It's not everyday that a Dartmouth student witnesses a near-brawl at a rally for presidential candidate Pat Buchanan -- but a member of the Dartmouth Election Network did.
The student-operated Dartmouth Election Network, which is broadcast by the College's two radio stations, transmits primary coverage to dozens of radio stations across the country.
"It's an interesting way to kill a Friday afternoon," said Kate Buhrmaster '97, the Election Network reporter who covered the Buchanan rally.
She said there was "nearly a brawl" between Christian activists supporting Buchanan and a Jewish man, who questioned Buchanan's support for school prayer.
Buhrmaster said she also covered GOP Candidate Bob Dole's Dartmouth visit in addition to New Hampshire appearances by President Bill Clinton and Elizabeth Dole for the Election Network.
Broadcast by WDCR and WFRD, the Election Network has covered campaign events across the state for months.
"We're the only station, period, that has 200 people on its election night staff," said Election Network Executive Producer Sabrina Serrantino '95. "No other station can afford to do that."
The Election Network can maintain such a large staff because most of its labor is unpaid," said Rory McGee '97, a reporter for the Election Network.
"We're at an excellent vantage point to provide the most comprehensive election coverage," Serrantino said.
In previous years, the Election Network's coverage has received honors from the Associated Press and has won the United Press International's New England Award for "Best Radio Election Coverage" and the Thomas Philips New England Broadcast Award for "Best News Story."
Its coverage will climax Tuesday evening, the night of the primary, when the Election Network will broadcast complete results from 7 p.m. on Tuesday to 1 a.m. on Wednesday to an audience including affiliate stations across the United States.
Serrantino said Election Network representatives will be present at the 10 major campaign centers, interviewing candidates, doing exit-polling and in-house polling and moderating discussions with a panel of political scientists from Dartmouth.
While the primary night programming will be broadcast from Morrison Commons at the Rockefeller Center for the Social Sciences, the engineering will take place at the radio station's office in Robinson Hall, Serrantino said.
"We'll be using a real-time chat program to link the broadcast commentators, pollsters, news monitors and writers," she said. "Rocky's been nice enough to let us use their facilities."
Although the Election Network has covered the New Hampshire presidential primary since 1964, this year's programming is "the largest ... we've ever had," Serrantino said.
With a greater number of affiliate stations purchasing the Election Network program than ever before, "I think we'll have a good chunk of the country listening," she said, noting that most stations carry all six hours of the program.
Revenue from the sale of Election Network programming will return to the radio station, Serrantino said. But, she said, revenue is not a primary goal.
"Our purpose is to provide a learning experience," she said.
Planning for the network began at the beginning of Fall term, Serrantino said. Interested students were taught the rudiments of journalism, such as interviewing techniques and ethics.
The Election Network field reporters were chosen on the basis of their previous campaign coverage and "seriousness of purpose," she said. "It's based on merit and commitment."
While campaign coverage is the most popular option for Election Network staff members, approximately 30 students do news writing, while others do polling and monitor news broadcasts and the Associated Press wire.
Even though McGee, who will be the primary night co-anchor, came to the Election Network from a Fall term internship at Cable News Network, she said she was still excited about the opportunities rural New Hampshire provides.
"This is really a once in a Dartmouth career experience," she said. "We'll be covering it on the same level as CNN."
As one of the Election Network reporters covering Dole's visit to the College, McGee said she had the opportunity to question Dole on the reversal of his affirmative action stance and on whether he felt he had lost the perspective of the average citizen.
"He said a lot of his friends are average people," McGee said.
As a reporter, McGee was able to listen to Dole's invitation-only speech within Alpha Delta fraternity, which she said was quite similar to the speech he gave to the audience outside.
"I found it kind of amusing" that he gave the same speech twice, she said.
Unfortunately, McGee said, not everything turned out well during her interview of Dole.
"My interviews with Dole didn't come out clear enough," McGee said. McGee said the loud background music at the event muddled her recording.
Yet McGee, who says she hopes to enter broadcasting, said she is happy with the experience so far, noting the value of being able "to say that you've had national broadcast experience."
