Alyssa Caplan
AC360° Staffer

If this week has taught me anything, it’s that it should become mandatory that elections fall on Thursdays. That way, historically questionable days like Monday through Wednesday would be more palpable as the excitement builds toward the day when the fate of our nation finally gets revealed.

Then, with only one more work day to get through after an emotionally and physically draining week/two years, the media and country could throw on their favorite track suits and gather for the world’s biggest virtual post-mortem “brunch” before waving goodbye for a quiet weekend of reflective and restorative processing time.

But mostly, the fact that the day after the election would then fall on a Friday would help promote bi-partisan healing because if your candidate wasn’t chosen, you could say comforting things to yourself like, “Well, the country may officially just bought itself a one way ticket to hell in a hand bag, but at least its Friday!!” And if the candidate you were pulling for was chosen, you could tap in to the energy of everyone’s favorite day of the week and ride an even bigger wave of excitement, hope and wonder in to the blissful weekend sunset.

Instead, this has seemingly been the longest week in the history of the world.

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Anna Otieno watches Barack Obama's acceptance speech in Chicago's Grant Park.

Anna Otieno
Consumer Strategist at Iconoculture, Inc,
a freelance writer & Online Communications Dir. for African Diaspora for Obama

Editor’s Note: Tuesday night, as Obama gave his acceptance speech in Grant Park, cameras panned across the massive crowd. Sometimes, a single shot of a face in the sea of people stood out. We reached out to one of those faces caught in the midst of the moment and asked Anna Otieno to reflect upon what she was thinking, and what happens when a camera pauses on your face amidst one of the most watched events in television history. Anna recently moved to Chicago from Minneapolis and found herself in the front row at Obama’s acceptance speech in Grant Park Tuesday. She is a passionate Obama supporter. Below is her story.

“It’s written all over your face.” We have all heard that expression and on Tuesday night, truer words had ne’er been spoken. There I was in the front row at Grant Park watching our next President, Barack Obama, deliver his acceptance speech. This is it, this is really happening. At that very moment, all I could do was watch and listen. I took in every single word as if I was going to be tested on it. And truth be told, I sure was. From family to friends to Facebook, everyone wanted to know, what was it like?!

It was amazing.

The atmosphere in Grant Park was invigorating. Thousands among thousands filled this corner of Chicago to the brim. As we waited for Obama, some of us cried, some of us danced, and some of us sang our hearts out to the classics. Hope was flowing from city to stage. Drop a disco ball and it’s a wrap - this was my kind of party. For one night, celebrity, socio-economic status, race and background were set aside. We all celebrated together.

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Richard Morris
Associate Producer, Campbell Brown: No Bias. No Bull.

It’s over.

What an amazing journey. I am sure it will take some time to sink in, but tonight history was made. Absolutely amazing.

We have shots from around the world in our control room. Sydney, Kenya, Chicago, Harlem. This was a shot that rang around the world in an instant.

I have friends emailing me– detailing the cheering in the streets. In here though, it is almost silence. It is hard to believe that after months of stump speeches, the race has come to an end.

Stay tuned. There are many, many more hours of live broadcast ahead.

Richard Morris
Associate Producer, Campbell Brown: No Bias. No Bull.

The hologram is already on YouTube! Took less than an hour for someone to post a clip of our hologram of CNN correspondent Jessica Yellin being ‘beamed’ into our Election Center speaking with Wolf Blitzer. The technology behind this amazes me — there are roughly 44 high-definition cameras that take a real-time, three-dimensional image of a person live!

The night is rapidly developing. We have just called Pennsylvania, a big one for Obama’s basket. Virginia, Florida, and Ohio are still major players that can make or break this race.

Curious to game the night out? Check out cnn.com/map for a very entertaining and engaging feature to play along with our coverage.

Richard Morris, second from left, in an election night control room.

Richard Morris
Associate Producer, Campbell Brown: No Bias. No Bull.

This is just the beginning. Five minutes to 7:00pm and we were getting ready to make our first two projections, 49 to go (don’t forget the District of Columbia). I am inside one of two control rooms that is outputting out huge production tonight. I am apart of team of that is producing the result graphics that you see in the wall behind Wolf, Campbell and Anderson.

Do you like the tricks tonight? We just debuted the hologram which allows us to have guests and reporters virtually on the set with us. There is a very cool virtual Capitol we will be using to show the change in the balance of power in Congress.

The night is very, very young. I am sure each of you are just as excited as we are to watch these results stream in.

Brew that pot of coffee; it could be a long night.

Stand by for more…

Why is this election important? AC360° producer Chuck Hadad took a cross-country road trip to find out.

Chuck Hadad
AC360° Producer

My boss pulled me into his office one afternoon in late May and dropped a bombshell: “We want you to do a short documentary about the election. Come back to us with an idea and as long as we’re on board, we want you to go for it.” It would be my first shot at being on-air and I was thrilled.

I came back a week later with an idea that was as ambitious as perhaps it was foolish. This was my official pitch:

Although I’m not a veteran political pundit, I’ve voted in 3 elections and been a part of covering as many in my career here at CNN. I grew up in a family highly attuned to politics which lead to our own lively round table discussions at dinner growing up (especially the last election when my Mom voted for Bush, my Dad for Kerry).

I’m old enough to remember Reagan’s reelection, the Iran-Contra scandal, the end of the Cold War, Bush 1, the recession, the surprise victory of the Governor from Arkansas, the triumphs, defeats and controversies of the entire Clinton presidency and everything in between.

