MTV Cameras Leave Salve Students Vying for Attention

By: Kate Howard
Posted In: News

The students in Jayme Hennessy’s Foundations of Moral Thinking class weren’t angry that MTV camera crews were there following Emeline Walker on Nov. 12. They just all wanted to sit next to her.

Despite the fact that O’Hare 214 has more seats than students during Hennessy’s class, the left side of the classroom where Walker sits was much more heavily populated last week as MTV filmed Walker for the documentary-type show True Life, and her classmates scrambled for a nearby seat that might hold the attention of the cameras.

“I’m really upset that I didn’t get the seat next to her,” junior Chris McCrain joked.

In a discussion on Monday about the filming in Hennessy’s class, the students all agreed that they were more active class participants that day. Many students raised their hands to ask questions purely on the chance they would be filmed. More students were all made up and dressed their best, and some were even more likely to go to class because of MTV’s presence in their classroom that day. While it sounds like a teacher’s dream, the students also agreed that they couldn’t help but turn their heads toward the cameras.

“The cameras would be watching your reactions, and zoom right in on your face,” one student said. Despite the intrusive nature of the camera shots, the crew themselves weren’t very noticeable. “I expected the crew to try to keep out of the way, and they did,” said Ryan Hendrickson, a sophomore. “They were very quiet, but it was hard not to pay attention to them.”

Visitors in the class that day included two MTV camera people and a producer, who held a small camera in his hand. “He faced one way, and his camera faced another, so you never knew exactly who he was filming,” a student explained. A Salve representative from the Public Relations department was also observing the filming.

Students across campus knew of MTV’s presence by the start of the day, as word trickled down from the classmates of Walker. The camera crews were filming her and her partners the night before while they prepared for a presentation on Buddhism for Hennessy’s class. By the time of the actual presentation the next day, Walker and her partners had grown quite used to their constant presence.

After the experience was over and the students had the opportunity to reflect on it, very few would want to be the focus of a show as Walker is. The students agreed that while they all wanted that moment of fame from the background, very few would want to be the star, with the notable exception of Chris McCrain, who emphatically asserted that he would love to be the star.

The True Life featuring Emeline Walker at Salve will be broadcast in mid January.