In the last few weeks, we have seen many video broadcasts from Afghanistan, which are remarkable in several ways. First, for the graininess and low quality, and secondly, for how these images have come to our television screens. A question many people are asking is: “What is this technology and how does it work?”

To answer that question, we have to go back in time to last April, when a Navy spy plane was forced to land in China. Part of the story was broadcast to viewers all over the world by CNN, who “used a video phone to transmit the live images of the crew boarding the chartered jet and then its departure.”

According to Mel Olinsky, Director of Bureau Operations for CBS: “The technology they were using was the ‘Talking Head’ system, which was introduced to the public for the first time during this event. It became a big deal because CNN were the only ones who got that story out live at the time. Once the Chinese realized what the unit was doing, they confiscated it.”

Nathan: Is the Talking Head system used in combination with a satellite dish?

Mel: "It’s actually just a video conferencing system similar to what you would use on a computer with a camera. It’s all self-contained into one little suitcase which is easy to carry around and is very user friendly. That’s the reason why it’s more conducive to our requirements. You then plug that unit into an M4 satellite phone which gives you a 64 K data bandwidth which is what we’re using to transmit. It’s basically streaming video.”

Nathan: Where do you obtain the satellite telephone?

Mel: “There are a couple of companies. One that we use a lot is called Thrane and Thrane. It’s a standard satellite phone which comes in a little suitcase. When you open it up, you have a regular handset and a flat antenna that opens up, which you have to aim south.”

Nathan: What does it use for a power source?

Mel: “It can run on a car battery, where you plug it into the cigarette lighter, or it can plug into an AC outlet. It depends on where you are at the time. When CNN used it, I think they were just running it off a car battery. We’ve used it in a hotel where we plugged it in and stuck the flat antenna out by the window and kept everything else inside, closed the curtains and nobody could tell what we were doing.”