There are a lot of reasons why we don’t shoot "News To Me" in a studio.

For one: Eric is allergic to teleprompters. It’s a rare allergy, but it can be quite debilitating. Especially for someone who makes their living as a TV presenter.

Two: Inside a TV studio there are a lot more of US than there are of YOU, and the "News To Me" motto is, "YOU shoot it, we show it." So we steer clear of the climate controlled sound stages and get out into the elements, where YOU are.

For this weekend's show we blurred those lines just a little. We shot Eric’s "on camera" stuff all around CNN Center here in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. Some of us refer to CNN Center as "The Mothership" because it’s home to CNN (of course), CNN International, CNN en Espanol, CNN Radio, CNN.com, the Airport Network, the Inside CNN Studio Tour and HLN – the home of "News To Me."

The Inside CNN Studio Tour is a behind the scenes tour of the Global Headquarters of CNN and it is VERY popular. In the shot above you see Eric with Kat who brought her parents (visiting from England) to take the tour that also includes a look at the newsroom and studios of HLN. Little did Kat (or her parents) know that before the day was over she would actually end up ON HLN!

It’s not hard to find a bridge in Atlanta... a lot of the city is actually built a few stories above the ground in order to leave passages open for the freight trains that rumble through all day long.

Cameraman/writer/editor/Activia-eater Teague is a master at making something as mundane as this concrete bridge belly interesting ... see if you can spot the shot he’s shooting above in the show tomorrow!

What's going on here? Three little words: I dare you.

OK... Eric didn't really lick that graffiti-covered support pillar in the parking deck. Or did he? Find out if he's immune to the Norwalk virus this weekend on "News To Me!"

During the 5 days leading up to our shoot on location in Historic Roswell, it had been colder than Vladivostok at Christmas here in Georgia!

Happily for us, whatever God, Saint or diabolical secret government project in charge of controlling the weather decided it was time to cut the "News To Me" crew some slack that day. No clouds, no wind, highs in the upper 60's. Gorgeous!

All that sunshine and the springy temperatures coinciding with Valentine's Day clearly had an effect on Eric. Take a look at some of the objects of his affection... on the next page. »

"News To Me" hit the Las Vegas strip for the show this weekend! What better backdrop for a show about citizen journalism than a city where everyone has a story?

Speaking of stories Eric has some DOOZIES to tell this weekend on "News To Me." He'll introduce you to an idea man in search of a man with a plan, take us behind enemy lines in Afghanistan and into the world's largest gadget convention! It's our version of a splashy Las Vegas show... except it's free and Eric won't be wearing a sequined jumpsuit. At least not for the whole show...

More pics from our shoot on the strip after the jump »

Howdy! Eric here, fresh from Vegas!

What a wild week it was for me! Let me first start off by saying, "Wow, where has the year gone already?" I am almost ready to turn the magic number of 38 years old in February. More on that later.

Anyway... back in November I was asked to be the HLN reporter for the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show, or CES. What an honor! However I was not 100% prepared for the experience at hand... until I got there.

The plane ride there got me started. I used to be afraid of flying, but through all my travels on small jets and big 'uns... [my fear of flying] has subsided for the most part. BUT, the "unexpected turbulence" I experienced on the jet from Atlanta to Las Vegas, got me a little off... (never been on a plane where people screamed and had to use the "magic bags" in the seat pockets - usually this happens on the plane ride HOME from Vegas). But we made it through.

Believe it or not this was my first time to Sin City... and for someone like me who doesn't gamble it was a shocker.

We arrived and immediately began our treasure hunt of the latest gee-whiz-wowzers-techno-gizmos. From the moment we landed to the time we took off again, we worked the floors of this 1.7 MILLION square foot trade show. I made friends, I made people mad - it's what I do. BUT I got the stories HLN wanted - what is hot, what is not. Thanks to Ashley Preskar, and Paul Chase for editing all the pieces, Dan Wright for everything and Ferre Dollar and Eric Yanak for making it all look and sound good... a great crew.

See below for the ERIC LANFORD "what's hot and what's not" list for CES:

HOT:
3-D TV: is a'comin' but you will have to wear those geeky glasses.
Touch Screens: EVERYTHING will be touchy feely soon... I mean everything.
Convergence: ONE device that does everything.
Really small computers: really small, but yet you can still type.
Remoteless TV's: Do it all with your hand, not remote.
Vegas: Need I say more?

