communit media

Last night WCCA TV's Studio A was packed with members, supporters,and a least one City Councilor, Gary Rosen, to discuss their need for the future of WCCA's funding and to share their frustrations with the way city seems to be apparently handling the matter. The general membership and opened meeting was cable and web cast live on Channel 13 and wccatv.com.

A community of concerned citizens shared and expressed their questions, concerns, and shared their opinions wanting to know why this process is taking so long, after the city had already spent nearly four years in a public process that included substantial and detailed review of community media needs including that of WCCA TV. Many were also questioned and condemned of the Research Bureau apparent continued attacks on WCCA and other fine community resources such as the Senior Center (WCCA members who produce Senior Speak).
Following my update on the status of WCCA which included a communication relative to the city manager needing more time to re-review the four year community assessment process, which has also appeared in todays Telegram, Community members shared dynamic and passionate views asking the City Manager, through City Councilor Rosen, to step up the pace so WCCA TV operations, which is in dire need of new equipment and building upgrades, can properly move forward with it's charitable mission to provide for public access community media needs and to build community through electronic media while making community empowering communication resources available ona non-discriminatory basis.

I want to thank ALL who time to attend the meeting last night. Your comments were stunning, eloquent, articulate, and direct. People of all ages, a diversity of socio-economic backgrounds and ethnic heritage, came together in a unified spirit. The meeting demonstrated, without argument, that there is a strong community need, care and concern for the continuation of WCCA TV and for the city administration and city council to make assurances to ensure WCCA TV's capacity for increased growth to meet community media needs in all platforms of communication technology.

Those who attended last night's cable cast meeting, and also those who had written support letters, editorials, sent a strong message that you care and that WCCA is important to you. Your message has been well noted and will remain documented and archived on tape and on line for the record, the people's record. Keep it up. Will our efforts to call attention to saving public access be fruitful? That remains to be seen. Thanks for your continued patience.

WCCA will also be re-cable casting the meeting soon. Stay tuned for the new program schedule.

EVERYONE in this city knows WCCA TV is important and should be supported. Either this empowering community resource is nurtured or it is compromised. What does that mean to YOU ?
Thanks for your support.
Wormtowntaxi writes more on the subject.

Photo by Jeff Barnard