Alliance For Community Media (ACM) 2005 Conference

A perennial favorite... this session features a panel of seasoned access managers ready and willing to give advice about the day-to-day issues of operating an access center. You pick the topics.

When employees are happy and fulfilled in their roles, they are more productive, there is less turnover, and your organization reaps the benefit. This workshop provides examples of creative benefits options to enhance compensation packages and best practices for keeping employees engaged and happy with their jobs.

Presenters

Deb Vinsel, TCTV, Olympia WA

Laurie Cirivello, Community Media Center, Santa Rosa, CA

Legal, accounting, governance, management and ethics fundamentals pertaining to formation and governance of a non-profit access corporation to be explained, including discussion of Articles of Organization and by-laws; role of the Board of Directors and the Board's fiduciary duties; avoidance of conflict of interest problems; maintaining tax exempt charitable status; and the post-Enron importance of ensuring fiduciary standards and ethical conduct.

Moderator

Curtis Henderson

Presenter

William August, Esq., Boston, MA

Arriving safely into the future is more likely if you have a map. This insightful session will give attendees tools and ideas to create and carry out short and long term strategic planning processes in their organizations.

Presenter

Chris Sliz, Organizational Development Trainer and Consultant, City of Santa Rosa, CA

Although the thought of a "change at the helm" strikes terror in the hearts of many board members, a well-planned executive director transition is an opportunity for reflection, renewal, and productive organizational change. A toolkit including sample transition-related forms and checklists will be provided.

Presenter

Paula Manley, The Learning Commons, Portland, OR

We've all had them in our centers: teenagers who want to make music videos and activists who see only their issue. Why they should care about Big Media? Participants will learn how to reach young people and activists and move them to action about media consolidation and FCC issues.

Presenter

Andrea Quijada, New Mexico Media Literacy Project

This workshop will survey successful grassroots initiatives for media policy change and the powerful coalition building that was central to this work. Case studies will include local organizing for LPFM expansion, for municipal wireless, and against FCC media consolidation rules.

Presenter

Jeff Perlstein, Media Alliance

Hannah Sassman, prometheusradioproject

Inja Coates

Hear how grassroots media democracy activists are organizing their cable campaigns in different cities and localities around the country to tie in with the broader community (Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, and others). Learn about and share tools and strategies to build coalitions across constituencies and across technology platforms.

Presenters

Susan Gleason, Inja Coates, Karen Young, Sydney Levy, Media Alliance

How can we collaborate beyond our local access struggles? This workshop will focus on surfacing existing needs and available resources in order to strengthen broader coalitions that can win concrete changes for a more just media system.

Presenters

Inja Coates, Sydney Levy, Media Alliance

A true democracy is upheld by free media and active, informed participants. This session explores the untold stories in the news and media system, and whether or not media corporations and local and national news are meeting the needs of We the People.

Presenter

Andrea Quijada, New Mexico Media Literacy Project

This interactive, multi-media workshop will familiarize participants with the basics of media literacy and show how educators and community media leaders can use media literacy lessons in their existing education programs. Free K-12 curriculum CD-ROM Media & Consumerism to the first 20 attendees.

Presenter

Christie McAuley, New Mexico Media Literacy Project

This hands-on youth workshop will be lead by representatives of the MNN Youth Channel, YMDi.org, and Lowell Telecommunications Corporation. Participants will learn how to compress video clips, attach Creative Commons licenses to the files, upload them, and promote their own work using a variety of free tools.

Presenters

Vickie Kereszi, MNN Youth Channel

Daniell Krawczyk, Lowell Telecommunications

YMDi.org Representative

It is the spirit of the Constitution that the First Amendment applies to all citizens, regardless of age. However, in the current atmosphere of our society, it is widely assumed that young people do not have First Amendment protections. A survey finds the First Amendment is being left behind in our schools. We will hear from adult and youth organizers about why youth are fighting censorship and what kind of strategies they use.

Presenters

Andrea Quijada, New Mexico Literacy Project

Stephanie Elizondo Griest, Youth Free Expression Network

WCCA TV Representative

Meet three youth media organizations featured by the National Alliance for Media Arts & Culture (NAMAC) in their annual publication A Closer Look. Part of their Youth Media Initiative, the organizations were featured as case studies clarifying the rational for youth media programs and highlighting best practices, promising models, and lessons learned that can be used by other media arts practitioners. NAMAC will be on hand to talk about the initiative and their quantitative survey mapping the field.

Presenters

Sara Mahle, Media Bridges Cincinnati

Hye-Jung Park, Manhattan Neighborhood Network Youth Channel

Urica Pope, South Carolina Educational Television

Michelle Shutzer, Youth Media Initiative, NAMAC

Many youth media organizations develop innovative curriculum and train youth to use media technology to help them become more socially aware and active in their communities. Participants will discuss their teaching goals, curriculum, and impacts.

