Exclusive Access To The Obamas

To prepare, I read every article I could - the rags not withstanding. I had to prepare for anything which included asking my longtime business partner, Keven Undergaro, to fly out and help. Keven has an eclectic background that happens to include guerilla filmmaking. I feared we may be short on production staff due to the holiday and having a team player like Keven would only help the cause.

So, on the morning of the fourth, after a few secret service checks, we arrived at the barbeque celebration where Senator Obama and his wife Michelle would address a crowd of supporters. When Senator Obama concluded his speech, secret service escorted me and the rest of Team Access Hollywood up a gravel road to the official location for our interview: an outdoor mining museum. The museum consisted of a makeshift western town complete with shops, structures and stores from that era – each filled with rare antiques and artifacts. It was a unique location to conduct the interview for sure.

As I moved closer into position, I found myself next to two young girls who turned out to be none other than the Senator’s two daughters, Malia (10) and Sasha (7). We engaged in some small talk about dogs and, overall, they seemed sweet, but a bit shy. The girls hadn’t yet had time to check out the museum but wanted to do so, I told Keven, a history major and former elementary school teacher, to take them on a tour. So off went Keven, the girls and the secret service as I continued to prepare for my interview. When Keven and the group returned, Keven had the girls laughing and joking. Any shyness that existed was clearly broken by "Uncle Keven" the clown tour guide.

Before I knew it, the Senator and his wife were ready. What surprised me was the fact that the children were also getting microphones. Just before the interview, the Obama camp had mentioned that the girls were big fans of the Jonas Brothers and they knew they were featured on Access Hollywood often. I was told they wanted to join the interview to talk about the Jonas brothers at the end.

This was a rather large twist to say the least and, ultimately, changed the course of the interview. It was no longer an interview with Senator Obama and Michelle, but an interview with the Obama family – and a first at that. I seized the moment by showing the family a photo of my rescue dogs, Noelle and Athena. I read that the children really want a dog but that it needed to be a hypo-allergenic one - which Noelle and Athena are. Also, Athena is a standard poodle (Senator Obama wants a big dog) and it gave me a chance to plug the virtues of pet adoption.

Once the cameras began rolling, the girls seemed to be the highlight of the interview, answering questions openly and commenting freely. Michelle Obama even directed some of the questions at them. I was stunned at how relaxed and natural the whole gang was. We learned that the kids don’t think their father has the best sense of style and that he needs to learn to pick up after himself. The girls told me that moving into the white house would be "cool" as Sasha put it. Malia was more excited about decorating her new room should her dad win the presidency. In the end, it was a completely different interview than I had imagined but I was excited with the results nonetheless.

The interview was a rare look at a family being a family amidst the madness of the campaign. You will hopefully see this for yourself when viewing. The girls are very sweet and the entire family had an aura of calm I couldn’t explain. It was the 4th of July, Malia’s 10th birthday and the family was still working, but trying to enjoy it at the same time. In between interviews with me, and a few print outlets, they picnicked in private with other relatives who were there with them as well. It was definitely a family affair.

When the interview wrapped, Keven and Michelle Obama talked about the woes of having children in the spotlight and her concerns as a mother. While Steve and I decompressed and the crew broke down equipment, I noticed from afar, Senator Obama coaching daughter Malia how to properly pass and maneuver a soccer ball around an opposing player. Michelle was playing catch with daughter, Sasha, before joining Dad in soccer, too.

I am sure this isn’t the last I shall see of the Obama four. Switching candidates, I had a terrific interaction and interview with Meghan McCain as well as a brief interview with her dad, Senator John McCain during the primaries. I hope to visit again with them, as well as other members of their family before November.

Now that the traditional portion of my blog is complete, I feel as though I have to take a brief moment to address all the hoopla and controversy regarding this interview. For those who criticized the interview for not being "hard hitting," I have to wonder what more exactly I was supposed to ask of a 10 and a 7 year old? Would my critics have been more approving, had I asked the children something inappropriate? Should I have posed a question that would make them cry in order to justify myself as a journalist? I would hope that anyone else in my position would have done the same. And perhaps therein lies the root of the criticism. The critics were not in position to conduct the first and, likely, only interview of the Obama family. That privilege was bestowed upon Access Hollywood, Producer Steve Forrest and myself.  I remain thankful for the experience.