Live from New York City... The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet

I have just gotten back from New York City. The national talk show The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet had flown me up to appear on a long segment on Tasers. With me on the show was Tom Smith, the Chairman of Taser International, and Larry Cox, Executive Director of Amnesty International.

It was a fun experience and a terrific chance to spread the message from my self-produced video "UF Student Tasered: A Law Enforcement Expert Responds" (that I put up on youtube, myspace, facebook, aol video, etc. - see my previous Blogger post for this video). I want people to understand the the police perspective before they make their final judgment. With Taser, the information has to factor in how the Taser works, the use of force continuum, and the specifics of a case at hand.

The Morning Show gave a national forum to educate the viewers and more closely examine cases such as The University of Florida student Andrew Meyer who was Tasered at the forum featuring Senator John Kerry.

I flew up last night (Tuesday) after a full day wearing a bullet proof vest in the hot sun instructing a Patrol block Simunitions day at the Police Academy I manage. I was a sun burned and tired guy when I got to bed in NYC at around midnight.

This morning (Wednesday), the show sent a car to pick me up a little before 7:00 am. I proceeded to the FOX studios in midtown Manhattan Times Square and met with the producers. They were very nice and I got to speak with some very interesting folks including the hosts Mike and Juliet, as well as Taser's Tom Smith and Amnesty International's Larry Cox.

We did some rehearsals for the show and off we went. The two segments were quite long- around 15 minutes total- by television standards. Here is a link to The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet's site that has the first of the two segments on it:


http://www.mandjshow.com/videos/terrifying-taser-threats/

After I was done with the show, they had another car wisk me to JFK Airport. It was a whirlwind trip and I sure am tired now. But it was absolutely worth the effort. I am pleased with the final product that me and my fellow guests put forth and the show hosts' and staffs' graciousness.