The Future of AccesSF and the Community Television Corporation

I'm a producer and volunteer at AccesSF as well as a disabled senior citizen and I'm afraid all San Franciscans are threatened with losing our community television stations (yes, plural) because our executive and legislative leaders have been asleep at the wheel and don't realize the enormous impact this small community resource has been and should continue to be. This community asset was given to all communities when cable franchise agreements were originally granted. Several years ago, current Mayor Gavin Newsom granted a short term renewal agreement to Comcast for just under $4 million and last year AT&T, Verizon and other telcom companies pushed through statewide legislation that allowed cable and telcom companies to no longer have to support operating budgets for local governments owning community television facilities. The principle reasons cited when cable franchice holders were given their contracts was FREE SPEECH, EDUCATION, GOVERNMENT and PUBLIC ACCESS to create media and communicate within their communities using a complete television station and all the resources provided to all citizens, but especially teaching disenfranchised citizens, youth, seniors and disabled people to produce and air programming they deem important to whatever communities they choose to align themselves with or represent. Mayor Newsom allowed this community resource to be operated under the umbrella of what has been called the Dept. of Telecommunications and Information Services which has a budget of more than $150,000,000.00 per year and has been criticized by the Grand Jury on more than one occassion for poor managment and performance. AccesSF has a budget of approximately $950,000.00 annually and produces much more usable and citizen broadcasting than its much larger and richer department while at the same time educating students from all sectors of the city, serving hundreds of non profits with services including PSA's, producing election and debate programs with the League of Women Voters among others.

If you believe that San Francisco deserves, needs and should have indepent community television serving, created by citizen journalists, producers, activists, artists and just plain people, then I urge you to ask Mayor Newsom and the Board of Supervisors to find the funds to continue supporting this invaluable community media resource. To continue operating this station would cost San Francisco less than 15% of the current amount of fees collected by the city from Comcast and Astound, so it can be done by simply sitting down at the table and collaborating with all stakeholders. I hope you'll take time to investigate this issue and express your support to the Mayor and Board of Supervisors. because FREE SPEECH is a terrible thing to THROW AWAY.