Let's go to the tape!
Now that the tape of 'Trump on the Bus' saying inflammatory things about women has been published, I'd like to make a few guesses about the tape itself.
First of all, it's in 4x3 standard definition format. The distortion in the middle of it suggests that it was an analog tape and the distortion is a physical wrinkle on the tape. I'm guessing it was a Sony Beta SP tape in the appropriate camera/recorder. I'm also guessing from the amount of motion in the shots it was a shoulder mounted rig.
The microphones are dual lavalier radio mics. That's why you can hear the conversation quite clearly even though Trump and company are inside the bus while the camera is outside.
In the TV business this is what they call B roll material. It isn't the main shot but it could have been used for fill, probably an intro showing the bus with The Guest Star arrive.
Now, the keeping and archiving of unused video material will vary from place to place. For many small television operations, once the main material is 'in the can' the original tapes are bulk erased and reused. This can save a lot of money since new tape can easily go for 40 dollars for a half hour tape. In fact, it may have been a reused tape that filmed the segment.
What I find most curious is that the images are still around after more than 10 years. Was the tape stored away? Tape libraries even in small television operations can be large but usually only the finished products are archived. Damaged tape is tossed and unused B roll footage is erased and reused. Tape also deteriorates over time and some tapes are less robust than others. There is a possibility that the tape was archived in a digital format when modern digital disk drives became more standard.
So there had to be enough funds to keep a tape library of unused footage - either the physical tape itself or in a digital format and kept all these years. There should also be some kind of database of the tapes that tell what's on them.
It's from the show 'Access Hollywood' which is owned or affiliated with NBC. So they may have the budget and the system in place to do all that.
I've heard there's more tapes to come. Get out the popcorn.
-m
First of all, it's in 4x3 standard definition format. The distortion in the middle of it suggests that it was an analog tape and the distortion is a physical wrinkle on the tape. I'm guessing it was a Sony Beta SP tape in the appropriate camera/recorder. I'm also guessing from the amount of motion in the shots it was a shoulder mounted rig.
The microphones are dual lavalier radio mics. That's why you can hear the conversation quite clearly even though Trump and company are inside the bus while the camera is outside.
In the TV business this is what they call B roll material. It isn't the main shot but it could have been used for fill, probably an intro showing the bus with The Guest Star arrive.
Now, the keeping and archiving of unused video material will vary from place to place. For many small television operations, once the main material is 'in the can' the original tapes are bulk erased and reused. This can save a lot of money since new tape can easily go for 40 dollars for a half hour tape. In fact, it may have been a reused tape that filmed the segment.
What I find most curious is that the images are still around after more than 10 years. Was the tape stored away? Tape libraries even in small television operations can be large but usually only the finished products are archived. Damaged tape is tossed and unused B roll footage is erased and reused. Tape also deteriorates over time and some tapes are less robust than others. There is a possibility that the tape was archived in a digital format when modern digital disk drives became more standard.
So there had to be enough funds to keep a tape library of unused footage - either the physical tape itself or in a digital format and kept all these years. There should also be some kind of database of the tapes that tell what's on them.
It's from the show 'Access Hollywood' which is owned or affiliated with NBC. So they may have the budget and the system in place to do all that.
I've heard there's more tapes to come. Get out the popcorn.
-m