This is what happens when a group of media are sent to cover an event but miss the “money shot”.
We’re going to take you behind the scenes. Our unedited video captures the moment some media crews faked an event not once but twice.
For the launch of author Dan Brown’s new thriller The Lost Symbol, various media assembled to shoot a group of speed readers. The idea was the fastest reader could give the book’s first-ever review. The trouble was, after two and a half hours of waiting for the keen readers to plough through 500 pages most of the media had their eyes off the ball.
So when, 23 year-old Carly Palmer finished reading first no one caught the shot.
The closest to getting the shot was our crew. Photographer Charles Brewer and I had followed a few specific readers including Carly and our footage and stills were the closest anyone got to Carly’s genuine completion.
Admittedly Carly was quietly shocked when she finished the book; added to that we were in the historic NSW Mitchell Library. It’s not the sort of place you yell “finished!” out loud.
So young Carly sat numbly knowing that she’d beaten a room packed with avid speed readers, and was then whisked away by publishers to answer some curly questions to see if she really had read the whole novel. It was then the media pack knew they’d missed the moment they were sent to cover.
So some sections of the media cornered the PR team and asked for a re-enactment.
Carly shyly obliged returning to her seat, now with a media pack in tow.
Our cameras captured the moments that followed – and you can also watch it: the moment when, for a small story the pack was fine to manipulate it - not once but twice - and then broadcast it as the actual event.
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