"The potential for community involvement through public access TV is seemingly boundless."

Frances Moore Lappe and Paul Marin DuBois
The Quickening of America

Following are just a few examples of the 20,000 hours of new programs produced each week in the United States with community media, and how they benefit their communities:

The Dump Patrol

After witnessing East Coast trucks dumping waste in a landfill just a few hundred yards from her home, Terry Moore of Center Point, Indiana organized 75 of the only 250 people in her town to video tape every out-of state truck entering the landfill for 60 hours a week for over 14 months. In the process, she discovered that these same trucks were barely cleaned before being loaded with food to ship back to the East Coast. She showed her video on her local public access channel, took her video to the State Legislature and gave it to local television broadcaster. It eventually aired on "ABC Nightly news," "The MacNeil Leher NewsHour" and the "Phil Donohue Show." Her efforts led to the regulation of out-of-state dumping in Indiana and testimony before Congress. "Without the video, I don't think our message would have gotten out. The video was something people could relate to" states Moore.

"Sometimes TV Isn't the problem. It's the Solution."
(CAN TV Motto)

"Teen Moms Only," a public access program on CAN TV-21 in Chicago, has won numerous local and national awards and been used by social services agencies around the country. The mission of "Teen Moms Only" states:

"Teen moms will be responsible, educated parents. We will create a safe and healthy environment for our children. As our children's first teachers, we will read and talk to, praise and nurture them from birth. We will not have more children until we are financially, emotionally and mentally prepared. We will reach out to other teen moms in need of help. We will seek out support services that will help us become independent. We will not be victims."

The formula for "Teen Moms Only" is simple: teen moms reaching out to other teen moms about the issues that affect them, sharing personal stories, and offering suggestions for successful and responsible parenting and use of available support services during a live, call-in program. "All too often, television reinforces stereotypes and negative images, but 'Teen Moms Only' demonstrates that television also has the power to break down stereotypes," says Renee Dolezal, an English teacher at Arts of the Living High School who created the program.

"It's 8:30, do you know where your brains are?"

So starts an episode of "Paper Tiger Television" (PPTV), the legendary Manhattan public access program-turned-institution that has been "reading" the mass media since 1981. Some may call it media literacy, but PPTV explains, "A friendly name for detailed analysis, 'reading' a publication or program means taking it apart, sometimes page-by-page or scene-by-scene, exploring links between its production, its audience and its sponsor. While exposing the hidden ideologies in commercial television, film advertisements and print media, Pager Tiger also aims to disrupt the TV beliefs of its viewers." The PPTV repository of over 200 videos, each bearing the unique imprint of the various members of PPTV over the years, includes critiques on wide ranging topics from violence in children's cartoons and media coverage of domestic and international events, to "Beverly Hills 90210."

The Possibilities

With increasing awareness about local issues and encouraging involvement as part of its mission, Davis Community Television (DCTV) in California features election programming for the City Council and special elections. "We expect to play a key role, particularly during elections, in helping the campaigns to get information out to the voters, and in facilitating robust civic discourse on the issues," explains Executive Director, Kari Peterson. On election night, DCTV's election coverage features call-in commentary from the voters.

With the increasing concentration of ownership in commercial media, cross-promotion of programming and products, and vertical programming taking place in the cable television industry, it is all the more important to carve out a place for the community's voice with public access television. The potential uses of public access television in Indianapolis and the benefits to Indianapolis are tremendous.