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May 15

What do you call these things?

Resolved

What do you call the thing that's partly obscuring the face of Jerry Falwell, Jr. in this picture, and what is its purpose? There's another one on the other side (see original picture), if that helps at all. These two objects sat in the same spots, unmoved, throughout the ceremony.

Unrelated: is the man at right wearing a gown of blue or purple? Colorblindness on my part; I'm not clear. Nyttend (talk) 02:39, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

They are teleprompters. 211.23.25.64 (talk) 03:03, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Oh, okay; I thought teleprompting was done with a screen set on the podium, not on little stands set up nearby. Thanks! Nyttend (talk) 03:09, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

I think these are a modern-day variation of teleprompters. If you use Google Images and search 'Obama teleprompter', 'George Bush teleprompter' or 'Donald Trump teleprompter,' you can see them in use more clearly. On closer inspection, I'm not sure if they are actually full teleprompters; in some photos, they appear to be a mirror reflecting from a full-sized teleprompter on the ground. 211.23.25.63 (talk) 03:16, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

That's how prompters work. The user looks at a reflection.

Usually they use a clear piece of glass for the reflector, so the speaker can gaze through them at the audience and/or camera, but depending on light conditions sometimes they have to use an opaque mirror as seen here. ApLundell (talk) 13:41, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

As to your second question, the man at the right appears to be wearing a dark blue gown with sky blue sleeve decorations and cape. 211.23.25.63 (talk) 03:18, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

There's also some red piping on the edge of the cape and a solid red area in the interior of the cape. Also, I wouldn't call his main color dark blue, but rather medium blue. Falwell's suit is dark blue, while Trump's is black. StuRat (talk) 03:23, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

And again, thank you! His research doctorate is from Virginia Tech, which according to Academic regalia in the United States typically uses very different colors, and the seminary where he got his other doctorate appears (see pictures on their website) to use basic black, not blue. Nyttend (talk) 03:39, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Baby blue is the standard color for Education degrees (I have an M. Ed, and my hood is trimmed in baby blue), see here for one example. The picture you linked is to Va. Tech's PhD robes, not their EdD robes. --Jayron 32 14:27, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Also, you can see here, "For the doctor's degree, the gown is faced down the front with black velvet; three bars of velvet are used across the sleeves. These facings and crossbars may be of velvet of the color distinctive of the disciplines to which the degree pertains, thus agreeing in color with the binding or edging of the hood appropriate to the particular doctor's degree in every instance." Education is listed in the same document as "Light blue" --Jayron 32 14:31, 15 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]