Inside 2024 - Preview | Favreau + Tommy Talk Election Night
Nov 26, 2023
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Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor take you behind the scenes of election nights like Barack Obama's 2008 winning campaign. They discuss the stress and uncertainty of election day, the process of writing election night speeches, Obama's speech edits and emotional victory moment, and the informal relationship between campaign people and reporters.
Election day involves anxiety, anticipation, and frustration for campaign workers, with little to do until results come in.
Building good relationships with the press can lead to better coverage and understanding of the campaign.
Deep dives
Inside 2024: Campaign Trail Stories and Insights
Inside 2024 is a new subscriber podcast that provides a behind-the-scenes look at the 2024 election cycle. Each episode features former White House staffers sharing their campaign trail stories and insights. In this sneak peek, John Favreau and Tommy Vitor discuss the emotions and experiences of election day. They highlight the anxiety and stress that come with waiting for the results, the obsessive monitoring of exit polls, and the eagerness to hear any updates. Despite the anticipation, election day for communications workers mainly involves sitting around and refreshing news websites. The episode also touches on the preparations made for victory, concession, and inconclusive speeches, recalling the moments leading up to President Obama's historic victory and the nervous excitement in writing and editing the speeches.
Emotional Moments and Gossip on Election Day
Election day evokes a range of emotions for those involved in campaigns. John and Tommy share their personal experiences and the atmosphere at the campaign headquarters. They describe the anxiety and anticipation felt as they anxiously followed the news and monitored exit polls. They explain how election day can be frustrating for communications workers as there is not much they can do until the results come in. The conversation also veers into the lighthearted side of election day, with staff members gossiping and chatting with reporters. They discuss how building good relationships with the press can be beneficial and how the campaign's friendliness and access helped foster better coverage and understanding.
Behind the Scenes of Writing and Editing Election Night Speeches
The episode delves into the process of preparing speeches for election night. John recalls having written three speeches for victory, concession, and inconclusive outcomes. He shares an anecdote about calling 106-year-old Anixen Cooper, who stood in line for three hours to vote, to inform her that she would be mentioned in Obama's victory speech. The conversation highlights how the team drafted the speeches days before the election, but Obama refrained from giving any edits until it seemed like the presidency was secured. The episode ends with a clip of Obama calling John to discuss a few minor edits, showcasing the attention given to the smallest details. It also emphasizes the emotional impact of the victory speech and the significance of highlighting the progress America has made throughout its history.
Happy holidays from the Offline team! Here’s a special sneak peek of our new subscriber exclusive series Inside 2024. In this preview Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor take you behind the scenes of election nights like Barack Obama’s 2008 winning campaign. It’s a show we’re really proud of and we hope you enjoy. Producer Caroline Reston moderates. If you want to hear the rest of the episode, or future ones, be sure to sign up for Friends of the Pod at crooked.com/friends.
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