If NBC gave out medals for production assistants who went “above and beyond” to make sure the Summer Olympics broadcasts went smoothly, Margaret Foster surely would have brought home a Gold.
Foster, a 2023 graduate of UNC-CH, put her political science and French degree to good use during her three-week stint working behind the scenes at the beach volleyball venue.
It was during a study abroad semester in Paris that Foster decided she wanted to play a role.
“I saw the city preparing for the upcoming Olympics,” she said on Wednesday’s Sports Talk.
Her dad, Lee Foster, who grew up in Henderson, had some friends with ties to the business. One friend, Lance Stewart, was a big help, she said.
“He really helped me network with some of his former colleagues,” the younger Foster said, and she applied to be a production assistant/runner for the network.
Part of the job entailed being a liaison between the NBC crew on the ground and celebrities who visited the venue. Think Snoop Dogg, Al Roker and Hoda Kotb.
Starstruck moments? Foster said the employees sat in on seminars that spelled out the way to behave when big names were near. “We’re supposed to act professional,” she said, adding that she did manage to sneak some selfies.
But it also involved the logistical work of making sure that things were all set on the technical side. “It was 12-15 hours that first week, setting up everything,” she said.
But she also got to use her language skills and enjoyed being a bridge between the NBC English-speaking crew and the local French-speaking crews.
Foster characterized the work as “madness and a blur,” with crazy hours. Some of the beach volleyball matches, for example, began at 9 p.m. and 10:30 p.m., Paris time.
Towards the end of the Games, however, especially during the medal matches, things settled down a bit and it wasn’t so hectic.
One of her more hectic moments came when Snoop Dogg, the unofficial Olympic mascot, came to the beach volleyball venue. She said she was on her feet from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., at least. And she found herself sprinting down the street to get a bag of ice and a Coca-Cola for the singer-turned Olympic cheerleader.
When Snoop wants a Coke – in a plastic bottle – that’s what he gets. And when he was visiting her venue, it was Foster’s job to make sure he got it.
As a poli sci major at UNC, Foster didn’t really envision a future in television. But with her Olympics experience under her belt, she’s giving it some thought. She’ll be moving to New York City in a few weeks to live with a best friend from college. And while she’s not sure what the future holds, she’s got some stories to tell about three weeks in Paris.
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