Presenters

Dave Yanofsky, Just Think Foundation

Danielle Krawczyk, Lowell Telecommunications Corporation

Community Technology Center's Network Representative

Diligence monitoring payments for franchise fees can help your town uncover money it is owed. Rate regulation does not apply to service tiers, but it does apply to other cable products such as equipment and installation. Learn about financial audits of operators and why they are necessary.

Presenters

Dick Treich, Front Range Consulting

Garth Ashpaugh, Ashpaugh & Sculco

Joe Van Eaton, Miller Van Eaton

Needs assessment forms the basis of a successful negotiation. What new technologies should you consider and how can you justify asking for them.

Presenters

Robert Sepe, Action Audits

Holly Hansen, Hansen Consulting

Chuck Sherwood, Community Media Visioning Partners

It can be a jungle out there--don't be caught off guard. Find out what you need to know about franchises and transfers. Learn when extending might be in your best interest.

Presenters

Michael Bradley, Bradley and Guzzetta

Neil Lehto, Attorney at Law

Rick Elrod, Miller Van Eaton

Renewal politics begin long before the process starts. What can you do in your community to assure a favorable outcome? Also, hear from a regulator about the sometimes difficult politics they face.

Presenters

Bunnie Riedel, Riedel Communications

Tom Manheim, City of San Jose

New technologies are challenging old regimes. What to do when the phone or the power company comes to your town. Should communities build their own systems?

Presenters

Coralie Wilson, President of NATOA

Nick Miller, Miller Van Eaton

Members of Congress, industry leaders and media activists agree: current federal law is outdated and will be rewritten over the next year or two. Will the public interest have a seat at the table? What are the most important changes that we should seek? What needs to be preserved? Don't miss this vital discussion, which will prepare you to act in the months ahead.

Moderator

Randy VanDalsen

Presenter

Sean McLaughlin, ACM Public Policy Workgroup

The Federal Communications Commission, state legislatures and state utility commissions are continually redrawing the map for the future of media access. This session will provide current weather radar for the regulatory storms approaching.

Presenters

Anthony Riddle, Alliance for Community Media

Elizabeth Beaty, National Association of Telecommunications Officers & Advisors

A perennial favorite, this session promises candid legal responses to unscripted questions. Don't miss this chance for some free legal advice.

Presenters

Jim Horwood, Esq.

Joe Van Eaton, Esq.

Kohel Haver, Esq.

Policymakers share their perspective from the Public Policy "Crow's Nest" of the US Congress.

The worlds of public access and media arts are all too often parallel and don't touch each other. Noted media artist Dorothy Fadiman works with community television stations to present her Emmy and other award-winning documentaries. This workshop will spotlight her work and present practical tools for reaching audiences.

Attend this workshop to learn what E-Government and PEG Access have in common. What is E-Government? What are the philosophic similarities with PEG Access? Learn how you can you better link with your community's E-Government efforts OR how you can assist in initiating E-Government activities in your community.

Presenters

Dave Bloch, Nevada County Government, Nevada City, CA

Learn about the technologies of today's Institutional Network. How they work? How can your community benefit from and use an I-Net? This workshop is designed to answer all the questions you were afraid to ask, plus a few more that you haven't thought of.

Presenters

Andrew Afflerbach or Lee Afflerbach, Columbia Telecommunications Corporation, Columbia, MD

Fred Cohn, City of Monterey, CA

These sessions will profile three successful I-Net projects, all of which are in small or mid-sized communities. Hear how these communities are using their Institutional Network and the Internet to cut telecom costs, deliver public services more efficiently, reach a wider audience with access programs, and communicate more effectively. This session will include a live demonstration of the Institutional Network in Monterey, which links more than 40 local government agencies, schools, and higher education assets in Monterey and neighboring communities.

Presenters

Fred Cohn, City of Monterey, CA

Representative, Community Media Access Partnership, Gilroy, Hollister, and San Juan Baustista, CA

Representative of City of Ventura, CA

Presenters

Fred Cohn, City of Monterey, CA

Jan Janes, Community Media Access Partnership, Gilroy, Hollister, and San Juan Baustista, CA

Representative of City of Ventura, CA

This session presents profiles of award-winning local E-Government operations. Hear and see how these public agencies are making government more accessible to the public and conducting the business of government in a more efficient and cost effective manner.

Community Media was born in the late 1960s and early 1970s from the efforts of a few key people and the emergence of portable video recorders. George Stoney was there. Learn from George and others how community TV grew from Canada's Challenge for Change project and New York's Alternative Media Center.

Community Television really took off when Nicholas Johnson and the Federal Communications Commission mandated local community channels for larger cable systems. And the NFLCP (National Football League Communist Party?) was not far behind.

