Previous | Next :: Barack Obama : Richmond : Virginia | October 24, 2008, 12:36 am

Here is more from Obama in Richmond VA...... its great to have the privilege of being at these events....... seeing Obama close up ......... and seeing his interaction with his supporters but it really is a hassle dealing with all his press people....... Obviously there is the security that can be a hassle but in Richmond it was fine....... it was just the press officers that tell you to stand in one place then wait for an hour for Obama...... then when Obama is actually coming on they want you to move...... its like they haven't given a moments thought to what you actually do for a living........ they can mess about shuffling people around pointlessly all they like before Obama appears ........... but the moment he comes on we photographer types have got to do our work.......... they were deciding pointlessly on a different spread of people and getting the cops to hassle unresponsive photographers who were obviously just too busy shooting to listen to their ridiculously late requests to start moving about....... weirdly the same thing happened three times during Obama's speech........ critically both at the beginning and the end...... I and others were standing where they told us to stand....... then at the critical moment they required us to move....... er....... why? cos you are blocking Obama? or other photographers? or TV? or even the view of supporters?...... er....... no.......? its just arbitrary with no obvious reason beyond they are ordering you to move now....... its very frustrating...... one of the women running the press apologized to me for making me move around so that I was not shooting during 'the hello' and 'the goodbye'....... obviously I was supposed to smile and say 'no worries'....... but instead i said why were you doing it? She was unable to give any reason........ She did not seem to know why?...... but she did say...... ' its always best to do what we say' ..... er ....... except that you would attend these events and have no pictures.......

Cheers Jez XX