You must have often seen a circle of glass around the Prime Minister, President, or famous leaders. Seeing this circle, you would think that it is for their safety, but it is not so, in fact, this glass circle is a teleprompter, which helps in giving a speech to the Prime Minister or any big leader.
What is Teleprompter?
A teleprompter or AutoQ is a display device that helps a person read a speech or script. Actually, a monitor is installed in the teleprompter. This monitor is usually located just below the camera. Text or words are displayed on this monitor. They keep moving from bottom to top.
The speaker or reader sees these words and gives a speech or reads the script. The listeners seem to remember everything while reading a speech or script by looking at the speaker with a teleprompter.
You must have seen the glass panels around the Prime Minister during his address at the Red Fort. People think that it is a bulletproof panel made for their safety, but in reality, it is a teleprompter, in which the PM gives his speech by reading the words on the mirror.
The teleprompter was first used in America
The teleprompter was first used in the US in 1948 and was the brainchild of Hubert Schlafly. Initially, the speaker read it through a roll of paper printed on a device the size of half a suitcase. With the passage of time, the paper rolls printed in teleprompters were replaced by clear glass screens. It was first used by the head of state in 1952 when Dwight D. Eisenhower became the first US President to address the country via teleprompter.
Teleprompter price in India
The price of a good teleprompter in India usually starts from Rs 1.5 to 2 lakhs, which can go up to Rs 16-17 lakhs.
Where is the teleprompter used?
Although the teleprompter is used in television newsrooms and in the media industry, it is now being used extensively to deliver speeches to leaders. Along with this, people creating content for social media are also using it indiscriminately by speaking dialogues in films.
There are three types of teleprompters, however, all three do the same thing.
- presidential or conference teleprompter
- camera-mounted teleprompter
- Floor or stand teleprompter.
How does a teleprompter work?
The display screen in a teleprompter is located in front of the person delivering the speech and below most professional video cameras.
The special thing is that someone else is operating the teleprompter, who controls the speed of the words coming on the teleprompter according to the reading speed of the speaker and stops or advances them as per the need.
In the case of big leaders like PM Narendra Modi, many times the control of the teleprompter is in the hands of the speaker and he can stop or back and forth the words coming on the teleprompter according to the need.
Presidential or Conference Teleprompter
The presidential or conference teleprompter is used by the prime minister and the president. It consists of a glass screen mounted on a stand and a monitor at the bottom. To reflect the monitor, the glass screen is tilted upwards in such a way that the speaker can see the words of speech on the glass, which he can easily read and give a speech.
This type of teleprompter is usually mounted on either side of the Prime Minister or the President. In this, the same text comes in the teleprompter on both sides.
Only the speaker can see the words coming in this teleprompter and others can only see the screen or speaker. In such a situation, with the help of a teleprompter, PM Modi or any big leader can give a speech very comfortably.
camera-mounted teleprompter
Camera-mounted teleprompters have a camera mounted behind a glass screen. The speaker looks at the camera while reading a speech or script. Electronic media journalists, business executives, and educators use camera-mounted teleprompters to engage with audiences.
floor stand teleprompter
Floor or stand teleprompters look and operate similar to presidential teleprompters. This device is often used during the shooting of films. In this, the production crew gets the option of wall-mounted or stand-mounted.
PM Modi gives a lot of speeches with the help of a teleprompter
In India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi sometimes takes the help of a teleprompter to deliver his speech.
Modi was also delivering a teleprompter speech during a virtual meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos, in which his speech was interrupted after an alleged technical glitch. For this, many users trolled PM Modi fiercely on social media and saw him on the teleprompter, he even called a speech leader.
The US President has also been giving speeches through a teleprompter.
The first teleprompter in the world was used in America. The US President has been using it since 1952.
- Ronald Reagan felt very comfortable delivering a speech via a dual-screen teleprompter.
- Once Bill Clinton arrived to deliver the speech, he discovered that the wrong speech had been uploaded to the teleprompter, then he waited half an hour for the correct speech to be uploaded.
- During one of his campaign speeches in 2016, Donald Trump paused and pointed to the screen and said, “By the way, these teleprompters haven’t been on for the last 20 minutes. I really like my speech without the teleprompter.” Then he grabbed a teleprompter and broke it.
- During a recent speech, President Joe Biden accidentally read a note from the teleprompter that was written just for his understanding.
- Among US presidents, the teleprompter was most commonly used by Barack Obama. Although Obama himself gave very good speeches, he still used the teleprompter.
- There are several videos of Obama, one of the best speakers, in which he was seen struggling to deliver a speech without a teleprompter or pausing during a speech when the teleprompter was not working.
Mobiles can also be made teleprompters:
Many types of apps and software also come through which you can use your mobile, PC, laptop, tablet as a teleprompter. There are also many types of online teleprompters. The teleprompter app can be used on mobile.
Through these, you can type your text, and then it keeps scrolling on your mobile or PC. In this, you can also control the text size screen adjustment and scroll speed at your convenience. This will turn your device into a teleprompter very easily.