PUBLIC ACCESS TV: to have or not to have democracy

This post concerns the fight for survival of Public Access TV and my concern and position as a Television producer for Long Beach Community Television. The PUBLIC ACCESS Ch 65 station is being shut down as of the first of the year based on amendments to the state law AB 2987. The station has been in business for 24 years and is the main mass media outlet for the views of the average citizen in Long Beach, Ca that doesn't go through the commercial TV filter. This is real democracy at work like no other. The Long Beach Producers Association is trying to reverse this shutdown process. Currently we are at the stage that we are taking the position that the funding being denied us to continue, although available, is illegally being denied us for some of the below reasons. We also are trying to decide the best course of action for us that is discussed in this below producer update. This is a national problem as the cable companies that formerly had monopoly franchises in the U.S. are having to give up these monopolies in the interest of competition from phone companies and others formerly shut out. In Ca, the state, in order to correct this monopoly situation, passed an amended law that gives the state the right to sell the franchises to all qualifiers at the expense of the local entity monopoly that formally issued franchises. (Counties and municipalities are these entities) Therefore cable companies are taking the position they no longer need, because of the new competition situation, to directly support Public Access and are shutting down this support. This is their legal prerogative under the wording of the new version of the law. However, under the state law, money is still being paid by all the new franchisees to local entities for this support indirectly. It is called "PEG" money (1% of the gross TV revenue of providers), but the city of Long Beach is taking the position it can't be used for Public Access for reasons of state and federal law. We believe this is either a misinterpretation of the law or an attempted grab by the city of our funding or both. The purpose of the below producer's update is to try to rally the producers to a unified effort.

THE MAN WHO KILLED PUBLIC ACCESS TV IN CA

Getting everyone on the same page is a problem the LBCTV Producers Association must soon solve if they are to prevent a shutdown of public access TV.

Confronting the mayor and/or city council with using the PEG money coming in under the new law to purchase another studio should be on the front burner. However rent is out as the money cannot be used for operating expense. I think we should be able to make a statement to the mayor and city council that we are going to sue if the city doesn't allow the use of PEG money to pay Public Access needs including capital and/or operating expense before we lose our channel. I believe the position can be taken that this money is being denied to P.A. illegally, because the phone companies, through their lobbying efforts, had wording put in the law that prohibits the use of this money for operating expense..

It is quoted of Dean Schmidt, LBCD, right in the local Beachcomber newspaper article of 10/10/08, announcing our P.A. demise, that when assembly at the time speaker Fabian Nunez was championing the Verizon/AT&T backed bill AB 2987 that he could have included a means of releasing the PEG funds for access's operating needs, but chose not to do so. This is the same man that when still in office, until recently replaced by Karen Bass, was accused in every newspaper in California of corruption for running around the world spending his campaign contributions like a drunken sailor on inappropriate expenses and lying about it on expense reports. Between the phone companies, he got up to 100 grand for selling us down the drain, half for campaign contributions and half for his so-called non-profit charity. He is the man who has killed public access in California and now ironically his son has been indicted for murder. I guess it's in the genes. I hope his life is still fun, but not at our expense.

This law's abusive sections can be ignored by the city of Long Beach in my opinion, the same as the federal law is being ignored by the state in some ways. The Fed FCC is not enforcing the 1984 Cable Law and 19 states laws are taking advantage of this by ignoring it in various ways, especially as to Public Access TV, as are cable companies, that fall under its mandates. (See blipTV clip) However, if a formal complaint is made to the FCC, they cannot ignore it. This is another avenue we have open to us we haven't used. Neither has anyone else (See video clip blipTV http://alliancecm.blip.tv/file/1278920 .

This is the position I take. I think we need a legal team at the moment to make these claims. The city notoriously is wary of lawsuits. We should let them know, they are not going to get off cheap by letting a scoundrel like Nunez walk over our rights.