. Particularly as the right wing has a history of sending stooges down to events, with cameras to deliberately gin up sensational or at least contentious vid, and some independent "activists" do that shit on their own, the following thought crossed my mind.

"Don't talk to anyone for an interview unless you recognize their credentials, or otherwise have an ENG camera worth more than a few thousand dollars."

And I know gear. It might have been years since I hefted a good $10,000.00 cam at a convention, however I spent most of my life seeing real media crews up close. I know the real stuff with out really needing to see the station/network id on the microphone. Let me be clear. Having worked in TV studios and around proper media folk, and as well, having been to a trade show where I got to play with the real stuff, I am not going to start blabbing to someone with only a top-end consumer market camera from Best Buy, never mind, some twit with a phone cam.

Turns out that the one time I got close to a legit reporter, for local station CBS 2, I just walked by. I wasn't there to get interviewed, but I did think for a second or two . . . if asked I should have a remark pre loaded.

Anyway, reason I am posting this is that Ann Althouse is at it again, with her alternative reality, fantasy land thinking. Let me give her and her husband the minimum props they have earned, first. Yes, kudos to them (not for the quality of the reporting and the images gathered at the Madison protests this past week or so) for dragging their cam down there and shooting vid, and posting it. Even if I really hate amateur shit and haven't been bothering to watch it, as a result of my can't standing amateur shit, thanks.

But at one point over the past couple days, her husband was denied instant entry to the statehouse by a cop, and was told to stand on line and wait like the rest of the non-media. So here's the bullshit line she and her husband are whining:

"He's New Media!"

Call me a card carrying, press credential worshiping snob (please do. I never was in the IBEW or had separate press creds. I was in IATSE and had a CBS employee ID at the same time, back in the day.) But there is a logical reason why we don't consider every jerk-wad with a cheap-assed crappy camera as legit media. And that reason is, that every jerk-wad with a cheap-assed crappy camera would be free to try what Althouse's husband tried to pull. He thought his claim of being media would get him entry when he clearly did not have any more right than a street corner ho junkie, to cut the line and go where he wanted to. And from a fairness point of view, never mind security pov, never mind keep the assholes in their place pov, we need to keep the number of line/barricade jumpers down to the minimum. And it is more important now than ever, as so many Americans run around every day with a video capable cell phone, and could claim to be New Media, or Citizen Journalists.

So I'm not sorry Ann Althouse, and husband. Get some genuine credentials, or accept your status as ordinary citizens. Stop whining. I'm not impressed.

Now I could add and end with any number of anecdotes here about me. But instead I will go with one concerning a fellow stage worker from my show biz days, Sylvia. I remember the one time Sylvia said, whenever she had to go down to the big professional theatrical or TV production supply houses, or one of the professional audio suppliers to pick up or pick out something for the venue, she needed to leave her credit cards home. It was too tempting to be around all the really good gear, and not want to pick something up. That's because the professional level gear is much better (as a general rule.) And at those prices, it better be!