NOT:
Flat TVs: They are getting much thinner...trust me...like paper thin.
WebTV: Didn't see much about this, is it still a viable thing?
Vegas: Man, everything costs...I mean everything...

I could go on and on, but they limit me on the blog.* In summary, I had a great time and it got me back to my roots of having fun with people and showcasing my personality (and yes, I do have one).

That's all for now... see you on the "tech-side!"
-Eric

"News To Me" will come to you from Las Vegas next weekend! Including much more from CES!

*Editor's Note: It's not that Eric is being "limited" from the blog, it's more like YOU (the reader) are being "protected" from Eric.

Left to right: "News To Me" host Eric Lanford & CNN Photojournalist Ferre Dollar at the CES.

Maybe it fell between the cushions, maybe you left it in the other room, maybe your dog thought it was a new chew toy... at one time or another we have all found ourselves looking for a lost remote control. Or even worse, finding out that your remote has used up all the juice in it's batteries. You'd think we'd learn to keep AAA's on hand for such an occasion, but we never do.

Well, the folks at Hitachi have come up with a solution to both these problems: get rid of the remote! It's not quite ready for prime time, but devices that you can control with a wave of your hand or a twirl of your finger are on the horizon. To change the channel, swipe your hand left to right in the air a few feet away from the TV. Adjust the volume by pointing at the screen and twirling your finger, like you are spinning an imaginary ipod clickwheel. This particular demonstration included a "home automation" feature that will (someday) allow you to change the lighting or even the temperature in your home with just a gesture.

At the Gesture Tek booth across the convention hall, Eric used a similar system to play a driving game. No special accessories required, he just "gripped" a virtual steering wheel in the air in front of the game monitor and drove. Yes, the car in the game was totaled several times, but it was still cool!

You can catch Eric demonstrating the Hitachi system from the floor of the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas today on Morning Express with Robin Meade!

Samsung super thin digital photo frame prototype. Screen is only 1.2mm thick!

Samsung super thin digital photo frame prototype. Screen is only 1.2mm thick!

Eric's first report from the floor of the convention center highlights these prototype video screens from Samsung Mobile Electronics. Lance Ulanoff, Editor in Chief of PC Magazine helped us wrap our heads around how these micro thin displays work and where we can expect to see them popping up in the future.

Imagine the GPS display that now takes up space in your dashboard, embedded in the windshield of your car... no more taking your eyes off the road in order to see where you're going!

The screen you see in the pics next to this text is a prototype of a next generation digital photo frame. Right now all over the C.E.S. convention floor vendors are pitching digital photo frames of all shapes and sizes, but NONE of them come close to the design specs of this bad boy. It's 1.2 millimeters thick! Right now it's just for still pictures, but someday you'll be watching "News To Me" on a screen that thick!

No, you can't buy it now, but that's part of the allure of the Consumer Electronics Show... it's a glimpse into the FUTURE!

Is there is a gadget here at C.E.S. that you've heard about and would like us to check out? Leave a comment and let us know... we'll track it down, test it out and let you know if it lives up to the hype (so far almost everything has).

Looking ahead to tomorrow: Eric is geeked about the "Hall of cars," the Sustainable Planet area, and getting his picture taken on the "Jeopardy" set.

Thanks a ton to the folks over at The Viewpoint condominium skyscraper (and it's across-the-street neighbor The Spire) in Midtown Atlanta for providing some incredible views for this weekend's "News To Me" 2008 iReport Special. Thanks also to Prime News producer Travis Nichols who let us into his de-lux apartment in the sky inside The Viewpoint for a couple shots. Next time we'll bring a hostess gift Travis. We may wait until summer though. To say it was COLD would be a HUGE understatement. Beautiful, but hellatiously chilly.

Luckily we weren't out in the elements TOO much... in fact (whether you know it or not) YOU did most of the work on this weekend's show. iReporters from all over the world are the stars of this special show highlighting some of our favorite iReports of 2008.

Catch a preview of the show right now on CNN.com!

The full "News To Me" 2008 iReport Special premieres Saturday at 7:30 p.m. EST and replays all weekend long, nationwide on HLN. We'll be looking for you!

In the meantime, get a gander at some more behind the scenes shots of Eric freezing his viral videos off

We'll be back tomorrow to post all the links to everything in the "News To Me" 2008 iReport Special. Plus a big announcement about where Eric will be next week! He's taking this show on the road... we'll tell you where on Monday!

Have a great weekend!

What’s going on world? AP Charles here.

