Stop The Shutdown Of Community Access In San Francisco! Photos Of 12/1/20 Press Conference

Stop The Shutdown Of Community Access In San Francisco!
STOP The Privatization Of SF Community Access

The City along with it's handpicked operator Bay Area Video Coalition are planning to close the community access center on December 20, 2009 without another location to do full productions. The city of San Francisco spent over $1 million to build this studio and will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to dismantle and destroy this media center. Instead of protecting community access by keeping this facility open until another facility is built, the city with BAVC is now involved in privatizing San Francisco Community Access television. The Denver model which is what they are setting up eliminates real community control of public access and limits access. It is not a public model that protects community accesss.
The City of San Francisco has handed over the operation of the Community Access Stations to the Bay Area Video Coalition BAVC. BAVC promised to protect community access television in San Francisco and work with the producers and programmers. Instead it has done the opposite.
The City of San Francisco and their chosen contractor BAVC with a multi-million dollar budget has told producers and programmers of community access television in San Francisco that the station will be shut down on December 20, 2009 despite the fact that the lease for the property does not expire until April 30, 2010 and it does not take three months to disassemble the equipment and studios. This means all productions from the Flash Studio and Main studio will be shutdown and BAVC has also said it does not plan to rebuild a main studio at it’s current location next to KQED. Their idea of community access is not equal access but access to those who can afford to pay. This takes place in San Francisco which is major center of media and communication in Northern California. There is a $350,000 grant from Comcast that the city could use to keep the center open until a new community center is built.
At the same time, the corporate driven BAVC is requiring producers of community access program to have their own equipment to develop and produce the shows. They are essentially saying poor and low income users of community access will be locked out of getting their programming on the channels unless they pay exorbitant fees. This is a violation of the principle of community access that it will not discriminate against low income workers and others who do not have their own equipment.
This also violates the promise of the City Department of Telecommunication and Mayor Newsom that they would protect community access in San Francisco. Many other communities including even smaller cities have fully staffed community access stations with main studios. These include Berkeley, San Jose, Sacramento, Pacifica, Santa Rosa and San Rafael. Why is it that San Francisco which is a large city cannot do the same? http://www.communitymedia.se/cat/linksca.htm
At the same time BAVC refuses to use community volunteers to help staff the station as many other Northern California community access stations do.
BAVC promised when they submitted their bid and after their take-over of the station that they would work to protect the production and producers of programs. This has shown to be a false promise. Productions and producers are abandoning Community Access shows that have been established by much volunteer labor over many many years. BAVAC is also prevent production in the main studio which is a clear violation of the agreement with the city. BAVC has not even provided written notice about it's plans to an elected community board of advisors for the station, the producers and programmers. They also did not contact the SF Supervisors. Finally after complaints to the City they sent out a notice on December 1, 2009 Is this how BAVC does business in San Francisco at San Francisco community access?
Community producers and programmers as well as community supporters of San Francisco community access demand that the City Of San Francisco require that the station stay open at 1720 Market St. until another station is constructed if there is to be a closure. We call for the cancellation of the contract with BAVC and the establishment of a democratically elected board that represents the community and labor to run the community access station. The board of BAVC does not represent the interests of community access and refuses to even meet with Community Access Producers and Programmers. It includes no producers at the station and also has no labor representation on their board. The city has chosen an operator whose board is not responsive to the community and residents of San Francisco and in fact whose majority of members do not even live in San Francisco. Is this a board that will represent the producers and residents of San Francisco who fund community access?
The city has millions of dollars in capital funds that could be used to maintain the station. Instead, the SF City Attorney and Mayor Newsom want to close our studios and destroy public access in San Francisco. Call for the city to use the $350,000 to keep the SF Community Access Center open until new studios are built. We must save community access.
Coalition To Defend Free Speech And SF Community Access
Initial Endorsers:David Miles, Steve Zeltzer, Ace Washinton, Kazumi Torii, Julian Lagos, Pam Sauer, Ken Johnson, Ellison Horne, Peter Kurtz, Raymond Hong, Stu Smith, Mary Ellen Churchill, Killiu Nyasha, Pat Warren, Karish Ladeek, Ken Hodnett, Joan Satriani, Ron Bermudez
To endorse the action and for further information contact
(415)867-0628

Call Members of the San Francisco Supervisors And Ask Them To Hold Hearings And To Stop The Closure And Privatization Of Community Access/Contact The San Francisco Department Of Telecommunications To Let Them Know You Are Opposed To Closing The Station and for the use of the $350,000 grant to keep the station open until another station is built.
Fraser Berry
Principle Admistrative Analyst DTIS-SFCC/Planning And Compliance Division
581-3976 barry.fraser [at] sfgov.org
1 South Van Ness 2nd Fl. San Francisco

Also Contact The BAVC Board Of Directors And Ask Them Why They Are Destroying Community Access by shutting down the present studio when funds are available to keep it open.