With that knowledge both on the job and leading up to it, this Presidential election just seems bigger, the stakes higher, the difference between one man or the other massive and the emotion for the entire country at a fevered pitch. For lack of a better word, this election just feels more important than any one in my lifetime. While the candidates go into general election mode, they no doubt have their talking points on why they’re the best to lead. But I’m not interested in their rhetoric which gets blasted around the world on many platforms on a daily basis.

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Program Note: 3 out of 4 young people know someone who is currently serving or has served in Iraq or Afghanistan. Anderson helps MTV shine a light on issues facing young veterans… Check out MTV.com for how to get involved.
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Leslie Sanchez | Bio
CNN Political Contributor
Republican Strategist

Everyone says, nowadays, that they support the troops. It’s a phrase that trips off the tongue with ease whether spoken by anti-war protesters or battle-hardened veterans of previous conflicts. In one sense, its part of the cure for 25-year long hangover America experienced after Vietnam, having overdone it on the Kool-Aid poured out by Massachusetts’ John F. Kerry and other anti-war activists. Saying it makes you feel better.

But what does it really mean “to support the troops.” Well, for recording artists Ludacris, 50 Cent, Hinder, O.A.R. and Saving Abel, it means sharing your talents to raise awareness so that veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan can have access to physical and mental health screening, medical care, job counseling and training, education and, for those that want it, a fresh start in a new life outside the embrace of the U.S. military.

At MTV’s “A Night for Vets: An MTV Concert for the BRAVE,” those artists performed live along with taped performances by some of the entertainment industry’s most recognizable stars, including Kanye West, Kid Rock, Angels + Airwaves, Fall Out Boy, Juanes, Nelly, Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Will Ferrell, Cameron Diaz, Common, Fat Joe, Seth Green, Elizabeth Banks, Jennifer Hudson, John Legend, James Marsden and Wyclef Jean.

Over 950 veterans and their families attended, and they no doubt could feel the love. Austin Winkler, the vocalist for the band “Hinder” explained he was there because his dad was a Marine and that it was “definitely important to take care of our veterans.” Keep reading

Program Note: 3 out of 4 young people know someone who is currently serving or has served in Iraq or Afghanistan. Anderson helps MTV shine a light on issues facing young veterans… Check out MTV.com for how to get involved.
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AC360° Producers Chuck Hadad and Kay Jones enjoy the show.

Kay Jones
AC360° Coordinating Editorial Producer

Four years ago, I had the privilege to produce CNN’s coverage of a party that Ft. Hood threw for the soldiers returning from Iraq. It was an all day affair on the grounds of Ft. Hood, starting with a ceremony for those who had just arrived home from Iraq and moving on to musical acts such as Ludacris, Jessica Simpson and my all time favorite Lynryd Skynyrd performing on a makeshift stage in the middle of the base.

I will never forget how much fun these soldiers and their families were having, just knowing that they were home and being celebrated. So when I was asked to help out with CNN’s portion of MTV’s Concert for the BRAVE, I jumped at the chance.

We started our night with Anderson doing a live shot for the Situation Room in the middle of Times Square. Just a few steps away, the line of the military vets waiting to get into the Nokia Theatre went all the way up 7th Avenue. When they realized who was standing that close, many pulled out their cell phones and cameras to get a shot. Now, normally I wouldn’t blog about such fandom, but the smiles on the faces of those who got pictures of Anderson were priceless.

Transitioning inside, the excitement for the show was building. Right before the “official” show began, MTV news correspondent Sway introduced an aspiring rapper named Lorenzo Zarate, who also happens to be a veteran of the war in Iraq. The crowd loved what he did and I have a feeling it was all the more special for him, performing in front of those who he can relate to.

The entire night was fantastic. Not only were the performances great, but the stories told by the MTV correspondents and our own Anderson Cooper, Michael Ware and Dr. Sanjay Gupta really highlighted the issues that are facing these new veterans upon their return home from Iraq or Afghanistan, or in some cases, both countries.

Be sure to tune in to MTV tonight to see the concert, and Saturday and Sunday at 8pm on CNN to see a special edition of AC360°. I promise you, it is well worth your time. The stories you’ll see will touch you, and remind you about the ongoing problems these men and women of the US military dealing with after the battle.

David M. Reisner
AC360 Digital Producer

Ok so now we’re cookin’! Thanks for watching the ‘360 Webcast’ last night! The viewers are growing more and more each day. If you watched our online show last night you now know what all the fun is about.

We had our first repeat customer: Suze Orman. She came back to help us make sense of the lastest moves on Wall street. A day when the market ended UP 400 points doesn’t mean we are out of the woods yet… and we asked Suze some extra questions about the market and your money during the break.

We talked birthdays too…. If you watched the show last night, Anderson talked about how embarassed he was for something he asked erica during the ‘360 Webcast.’ I think it was an honest mistake, but hey, I’m not going to tell you what happened - its best you just see for yourself!

For those of you who didn’t catch it - be sure to watch tonight - during commercial breaks!
all you have to do is click here - and the rest is magic!

Read more about what the ‘360 Webcast’ is all about

Randi Kaye
AC360° Correspondent

Hi everyone. Today is my last day covering Sarah Palin in Alaska - at least for this trip. I’ve been here 17 days and every minute of it has been exciting.

I wanted to leave you with a little behind the scenes look at how we get to the roof of the local hotel for our live shots. The photo you see here is the beautiful backdrop you see on television.

But it not so easy to get here. It’s a bit of a workout.. especially on the way out…

WATCH VIDEO OF RANDI’S JOURNEY

Let me know what you think.. all for the magic of television.

See you back in the “lower 48″…