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calvoiper
join:2003-03-31
Belvedere Tiburon, CA
| reply to KoolMoe
Re: Good for them
said by KoolMoe  :First, I believe Public Access TV is critical. There would be no PEG if there were no required franchise agreements. "Public Access" is a joke. It solely benefits various community groups with various political agendas, groups which then use their grassroots power to preserve their gravy train and to support those politicians and cable companies who have "bought" their support with free airtime. It has become part of the "good ol' boy" network, where backs are scratched with votes, money, and airtime. It is worsened by the decisionmakers on who gets choice airtime--usually an unelected, appointed "board" or "commission" of 2nd level political hacks whose sole qualification is that they take direction well from the existing power base.
In a competitive environment, "public access" is no more justified than forcing a newspaper to publish political views.
calvoiper
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VoIP--the death knell of remaining voice monopolies! | |
KoolMoe
Aw Man
Premium
join:2001-02-14
Annapolis, MD
clubs:
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| Maybe in your area. Around here, it's fun.
There are some political shows, sure. There are also completely non-political shows too! I don't see how stations with such low viewership can seriously effect any political discussion.
One of my favorite "non-politicals" is two local guys with a cooking show. Most every recipe involves beer. They're the first ones I learned about deep-frying an entire turkey for Thanksgiving years ago. Haven't tried it yet, but it was a funny episode.
PEG is a great way for citizens to get some air time - for whatever reason. It doesn't hurt anything, IMO, and is a public benefit. Newspapers have Letters to the Editor and OpEd pages, cable has Public Access. I think it's an important part of any, or at least my, local cable service.
I also agree with JT - communities deserve compensation for access to fast-tracked Rights of Way issues. Not everyone can use them and they must be regulated - compensation is fair.
As it relates to 'taxes' - yeah, I'm sure if cable companies didn't have to pay it, we'd all see reductions in our bills. Cable companies will surely do that...uh-huh.
KM | |
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