Access philosophy has shifted over time through various paradigms. Explore the variants- from content neutrality to media as a tool for social change, and how these concepts have been played out in various communities.

Community media would never have been possible without the Sony Portapak -- the first portable open-reel videotape recorder. What have been the significant milestones in access technology and how have they advanced (and sometimes impeded) our mission?

The creation of the Community Media Center model by Dirk Koning in Grand Rapids transformed the thinking of many centers throughout the country. What is this model and what has its impact been? "Access Future" was the conference track Dirk was to organize. What is the future that Dirk saw? Together, let's begin to build a coherent philosophy, which would help shape The Koning Media Center, and the legacy that is being built in his name.

Who are the leaders who have created new models for our organizations. What can we do to break out of the traditional thinking of what a media center is? Roundtable on media center models: Center for Media Democracy, MAP in Asheville, 9th street center in SF, Burlington, VT, Grand Rapid CMC.

How do we justify and ensure our communities' long-term support when the franchise fees are gone? A number of centers have taken a hard look at a future that does not include franchise fees and how they will find enduring support in their communities.

Presenters

Pat Garlinghouse, Houston Media Source

Annie, Elliot, Sue Diciple, Mid-Peninsula Media Center

Many access television centers have expanded their media toolbox to include radio. Some are in partnership with existing community radio stations, some offer radio on their secondary audio cable channels and some are launching Low Power radio stations. This workshop goes into the detail of operating a radio station within your operation.

Andrew Blau delivers his report on the future of independent media, as prepared for NAMAC.

Reaching our to youthful programmers can be a challenge. Hear from several programs serving youth groups and find out how they became so successful and the challenges they faced in the process.

Professionally facilitated PEG programs offer a fresh approach. Santa Rosa's "Snapshots" challenges the PEG staff to "hit the streets" and tell stories. Sacramento's Ed channel creates school profiles, teacher training programs, and honor student productions at the Sacramento Educational Video Awards (SEVA). SCAN-NATOA honor Southern California government programming with annual awards.

Have you struggled with how to manage your non-linear edit workstations? Have the "options" presented with the latest software overwhelmed your volunteers? You are not alone.

"Outreach" is defined as "To reach or go beyond; an organized effort to extend services beyond usual limits." How can digital playback enhance the viewer's experience of our community? How can we expand our audience in this digital age?? Let's find out from the experts.

Retention and press relations are major challenges to access centers. Are you doing all you can? Volunteer communications plus helpful guides to "self-promotion" every access producer should know.

This session focuses on available resources for affordable program creation; how to build partnerships with municipalities, media companies and educational institutions for program distribution; and how to effectively employ emerging technologies, such as IPTV.

Presenters

Steve Grace, President Los Angeles Cable Television Access Corp & LA36

Liz Rhodes, Executive Director, Sacramento Educational Cable Consortium

Mike Mellon, Director, Instructional Resources and Technology, Monterey COE

Tom Spengler, CEO, Granicus

Many communities are interested in greater student involvement with their access channels. This session will highlight: 1) A foundation funded statewide student animation project; 2) A regularly scheduled student digital video program on a PEG channel; 3) An annual student media festival recognizing educational student videos. Handouts available.

Presenter

Doug Niva, SECC Production Manager

This session will discuss the PORTS (Online Resources for Teachers and Students) program. PORTS is a collaborative effort between public schools and California State Parks. By using the Digital California Project (a high speed network connecting California's public schools) PORTS is able to deliver live presentations to classrooms from parks throughout the state.

Presenters

Dr. John Ittelson, CSU Monterey Bay

Arlene Kreebs

This session will examine how digital video platforms are spurring a number of experimental partnerships between access and educational institutions. Presenters will analyze the potential of Video-on-Demand technologies to create new avenues for program-sharing in the public interest.

Presenters

Jesse Lerman, CEO, Princeton Server Group

Donna Liu, Lecturer, Princeton University, Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs

Back by popular demand is the updated version of programming sources. Come and share your sources as well as learning about what's new with the old standards: NASA, Classic Arts, SCOLA, Kennedy Center for the Arts, and Annenberg.

Three concurrent training modules will be offered during each session: Audio Engineering with Pro-Tools, Video Editing with Avid, and Blue Screen Studio Shoot with the VT4. Participants can rotate through each session with multiple visits or attend multiple sessions for extended training. Please sign-up for specific training modules and times at the main registration desk at the Conference Center. While you're there, sign up for a tour of AMP!

Please note: there will be no tours / training during the last track on Saturday, but a session will take place during the Friday afternoon membership meeting, 2:15 - 5pm.

Presenters

Ever wanted to talk to the producer of that documentary that won a hometown award, or perhaps pick the brain of the woman that placed in the live to tape category? Now's your chance! Choose one of three screens at Monterey's Osio Theater, where Hometown winners will be presenting their work. Click here for more information.

Presenters