The word has trickled down from the powers that be: I have been re-assigned to another show. I will now be working on “Morning Express With Robin Meade”. So when you are asleep in your warm, cozy beds at 3 A.M., I will be in the office helping put together a great show for you Monday through Friday. If Grayson allows me, I may get to be a guest blogger for the "News To Me" blog.

I can remember my first day working on this show. I was on a shoot with the guys and we were at Georgia Tech. Teague and Mike asked me to dance on camera (funny because I ran into some of my frat brothers and was stepping with them earlier that afternoon). From there on it was my staple to be “the weird random guy” in a number of shots. Unfortunately, not all of those made it to air. I’m going to miss searching the Web for great content. I’m going to miss the production meetings at “The Creek” (our production house), most of which primarily consist of us eating doughnuts and figuring out where we are going to shoot that weekend and what’s going in the show that week. I’m going to miss our Turner audio guys Gerald and Chris. I need to hang out with these guys. Gerald, I am not a lackey!!!

To the NTM Crew:
Thanks for all you guys have taught me. You guys have shown me so much and I know we will all accomplish great things.

Teague: Remember when I fell asleep on the way back from the NASCAR shoot and you decided to wake me up while filming me? Payback is coming…lol

Eric: Anytime you need a little advice on how to be the smooth ladies’ man, holla at me!

Mike: I know I am probably still going to get a few e-mails asking me to crank out a [transcription] real quick for probably the next week or two. It’s ok.

Aaron: Looks like your back on music reporting. Dude, hit me up if you need anything. “No Worries.” I’m stuck saying that now thanks to you.

Grayson: Dude, you are ultimate hook up guy. I swear you are like the concierge for "News To Me." Keep those contacts. (Sorry about Craft).

To all the viewers and readers of this blog, keep sending in your stories and pictures. It’s you that keeps this show going. ["News To Me"] exists solely because you guys can’t put a camera down. And we love it! I thank ya’ll. And who knows, you may see me on a shoot with the old crew sometime in the future.

Holla!!!

Howdy gang, Associate Producer Grayson here.

Last Saturday while shooting “News To Me” we had the opportunity to pick up a couple of scenes in a location I thought would be awesome. Mostly because there was a famous person in there and there was a good chance I'd get to meet him.

See, Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio has just opened up his new restaurant called Craft Atlanta in the Buckhead hotel district where we were shooting. We were there before the grand opening and were given very spur-of-the-moment permission to record a couple scenes inside!

As it worked out, as nice as Craft is, it was not perfect for the scene we were shooting. Yes, technically it would have worked, but with so much preparation going on for the grand opening we would have been in the way. Plus, the scene really needed more of a casual vibe.

Instead the fine folks at the "Corner Bakery Cafe" just down the street allowed us to take over a booth to get the shot.

So we didn’t get to shoot in Craft, but I DID have a brush with fame! As we were leaving Craft, none other than the man himself, Chef Tom Colicchio walked right past me! I think I said something stupid like "Hey, you're Tom Colicchio!" Not an official "meeting" per se, but close enough!

Check out a couple more pictures from our afternoon on Peachtree Street on the next page »

Really cool show for you this weekend on "News To Me." Not only did we shoot it on the very exclusive and swank outdoor patio at the very exclusive and swank club SHOUT in Midtown Atlanta. We also shot at night which always makes the show look fantastic! PLUS... this is our HOLIDAY SHOW. The best parts from the best stories we featured on "News To Me" in 2008.

We've put your name on the waiting list, so slip into your finest winter duds and come up past the velvet rope to the patio for a look behind the scenes at "News To Me."

It was chilly, so while we blocked shots, Eric kept his beanie on. Look close in the show, you may see some shots where it's on, and others where we were all just too cold to remind him to take it off!

I've been on the "News To Me" crew for just about a year now, and in all that time, this was the first occasion Teague felt worthy of using a jib. In fact, I didn't even know he had one! Teague's jib is a small version of the crane-like camera arms used for those long sweeping shots through the studio you see on "Morning Express" and "Prime News" on Headline News. No expense spared for the holiday show!

(above) Eric thought this angle would make him look taller (that's Teague with the camera down below).

Big thanks to Dora (on the left) who provided the crew with delicious food, drinks and even recruited her friend Sarah (on the right) to be an extra in some of the shots! There is one shot in particular where Sarah's hand was the star. See if you can spot it and catch the best of the best of "News To Me" this weekend on CNN Headline News!