Obama Made the Teleprompter Popular
Replaces Speech With Reading From a Mirror in Front of a Camera
Sep 13, 2009
President Obama's total dependency on a teleprompter - a TV-type on-camera "speech reading device" - made the entire world aware of this brilliant Hollywood style trick. All on-camera people are interested in maintaining their eye contact with their audience – especially on television. Used in TV studios for decades, the teleprompter eliminates looking down to the notes or cue cards, and allows a straight look into the camera lens.
Basically a Reading Device
Most speeches on TV are scripted, and many of them are written by scriptwriters. Many politicians and most TV personalities read their scripts on camera using a teleprompter. This is an electronic device, which consists of a flat laying monitor in front of the camera and a mirror type glass directly in front of the lens.
The mirror reflects exactly the monitor content – visible only to the person in front of the camera - without affecting the picture recorded by the camera. This trick gives the on-camera person the opportunity to present the speech perfectly, while looking exactly into the camera lens at the same time. Of course, the text is fed from a remote computer by a cable or wirelessly. There are several teleprompter software programs on the market.
Many Depend Totally on a Teleprompter
Many people depend totally on a teleprompter. President Obama seems to be one of them. He uses them even for a short introduction at a press conference, which is actually very unusual. According to media reports, the White House owns two dozen teleprompters, always using a backup unit in case the active teleprompter breaks down.
The idea started in the 1950s when actors needed to memorize large amounts of text in a very short time. The basic teleprompter principle was invented by Fred Barton and some of his colleagues, and based on a very long paper scroll advanced next to the camera in allowing the actor to read his text.
From Mechanical to Electronic Device
For decades, studios around the world used the mechanical version of an early teleprompter. Johnny Carson Show used them into the early 1990s. At the same time, light and flat TFT and LCD monitors became available, which reduced the size and weight of the entire device dramatically.
Companies Autoscript and Sysmedia pioneered a teleprompter with very bright monitors and no need to manually scroll the text. Their system became fully voice activated and scrolled automatically at the reader’s speech pace.
The Teleprompter also has Some Critics
Some people criticize politicians for their teleprompter use because the critics consider the usage of a teleprompter not a speech – but a text reading device. They say teleprompters avoid own thinking and are more or less a “fake speech” written by somebody else. They might not always reflect the actual personal opinion or standpoint of a politician. Some comedians and critics try to make fun of President Obama because of his reliance on teleprompters.
Many Different Versions on the Market
The word teleprompter is actually a generic name. In some countries are they called cueing devices or auto cues. Modern teleprompters use a personal computer, a monochrome monitor and sophisticated adjustments.
Very popular are so-called conference teleprompters President Obama and other politicians use. These devices project the text on a perfectly angled glass plate in front of the reader. These glass devices are usually hardly recognized by the camera or the audience.
Teleprompters are also sometimes used in concerts when the performers have some difficulties learning long text passages. Meanwhile, small and relatively cheap teleprompters are available, and many community organizations such as churches and clubs as well as business associations started using them in order to deliver more “polished” speeches.
Field reporters at most TV and Cable networks frequently use the light and inexpensive teleprompters. Virtually all Hollywood movie and TV production companies have used them for years. Some media experts say the teleprompter has become a very important tool that nobody wants to miss at mass communication events.
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