It's now been several days since my live-blogging exercise at the Wake County Democratic Rally and Chili Cook-Off, and while I'm no General Bernard Montgomery (or even Cornelius Ryan), the analogy of a 'bridge too far' comes to mind.
Detachment is a given
Much like traditional reporting, it's difficult to become part of the moment when live-blogging it. Not only was I occupied with listening, and taking notes, I was also either typing in a post or thinking about the next one. Even for a natural multi-tasker like me, the 'processing power' required to do all this was such that I never felt engrossed in the rally itself.
The only exception to this was Jon Kuniholm's talk, where the power of his words and delivery overwhelmed all other distractions and compelled me to focus almost solely on him.
I wouldn't consider this detachment a problem or a disadvantage, but it did make me experience the event very differently than if I were not blogging. At the time, I felt I had missed a lot of content, but after reflection I see that I actually absorbed more than I would have as a mere spectator.
Accuracy can suffer
I learned very quickly that true live-blogging has its perils, especially when it comes to the cold, hard facts of the story. This event was fairly unstructured. The only speakers announced in advance were Jon Kuniholm and Jerry Meek, and there were no backgrounders (or even a program) provided. Thus, I found it challenging to catch people's names and titles, especially since there were so many speakers (12 in all) in less than two hours.
My work-around for this was to fact-check after the event and correct a few mistakes. I also at one point enlisted my son to jot down notes. Having an assistant when live-blogging would be a major advantage for anyone trying to cover an unstructured event.
Even a chili cook-off is not above politics
The chili cook-off unfolded far differently than I expected. In other events of this nature, I've simply plopped the slow cooker on the table, put up a sign, and left. At this event, however, the cooks were expected to stand by their product, dispensing it to judges and attendees, and answering questions. As a result, the chili entries were not anonymous. When the winning entries were announced, every one of them was from a candidate (or support group), even though such entries made up less than half of the total. Coincidence or conspiracy? Just sayin'. If only I had Sean Hannity on my speed-dial!
The multi-media element
My years in public relations and advertising have actually provided good training for live-blogging in one regard: photography (especially at events like this) is very familiar territory. While I was pressed for time due to the cook-off demands, I did find the opportunity to grab a few shots of the venue, the chili, and my 'blogging outpost' (a table near an outlet). I didn't have the necessary cable to download my pictures live, but with a little better planning next time, that would not be an obstacle. I was reminded just how difficult it is for one person to keep track of all the elements -- the computer, wireless card, camera, SD cards, notebook -- AND operate all of them. Another place where an assistant would be very useful.
The bottom line
Live-blogging is fun, in a mascohistic sort of way. In the future, I think I would not be so concerned about truly 'being live,' but I wanted the experience, and it was a good one. I felt 'deadline gut' (that tight ball of editor/boss/client-inspired bile and muscle contraction that is the best short-term motivator known to man) every couple of minutes, which is undoubtedly why I was exhausted after just a couple hours. The fact that I got up at 5 a.m. to make chili probably contributed as well. I will definitely live-blog again, but I won't try to live-blog and compete in a culinary competition at the same time. That's taking multi-tasking just a little too far.
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