Discussion
Help Save Local TV 07/15/09 by
Folks, Famboogle is all about empowering local communities, so I thought I'd pass the below on to you. Fresh off the press, here is a "Free Press Action Fund" initiative to save local TV in Massachusetts:"Next week, Massachusetts legislators will hold a hearing on a bill that poses a threat to the future of locally produced television.
Verizon's lobbyists will be there to push for the bill, which would place unfair demands on local communities trying to negotiate video franchise agreements with companies like Verizon. As it's written now, the bill could harm community media.
But we're planning a surprise for them: a crowd of concerned citizens, community media activists, and we hope -- you!
What: Public hearing on SB 1531
When: Tuesday, July 22, 10 a.m.
Where: Massachusetts State House, Room A-1
24 Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
MBTA stop: Park Street Station
The Verizon-backed legislation is being touted as “promoting consumer choice and competition,” but dig beneath the surface and you'll find something else. This bill would place unreasonable demands on local communities trying to come to terms with the company and give Verizon the upper hand by rushing important discussions that help determine the particular needs of your city or town.
Here's how the current system works: Whenever a company wants to come in and secure a lucrative video franchise deal, they are required to negotiate with the local community. That's how public, educational and governmental TV channels are established and receive their funding.
Public access channels are a bastion of local media -- aiming a camera lens on local government and providing access and training to those looking to create their own media.
Rushing the process by establishing an unnecessary deadline for negotiation of these valuable agreements will lead to rubberstamped deals that don't adequately address the needs of your community. This could jeopardize continued funding of community television.
The last time that Verizon tried to get a bill like this passed, hundreds of people showed up to voice their support for community TV, and the bad bill was defeated.
Will you join them on July 22 to show your support for community TV? Just being there will make a difference.
I hope to see you there!
Candace Clement
Campaign Coordinator
Free Press Action Fund
www.freepress.net
P.S. For more information about the bill, visit Mass Access (http://massaccess.org/) or Cambridge Community Television: http://www.cctvcambridge.org/verizon
"
Only registered users can comment in discussion
Alex, do you have an update of how the July 22 public hearing went? I have been quite busy and didn't have a chance to attend and haven't had much of a chance to watch the news to see how it went.
Rushing this will indeed not be a good move for the community. I'm hoping the people that have strong feelings continue to show up to voice their support. The bill was defeated the last time and if we stand together, this bill will also be defeated through the coordinated efforts of those in our community.
Thanks Tammy for the correction on the date-I'm sure that it would confuse the issue and maybe even mean that fewer people turn up to the real thing if they went on the wrong day.
I just wanted to point out an error in the original post. There is no "Tuesday July 22nd". There is Tuesday July 21st.
I checked http://massaccess.org/ and there WEDNESDAY is shown for the hearing, Wednesday the 21st
~t
Beth as much as people feel like they have no say, no control, there is always a way. If nothing else you always have a voice and ways in which you can make it heard.
I hope that the public voice is loud enough to heard this time.
I hear many people say that they don't know how to get involved. What Alex has done here is to let those same people know the why and the how. It's up to each of us to get involved in our community and what better way than to support community TV? If there is absolutely nothing else you can do, as Alex wrote, "just being there will make a difference." Please be at the public hearing on July 22nd at the Massachusetts State House to help support community television.
Thank you Alex, for bringing this important article to our attention. There is so much going on in so many areas of our government that we feel we have no control over. This at least is something we can physical do, to voice our opinion in a peaceable manner. :)