Breaking News: Sound Grip Technician From “The ReidOut with Joy Reid” Already Misses Being Called a “Dumb White Cracker”
By: Harriet Johnson (Contributor)
New York City
Rob Dobson, who until recently worked as a sound grip at the studio where “The ReidOut with Joy Reid” was recorded nightly on a TV channel called MSNBC, knows a thing or two about the inner workings of the show.
Mommies4Mommies: “So you were a sound grip for the Joy Reid show. What was that like?”
Roy Dobson: “Like you know when Mrs. Reid would talk? In the studio it sounds totally different. It is like Mrs. Reid is talking in a small warehouse, which I guess it kind of is. But on the TV there is a richness to the sound. That was totally me.”
“It is not as easy as you think” he mercilessly continued.
“People think you just stand there quietly and hold up a microphone. There is a lot more to it than that, man.
A lot more.
You need to factor in angle, how high it is held above Mrs. Reid’s head etc.., and if you get a cramp or something that shit is hard. That happened to me once.”
Mommies4Mommies sensing something remotely interesting urgently pressed him on the last point.
Mommies4Mommies: “Okay, we can do something with that last thing you said. What happened?”
Roy Dobson: “Well I didn’t get my electrolytes that day. Electrolytes are totally underrated…”
Mommies4Mommies: “No, what was the result of you getting a cramp. No one gives two dips about anything else. What happened when you got the cramp? And please, no more ramblings about being a sound grip.”
Roy Dobson: “Okay fine. So I got a cramp in my arm and that caused me to drop the microphone and it almost hit Mrs. Reid on the head and I got called a “dumb white cracker” because of it.
Mommies4Mommies: “And you still chose to work there? That seems to be a little racist to say the least.”
Roy Dobson: “Nah I was cool with it. I mean, you know, it sort of turned into a playful thing. Sure, when someone said stuff like ‘hey, go get me a coffee dumb white cracker’ it stung sometimes, but if it was like ‘I hope you have a good Christmas dumb white cracker’ it was not so bad. And let’s be honest, I did sort of break the cardinal rule of being a sound grip. You see, we have a code. You don’t drop the mic.”
Mommies4Mommies: “Okay we got it. Seriously stop it. No one thinks it is cool.
Anyway, how has your life changed in the past few days given the cancellation of the show? And to reiterate, not another m-er-f-ing thing about being a sound grip.”
Roy Dobson: “Well I lost my job, but that is fine. I will land on my feet. If I think about it, the weirdest thing is people just call me Roy now.
Like ‘Hey Roy, how are you?’ or ‘Hey Roy, have you seen Severance yet?’ Great grip work on that show, by the way, and I don’t care if you think it is lame.
I almost didn’t know how to respond at first. But then after a while I would just start replying with “good, how are you (insert name)? It took a minute to adjust though.
I got so used to being called ‘dumb white cracker’ that it sort of became like my new name.”
He continued…
“They were good people. I am going to sort of miss it to be honest. I got to grip mic on MSNBC! It was like a job you could brag about with other grippers. They would look at me and be like “whoa!” and if being called ‘dumb white cracker’ daily was the price to pay for that honor, then it was a small price to pay.”
Mommies4Mommies: “Well Roy. I just can’t take it anymore, so we are going to conclude. Seriously, good luck with the whole ‘holding a microphone’ thing.”
Roy Dobson: “Well you see, we don’t just hold a microphone, we…”
Editors Note: Contributor Harriet Johnson reportedly got black-out drunk after this interview and has been missing since last Monday. If you have seen Ms. Johnson, please do not approach her and contact Mommies4Mommies, and the police, immediately.
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