Behind-the-scenes at Boise State's first national teleconference

By John Liebenthal appeared just four days before the telecon­ Army and the Department of Labor. ference, when the AT&T Skynet. . . one Because of such widespread interest in controlled frenzy envelops the of two self-contained "full broadcast the topics, BS U and Boise would be in the Simplot-Micron Technology transponders" owned by AT&T ... limelight in over 40 states from Alabama Center's small,just-completed pointed its 40 ft. diameter satellite dish to Wyoming, as well as Canada and A studio. Final checks are being toward the heavens. Puerto Rico. made in broadcast stations on the BS U This transponder and its crew had Under such scrutiny, the success of this campus and in Washington D.C., all handled similar situations, among them conference was paramount. And the connected by the Telstar 302 satellite the Jerry Lewis Telethon, according to stakes were high. hovering at precisely 38,464.96 kilometers "It's an extremely high risk venture," in space. Roger Maroushek an AT&T operations supervisor, who describes this key piece said co-coordinator Clair Bowman just Four VIPs take their places at the of equipment. days before, "It will be easy to mess up. newly-created set, threading earphones When we discussed our ideas with Allen through suit coats, taking final glances at "This is a dual system with 100 percent redundancy, which means that if some­ Corp. and the Department of Commerce, their notes. The scene suddenly becomes thing goes wrong with anyone part, there we found out that people in the past sombre. Everyone takes a final deep is a backup that will be immediately would expect 12 months from inception breath and the director's hand cues one of switched on. It is valued at close to $1 to production. Weare doing it in five, and the four statuesque figures. million." we've never done one before." After five months of planning, the first Soon there were yards and yards of Set designer Howard Hanson gave an national teleconference in Idaho's history cable running in, out, and over the roof qf example of the intense commitment this is on the air. the brand new center, cable that was the project demanded of many. "I started The challenge of using technology was lifeline of the complex broadcasting working on this the first part of last week. the central theme of the May 22 system that would bring it all together. 'Yesterday,' I worked 34 hours on it." RETRAIN AMERICA- teleconference. For the next three days AT&T crews Kelly Slabaugh, the center's repair And, ironically, as the experts discussed from Salt Lake and Las Vegas, an expert specialist describes some common worri~s. the issues involved, their whole system of studio crew from the Idaho Educational "I've had some 'what ifs': What if we communication was hanging on the abili­ Public Broadcasting System, BSU's own lose the signal to the satellite and our ties of the vanguard behind the scenes, a Technology Center staff, and a crew from ability to broadcast? What if the cameras group facing its own technological Aatronics all scurried to organize and go out? What if our preview lines went challenges. create a network for this meeting of the down? This crew, a potpourri of local, state, minds soon to debut nationwide. "We had only four weeks to prepare. In and national broadcasting talent, had Subscribing to the conference were a way that's good, because we really cooperatively planned, prepared, and was government, educational, and private haven't had time to think that way ... now carrying out this incredibly risky business participants ranging from the no time to doubt or change things." venture in a brand-new untested building. Allen Corporation and Purdue University After a week of at least 18 hour days The first telltale sign of coming events to the Zigon performance group, the U.S. (Continued on page 34) 20 scurried throughout the facility barking problem. Teleconference high-tech jargon into two-way radios, Each time the cue hand dropped, the (Continued from page 20) striving to solve little last minute "techni­ panelists assumed the controlled confi­ for the staffs of IEPBS and the center, cal difficulties." dence of high level professionals. Each some of these lurking "what ifs" began to Experts in the technology field were time the broadcast broke to another emerge the day before the conference. using new equipment and a new facility, speaker or prerecorded video, the adjust­ Between fielding a flood of logistical working with many new faces and often ments were less anxious. Things were questions and making a sweeping check innovative approaches. It wouldn't reflect smo~ othing out. A meditative calm began of operations, Peter Morrill, executive well on the conference if some unforeseen to emerge in the studio as everyone's producer for IEPBS, interjected a horror pro blem stifled their effectiveness, but it concentration focused more and more on story. could reaffirm the whole theme if things the conference itself. The day was turning out to be a success. "This building is brand new, and still went well. As time ran shorter, the loose ends This success according to AT&T's Mike somewhat under construction; nothing in began coming together. But even as the Ashby, hinged on the cooperation of the the studio had really been checked out. lights went up, just-in-time preparations people involved. Our lights wouldn't fit, and the Morrison were being made. "Information technology management Center loaned us some. The lights were There were minor problems as the involved finding resources to get problems brand new and when they got hot, they conference got underway. During BSU solved. It can be very difficult if the began to smoke. Since the air conditioning President John Keiser's introductory people yo~ 're working with don't want to system wasn't running, the smoke detec­ address, panelists in the studio faced a cooperate. . . that's where working with tors were activated. The detectors in turn momentary audio loss. the people here has been great." primed the sprinkler system. So we were Clair Bowman summarized what he crossing our fingers hoping the whole "What's going on? Are we having saw as the touchstone for the success building wouldn't be drenched, which pro blems?!?," one panelist exclaimed. "We have no audio ... oh, now we've underlying the conference. would have been a disaster." got it ..." "This confirms the belief that whether Whether by the superstitious finger­ Outside the studio door the "trouble you think you can or you think you can't, crossing ritual, a divine act, or just plain phone" was ringing. One of the receive you're right. At BSU we find creative luck, things cooled off without getting sites was having problems with the signal. solutions to perceived 0 bstacles. Focusing wet. And preparations continued. As panelists 2,500 miles away in Washing­ on the solution rather than the problem is 'The morning of the conference proved ton D.C. were on the air, panelists and the tone that President Keiser sets for the to be a high pressure, just-in-time effort technicians in Idaho bustled with last university. As a result, it's fun working by all those involved. Crew members minute modifications to solve the here." Has your garage door seen beHer days? Call Overhead Door Co. of Southwestern Idaho, Inc.

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