Convention Volunteer’s Job Is Snap

Jonathan Klein, 19, jostled for position with the biggies: CSPAN, CNN, the Associated Press--you name it. The news media had gathered for a pre-Democratic National Convention photo opportunity staged this week by Gov. Gray Davis at Staples Center.

“All these [journalists] got to him ahead of me,” Klein complained as Davis headed for the door. “I’m not a professional. . . . [They] pick up on that and just push me out of the way.”

But minutes later, Klein--who grew up in Encino and is home on summer break from Columbia University--was waved past the line when Davis decided to walk on the convention stage. Until Wednesday, the colorful podium and platform were under lock and key for security reasons.

Klein may be one of an estimated 10,000 volunteers working behind the scenes for the convention, but he is the only photographer in town with unlimited access.

“It’s kind of like I’m a fly on the wall,” Klein said moments before following Davis into the Clippers’ locker room for another event off limits to the news media. “It’s been great to see politicians when they aren’t necessarily being politicians.”

When the meeting ended, Klein introduced himself to the governor. After all, they are both graduates of Harvard-Westlake High School in Studio City.

A complete gallery of photos Klein has shot over the past four weeks can be viewed by logging on to https://www.dems2000.com then clicking on “Behind the Scenes.”

Since Klein started his coveted digital assignment in mid-July, he has shot a blow-by-blow account of the structural changes to the arena that was last seen awash in purple and gold confetti when the Lakers beat the Indiana Pacers for the NBA championship in June.

“He’s been the backbone for letting America know the developments of what’s been going on behind the scenes,” said convention spokesman Luis Vizcaino.

The photos show construction crews rigging the sound stage and lighting, workers assembling the 6-foot-tall letters spelling out the convention’s logo and even a surprise visit by Tipper Gore.

No one is sure how many people have logged on to the Web site, but Vizcaino expects the number of hits to reach “millions a day” as the convention heats up. By then, Klein will be shooting fewer inanimate objects and more animated delegates as the presidential and vice presidential hopefuls arrive. He will be on the floor during many speeches.

“My job didn’t exist four years ago,” he said. “I’m not even sure my parents understand what I am doing.”

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Klein landed the volunteer position when his summer job working at Paramount Studios fell through.

He acknowledges he is more of a politico than a photographer. He has never taken a journalism or photography class. But he worked on Hillary Clinton’s U.S. Senate campaign in New York last semester and for the 1998 reelection of Rep. Brad Sherman, a Democrat from Sherman Oaks.

After the convention, Klein will get a two-week vacation before heading back to school Aug. 30. He plans to major in history and hopes to attend law school.

His says his summer volunteer job has left him energized, not cynical.

“Being behind the scenes has made me even more excited to go into politics than before,” he said.

But now, there is not enough time for lunch. Klein has to run about six blocks from Staples Center to his computer at an office at Arco Plaza. He will cull through his shots, select a few, write some captions and post them on the Web.

Klein will head home to Encino well after dinner.

“From this point on,” he said, “I’m working Saturdays and Sundays.”

Up this weekend: Surfing classes for the media at a Santa Monica beach.

“You bet that’s something we’ll want coverage of,” he said.

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