It was a major political problem in British Columbia that called for a unique solution, says Premier David Eby, who at six-foot-seven is the province’s tallest leader.
He said that the night long and short needed as matters of perception and fairness.
While Eby dominates most people at press conferences, Postsecondary Education and Future Skills Minister Selina Robinson often needs to stand on boxes to reach the microphone at four feet 11 inches tall.
The solution: a mechanical podium, which debuted shortly after Eby took over late last year. It can be moved up or down at the flick of a switch to fit the size of the person commenting at a political event.
“You could describe me as an unusually tall person or a disturbingly tall person to some people,” Eby told reporters last week. “My colleague Selina Robinson is a much smaller person and we have a whole range of people in between, so the podium moves up and down to accommodate everyone’s ability to speak.”
There is more than a foot of difference between Eby, who is 6 feet 7 inches tall, and Robinson, who is 4 feet 11 inches tall. (Chad Hipolito/The Canadian Press)
The Prime Minister said people have expressed surprise – and appreciation – when the podium is raised or lowered to accommodate their height.
One of those people was Tracy Redies, executive director of Science World Vancouver, who joined Eby for a press conference last month where the province announced $20 million to repair the leaky roof of the iconic building with a dome.
“This pulpit is amazing,” he said. “Science, technology.”
Eby said the podium, which has earned the nickname “explode” in the Legislature, is a functional success.
“It’s a major innovation in BC where we’re never short of innovations or remarkable ways to solve problems,” he laughed. “When we go to events in the community, it catches the attention of speakers who aren’t used to it, especially when it moves unexpectedly.
“I think everybody enjoys it. It’s fun and it works.”
BC Premier David Eby appears at Bayview Elementary School in April. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
But the opposition BC United Party and a communications expert who suggests the structure reinforces old-school political traditions have raised some concerns about the podium.
BC United finance critic Peter Milobar said the opposition has questions about the cost of the podium, but the government has not provided answers.
“We all understand that the Prime Minister is tall, but the fact that we need these extra wide telescoping type podiums seems to be a potentially expensive thing for the taxpayer,” he said.
The opposition has expressed concern about the cost of the adjustable podium. Eby is seen here swearing in his new cabinet in December 2022. (Mike McArthur/CBC)
Milobar said the podium appears to be more of a political prop used to improve Eby’s image.
“It’s fair to say that I’m not a medium-sized person, but I’m not too worried about what podium I stand behind to make important political announcements,” he said.
The expert says that the podium creates a message
While Eby’s podium is not the biggest news of the legislature, it symbolizes the uniform visual culture of politics, said David Black, a political communication expert at Victoria’s Royal Roads University.
“I think the podium, where you want to fit a tall person like David Eby or a shorter person like Selina Robinson, it’s just about creating that visual conformity that’s necessary so that nobody steps on the message,” he said.
BC’s development of a one-size-fits-all podium is a metaphor for a political culture that is resistant to change, Black said.
“When you break the visual code or political style or manipulate conservative visual culture when it comes to politics, you trample on the message,” he said. “It becomes, rightly or wrongly, read as a gaffe, sometimes a career-ending gaffe.”
A podium points as former minister Melanie Mark announces 90 units of temporary modular housing during a press conference in Vancouver on December 14. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
Former Canadian Alliance leader Stockwell Day was widely criticized more than two decades ago for arriving at a BC lakeside press conference on a Jet Ski, Black said.
Former US President Barack Obama faced fierce criticism for wearing a brown suit, he said.
“He wore a brown suit and it was the end of American democracy,” Black said.
Former American President Barack Obama was once the subject of a great controversy because he wore a tan suit. Communications expert David Black said these deviations from political norms used to be big problems, but are now seen as normal. (Nam Y. Huh/The Associated Press)
But federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s video remarks are signs of a politician looking to break visual codes, as was former Toronto mayor Rob Ford’s “everyman” appearance, Black said.
“My question is, in a sense, do we have to rethink the language of politics, the visual style of politics, because it’s exhausted?” he said “Is it stale? Has it exhausted its reassuring quality?”
Robinson said she was pleased with the fairness of the podium, especially after years of stopping at boxes to raise her profile.
“Having a podium that really fits me is great, and one that fits the prime minister is great,” he said.
“This is accessibility furniture and I think it works the way it’s supposed to. It’s recognizing that we all come in different shapes and sizes and having a piece of furniture that fits us no matter what height or size we are is a good thing “.
