Hundreds of National Media Members Descend On Milwaukee For RNC Preview
Republican Party, local host committee hold media walkthrough in advance of 2024 convention.
From how to apply for credentials to where networks can build broadcast suites, media members and producers got their first official look at how the 2024 Republican National Convention will operate this week.
“Why are we in Milwaukee? I would love to tell you it’s the cheese, the beer, the food,” said Anne Hathaway, chair of the national Republican Party’s Committee on Arrangements, to several hundred media members assembled on the floor of Fiserv Forum Thursday morning. “But seriously, Milwaukee and Wisconsin made it clear they want the 2024 Republican convention here in Milwaukee.”
The actual convention doesn’t start until July 15, but getting to that point is a logistical maze for both the Republican Party and media outlets.
“They are going to make this easy. They are going to make this fun. And they’re going to make your life easier,” said Hathaway. She delivered her remarks in an arena soaked in red imagery and from a podium designed to show planners where the nominee and other speakers would speak from.
Host committee chair Reince Priebus, a long-time Republican strategist and former White House chief of staff, said his role for the event was apolitical. The host committee’s job is to make sure the event is a success for all involved he said.
Priebus’ group, led by CEO Ted Kellner, held a well-attended welcome party Wednesday night at the Miller High Life Theatre that featured an open bar and a wide array of Milwaukee and Wisconsin food, including plenty of cheese.
Mayor Cavalier Johnson also said his role isn’t political, and made it clear his politics don’t align with the Republicans.
“Let me let you in on a little secret… I’m not a Republican, in fact I’m a proud Democrat,” said Johnson. “That means my role here is different. I’m not here in a political capacity. My goal is hosting a convention that brings attention to Milwaukee… My desire, my goals to ensure that we are bringing economic impact to residents right here in this city.”
After the initial remarks, media members were able to review potential spaces big and small for their outlets. Those in attendance from national outlets were not on-air personalities, but behind-the-scenes producers and executives that must figure out what space needs to be rented and constructed. Options include private luxury-box-like studios for major networks, stand-up spaces for other networks, special press seating areas, photo podiums and an array of rentable media spaces in the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena and Baird Center.
“I want your experience in Milwaukee to be spectacular,” said Johnson to the attendees, a mix of local, national, and internal media members and individuals affiliated with different social media platforms.
Hathaway said her side of the convention already has 23 full-time staff “on the ground,” the host committee also has its own staffing operation.
There were two words none of the speakers said Thursday: Donald Trump. While the former president is widely expected to be the nominee, all of attention was focused on how the event would operate.
An additional walk-through is expected to take place in the spring, with organizations building out their spaces in advance of the formal convention from July 15 through 18. In addition to the formal convention venues, a number of outlets are expected to rent spaces nearby for additional studio space.
For many in attendance, the walkthrough might have triggered a sense of deja vu. Effectively the last major in-person event for the 2020 Democratic National Convention was a January walkthrough at Fiserv Forum. Less than two months later the COVID-19 pandemic effectively rendered the convention a virtual affair.
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More about the 2024 RNC
- Council members seeking information on fatal shooting during RNC, details on convention-related arrests, economic impact - Milwaukee Common Council - Jul 23rd, 2024
- Photo Gallery: Scenes from the RNC - Urban Milwaukee - Jul 19th, 2024
- Hulk Hogan, Kid Rock and Donald Trump, Final Day of RNC Veered All Over - Jeramey Jannene - Jul 19th, 2024
- Trump to Wisconsin – ‘I Am Trying To Buy Your Vote’ - Jeramey Jannene - Jul 18th, 2024
- ‘Everyday American’ Diane Hendricks Touts Trump, Her Life Story in RNC Speech - Jeramey Jannene - Jul 18th, 2024
- Bars and Restaurants See Dramatically Mixed Results For RNC Traffic - Sophie Bolich - Jul 18th, 2024
- Young Republicans Say They’re Ready To Lead Wisconsin GOP - Rich Kremer - Jul 18th, 2024
- RNC Preview – Day 4, Thursday July 18 - Jeramey Jannene - Jul 18th, 2024
- JD Vance Plays Up Working Class Roots, Populist Politics in RNC Speech - Graham Kilmer - Jul 17th, 2024
- RNC Host Says Visitors, Locals Need To Spread Across Downtown - Jeramey Jannene - Jul 17th, 2024
Read more about 2024 RNC here
Bringing the hoods to the neighborhood.
I don’t understand why we don’t see real coverage of what those representing us in government are doing.
For example, Representative Fitzgerald voted against the expulsion of Representative George Santos from the US House of Representatives (House Resolution 878 1 December 2023). There was a 56-page report from the House Committee on Ethics outlining the lies and criminal contact of George Santos and Representative Fitzgerald believes that he should be a member of the House of Representatives.
I’d be interested in understanding why Representative Fitzgerald voted to allow George Santos to stay in office.
Only one city in the United States wanted the Republican Convention.
Why?
Could it be because they are led by a monster who tried to overthrow
the government? A party that hates minorities and women? Whose leader has
promised a dictatorship and the use of the army and federal government against
his “enemies,” such as the press? Who wants to gut Social Security, Medicare,
and Obamacare and pass more tax cuts for billionaires? People who
believe climate change is a hoax and love war?
All of the above. The Mayor cannot escape his love for these monsters.
He was the only mayor in the entire country that wanted them here. He
sold us out and with any luck, he won’t be mayor when they show up. If
he is, he owns this. This is his baby – a monstrosity that no one else wanted.