World joins U. in ENIAC celebration

Media spotlight shines on 50th anniversaryMedia spotlight shines on 50th anniversaryGore's speech on 'The Technology Challenge' With today's 50th birthday celebration of ENIAC, the international media will once again focus its cameras on the University. More than 50 members of the press will be covering the ENIAC celebration, which includes an address by Vice President Al Gore, according to University spokesperson Barbara Beck. Although the speeches will not be televised live, WPVI-TV will have a live shot of Gore arriving at the University and all three major networks -- NBC, CBS and ABC -- will tape the speech. With the nation's focus on Penn today, the University is receiving free positive publicity, Beck said. "Every time the University of Pennsylvania and ENIAC are mentioned, it helps enhance Penn's image," she added. Audiences across the country will be exposed to the media coverage of the ENIAC events. "I think that this celebration is just a way of showing how multifaceted Penn is," said Carol Scheman, vice president for government, community and public affairs."The long-term effects are that people who understood that Penn has a powerful Medical and Law school will now know more about the applied sciences." A large press platform has been set up in Irvine Auditorium to accommodate the various photographers and cameramen, Scheman added. She added that the scheduled protest against the new telecommunications law that will be staged by students outside of Irvine during Gore's speech is not expected to have a negative effect on the national publicity. "The demonstrators are raising some very legitimate concerns," Scheman said. Articles in the U.S. News and World Report and in The New York Times Magazine have highlighted ENIAC and more articles are expected in other national publications including Science Times, Beck said. Good Morning America also returned to Penn's campus to videotape a piece about ENIAC that was televised yesterday morning, she added. But the celebration is not simply confined to the U.S. Yesterday, School of Engineering and Applied Science Dean Gregory Farrington conducted an interview with a South African radio station, according to Beck. "I've spent part of this week searching for an Engineering professor to talk about ENIAC in French," Beck said. A television station in Madrid, Spain, has also requested video material from the University in regards to ENIAC, she added. The international spotlight is also bringing attention to other Penn accomplishments, according to College of Arts and Sciences Dean Rosemary Stevens. "It reminds audiences of alumni, prospective students and friends, that we are a great university in the world and in the revolution of technological communication," Stevens said.