Spotlight: Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                 
Contact:  Suzanne St. John, Executive Director
408-846-4983 x 6 saint@mycmap.org

DECEMBER 23, 2002                                                              

CMAP "Channel Launch" Party Kicks Off Coverage on Four Local Access Channels on Charter Cable

GILROY, CA - After only a year of physically building the local television station, and after several years of negotiations with the cable company and cities, Community Media Access Partnership is set to launch programming on four local access channels in the cities of Gilroy, Hollister and San Juan Bautista.  Channels 17 through 20 will light up simultaneously at the Channel Launch Telecast, January 10, 6pm - 8pm, live from the television studio at Gavilan College.

"We are delighted that nearly all systems are go, and that so many people have worked together to make this happen," says CMAP Executive Director Suzanne St. John.  "Our small but spirited staff of five has been working tirelessly to get these channels up and running. We've received tremendous support from Charter's engineers and management, as well as the many vendors we've been working with to complete the build. "

The Channel Launch Telecast will feature live music, a tour of the facility on the air, as well as interviews with city representatives, CMAP producers and production crew. An awards ceremony will recognize those who've helped in the building of CMAP, including past and present board members, Gavilan staff, and technicians from Charter. To mark the official "launching" of the channels, a live tri-city ribbon cutting will feature representatives from Gilroy, Hollister and San Juan Bautista Chambers of Commerce.

January 10 marks the beginning of 24 / 7 programming on the four access channels. Channel 17 will continue to feature government programming in the city of Gilroy, as well as in the cities of Hollister and San Juan Bautista. The community bulletin board has been upgraded for Hollister and San Juan Bautista, and will allow for city council agendas and community announcements to be seen on a set schedule, versus randomly. CMAP plans on augmenting the programming with shows like Army NewsWatch, and cablecasting of city events.

Channel 18 has been dubbed Gav-TV by the Channel 18 committee at Gavilan College. The committee is accepting tape submissions from students and faculty for airing on Gav-TV. Chairperson Marilyn Abad-Cardinalli will also be working with students and faculty to create original content for the channel. CMAP will be scheduling the channel, and has provided a community bulletin board that will publicize the Gavilan events calendar. CMAP has also installed an extensive commercial satellite system that will pick up free post-secondary programming for Gav-TV.

Channel 19 will feature free educational programming from sources like Annenberg, Shamu-TV, Project Oceanography, as well as videos produced by local schools. "We're encouraging teachers and students to submit commercial free videos for airing on ED-TV, Channel 19," says Programming Manager Jan Janes. "Our goal is to fill Channel 19 with locally produced programming from our schools, including sporting events, theater productions and student news shows."

"Channel 20 is all about the community," explains St. John. "CMAP, the cable company, the college, nor the cities can dictate what airs on Channel 20. It's purely commercial free, COMMUNITY programming. Our goal is to utilize public service announcements frequently to educate viewers as to what public access is." CMAP producers and local videographers have begun turning in videotapes for airing on Channel 20. Submissions include Life Changing Word, a series of locally produced religious programs featuring the interfaith community from Hollister; San Benito County Focus, a talk show produced by the San Benito County Business Council; and Hollister On the Spot, a magazine show produced by Watchdog out of Hollister.

This year, CMAP facilitated the Alliance for Community Media's Western States video competition, the WAVE Awards. Over half of the entrants agreed to have their programs cablecast on CMAP, which equals about 200 video submissions to get the public access channel up and running. "We hope it give viewers examples of how to produce their own programs," St. John states. "You don't have to be a technical wizard to have a TV show. We're here to train you, and to help get your message out there."

CMAP will be replaying the Channel Launch Telecast throughout early 2003. For CMAP programming schedules, refer to the website at www.mycmap.org.

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