Mr. Hubert. Prior to the 24th?
Mr. Benton. Yes, sir; prior to the 24th. Because starting on Saturday morning, the 23d—well, let me digress a bit. Up until midnight Friday night I was working with a film camera crew. Film has to be processed, edited, and prepared for broadcast. Notes are very necessary if you want to determine which sections of the film to try to grab and use, if it has to be done in a hurry. After that time, everything I was doing was either being taped for fast reuse or it was going out live. Consequently, from a purely technical standpoint, there was no need for me to take notes. The story was in the hands of the producer and the editors simultaneously by the time it occurred, and this, plus the fact that I was in a rather large group of reporters, I had to hold a microphone in one hand. It was physically impossible to take any notes.
Mr. Hubert. So the majority of your notes were taken, really, on Friday and Friday night?
Mr. Benton. That’s correct.
Mr. Hubert. And those would have to do, you say, not so much with information to be reported but with notes for your own use in editing, is that correct?
Mr. Benton. That’s right. I took a great number of notes at the hospital because I was reporting after the fact rather than live.
Mr. Hubert. I see. You say those notes are available?
Mr. Benton. I think they are: yes, sir.
Mr. Hubert. I wonder if you would undertake, when you have an opportunity to do so, to look them up and let me know about them. We’ll then have them photostated or Xeroxed and return them to you.
Mr. Benton. All right.