Gregory Wallace '10, The New Barack Obama

Gregory Wallace, a sophomore politics major at Saint Anselm College, finds himself taking on a brand new role; that of playing presidential hopeful, Sen. Barack Obama. As ABC continues to prepare for the candidates' arrival, Wallace will stand-in as Sen. Obama as ABC News technicians prepare the stage for the Jan. 5 N.H. Primary Debates.

This is not going to be a simple stand in for lighting and placement though. Wallace, along with other students standing-in for the candidates, has been asked to take on the same mannerisms, voice styles, and placements of the candidates, using actual scripts that represent similar discussions that could be held during the live debate broadcast.

The interest in the debates amongst the entire campus community has been incredible, and the opportunities for the students have exceeded all expectations. The campus has been transformed from that of a liberal arts college to one that is the world stage for one of the most covered events by the media. Wallace and other students have been able to see this transformation come to life.

"Last week I was in the Dana Center and not a single set piece was installed or even on campus. And today, it is almost done. It's fantastic to see how ABC and Fox cover an event start to finish," comments Wallace.

Wallace has yet to fulfill his first duty as an actor on stage. After doing so, he will find himself as a personal runner for Sen. Obama. Such is the case for each stand-in during the rehearsals. We will continue to follow Wallace as he becomes closer with the candidate and immerses himself even further into the debate process.

We are pleased to bring a student's perspective to the coverage of the the N.H. Primary Debates. Stay tuned for more debate coverage.