Public Access TV is under attack: Attend Greece Town Board Meeting This Tuesday Night

URGENT CALL TO ACTION !

Tuesday January 16 , 2007 @ 6pm at the Greece Town Hall on TOFANY BLVD.

CONTACT : BRIAN CATERINO AT GREECE CABLE WEST bcaterino@frontiernet.net 585 / 227-7710

LOCAL PUBLIC ACCESS TELEVISION IS IN DANGER NOW & NEEDS YOUR HELP !

In Greece, NY They want to take the "Public" out of Cable Access so we will no longer have a voice on local TV, and put it under the control of the Greece School Board. This can also happen to other area public cable access stations according to new rules voted on by the FCC.

“….the most important kind of programming in a modern DEMOCRACY …”

- ANDREW JAY SCHWARTZMAN ,MEDIA ACCESS PROJECT PRESIDENT , LEAD ATTORNEY

Has your local Public Cable Access , GreenLine Tv or Greece Cable Access 12 & 15 been of service in broadcasting your organization, school, church, community center , your local business or cause ?

Cable Access , the main way " We The People " can disseminate independent video information to the local citizens is under attack.

The FCC is mandating that cable companies do not need to provide “ public” cable access channels to your community anymore. These are your publicly owned airwaves being taken from you.

Your Local Public Access Television is in danger.

Greece and surrounding towns (served by Greece Cable West ) cable contracts are up for renewal .

Please attend the local Town Board meeting in Greece Tuesday night Jan 16 @ 6pm at the Greece Town Hall to save local Public Cable Access .

What’s at stake Locally :

- Your city’s public safety & educational communications systems

- Local control over your Public Airwaves

- GreenLine TV ( local community affairs & news you can really use )

- other independently produced local shows from Rochester citizens & your right to produce TV.

- Your 1st Amendment right to free speech on television .

- Political news from worthy candidates who can not afford ads on commercial tv

This is essential to a working Democracy.

Local Cable cable access allows you to tape your own shows for your community centers, your Veteran’s or Labor groups , Church groups , what ever you like, and keeps you in touch with local politicians .

IMMEDIATE ACTION - What you can do RIGHT NOW.

Come to the Town Board Meeting on Jan. 16 @ 6pm & demand a public hearing. It's a monthly Town Board meeting where comments (no questions) are heard. If you're available we're looking for friends and families throughout the Rochester area, willing to be there for support, to just sit and be a presence , or to speak of the benefits of local public cable access to you & your family for 5 min each.

A great civics & 1st Amendment rights lesson for the kids. My kids will be there, and so will my Mom! :-)

When people approach me about my tv show “ GreenLine “one of the phrases that I’m most proud of hearing is , “I never knew that !” The next is “Thank You for bringing this to the attention of the people of Rochester “ . I’m honored yet at the same time I’m saddened that the American people have less knowledge of the world and their own country & town politics than other industrialized countries because of the closed corporate government media system here. D.Magone, GreenLine TV / producer

If You CAN NOT attend on Jan. 16 , PLEASE CALL NOW.

Greece Town Supervisor Auberger at 723- 2311

Tell him to please…” renew their cable contract with Greece Cable 12 “

Greece Cable West serves Greece, Hilton, Spencerport, Brockport , Gates – Chili . Call your town hall today !

What's happening Nationally and how it affects YOU ;

On Dec. 20, 2006 The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted in favor of MB 05-311 which would change the cable franchising laws so that local communities have NO control over incoming pay-television providers. Basically, this possibly illegal move bypassing Congress altogether, will eliminate the requirement that cable and telephone companies provide operational funding and channel capacity for local public access channels.

These public access channels provide access to local government affairs, educational and safety information, alternative media and a local citizen voice. We need to let our government officials and our local cable and telephone companies know that this is unacceptable. Public access channels are vital to our democracy. Industry giants like AT&T , Time Warner & Verizon are working to eliminate the tools communities can use to hold them accountable. This move will also allow these companies to exclude from service, communities that can not afford them. They tried to do the same back in 2003 but millions of Americans wrote to the FCC & Congress and stopped them. But they are no longer listening to letters.

Being written out of the law by the FCC:

Support for Public, Education and Government Access Channels. Gone

Channel capacity for Public, Education and Government Access Channels. Gone

Your city's right to reasonable payment by the telephone and cable companies who make billions of dollars using public land. Gone.

Your city's public safety and educational communication systems. Gone.

The the Congressional Cable law was re-written on December 20th. Your Congress members must stop the FCC now. Tell them to support your community. Tell them to forward your concerns to the FCC NOW!

PLEASE HELP SAVE PUBLIC ACCESS LOCALLY & NATIONALLY -

CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES NOW , BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE . THEY WORK FOR YOU .

TELL THEM TO SERVE THE PUBLIC INTEREST AND SAVE YOUR PUBLIC ACCESS. TELL THEM TO VOTE NO ON MB 05-311

NO CORPORATE OWNERSHIP OF YOUR PUBLIC ACCESS .

Thomas Reynolds at 585 / 663 - 5570

Louise Slaughter at 585 / 232- 4850

Charles Schumer (202) 224-6542

Hillary Clinton (202) 224-4451

Contact the FCC www.fcc.gov

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin (202) 418 - 1000

See saveaccess.org or freepress.net for more info on this subject .

This is an opportunity to actually influence change . All you need to do is show up !

THANK YOU !

Deborah Magone
GREENLINE TV /
JoMama Music
pob 16235
Rochester, NY 14616
www.DeborahMagone.com