Jared Levin Editorials Editor Last friday, the AP government class had a chance to hear Alexi Giannoulias speak. The class was invited down to the ABC studio by one of the student’s family members.  Once they arrived, they walked into the studio and caught the end of the morning news.  At the end of the segment, the women operating the camera asked if the students wanted to be on television.  The obvious answer was yes, and the camera turned to the students, who began to wave. Even though they were not there to be on television, that experience was a bonus.  Before Mr. Giannoulias showed up, they had a chance to talk with one of the producers of the ABC show and got to ask him questions about journalism and the preparation required for the interview. The producer explained the idea that it is the station’s job to enlighten voters as to which candidate best represents their views.  If the station asked questions that Giannoulias and everyone else shared the same opinion on, the viewer would not take away as much. Once Mr. Giannoulias arrived, he greeted the people at the station, and then walked over to the government class.  He shook each of the students’ hands individually, asked for their names, and then repeated their names back to them.  During the interview, students in the class strategically positioned themselves so that they could see the interview from the best angle.  Some found it more comfortable to sit in the anchors’ chairs, while others sat on the floor next the the camera. The interview went well, and the interviewer covered many topics including the war in Iraq, and “don’t ask don’t tell.”  Following the interview, Mr. Giannoulias came over to the class and started talking to the students. Since he is a Latin alumnus, he asked about Latin, teachers, and of course, the basketball program.  Interestingly enough, Mr. Giannoulias’ basketball coach from Latin was at the taping, and we also had a chance to talk with him.  Mr. Giannoulias was extremely friendly. At the end, as he was walking out, one of the students asked for his autograph on a picture he printed out before the interview. Overall, this was a great experience for the Latin students.  They had the opportunity to see firsthand some of the things that they have been studying.  Furthermore, Giannoulias is one of the candidates in the AP Gov class’ simulation, and it was interesting seeing how accurately he was portrayed during the simulations.  The class looks forward to seeing how this midterm will unfold and hopefully will be able to meet him again.]]>