From the national Alliance for Community Media:

Summary: The FCC has issued a Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making on Cable Franchising (https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-seeks-comment-lfas-regulation-cable-operators). There will be public comment and reply deadlines this Fall. The FCC may issue a ruling in 2019.

Impact on communities and PEG: The FCC is proposing to rule that all “In-Kind” cable franchise obligations other than PEG capital costs and build-out requirements are a “franchise fee” under the Cable Act and thus count against the 5% franchise fee cap. The FCC would define “In-Kind” contributions so broadly as to undermine the Cable Act’s intent to provide franchise fees to communities for use of public rights of way. Any non-monetary benefit could conceivably be charged back against franchise fees – from backhaul services, to electronic program guides, to the value of PEG channel capacity itself. The charge backs would be at fair market value as determined by the cable industry, so we believe in some areas franchise fees might be eliminated in their entirety.

Action: ACM will coordinate legal responses to the FNPRM and will work with national allies in the rulemaking. We will provide instructions to guide your communities so you can reply to the proceeding when deadlines are published.

You should do two things in this proceeding: You should set aside time to prepare comments later this fall about the importance of your work to the community. And you should contact political leaders at the local, state and federal level (on both sides of the aisle) to express their displeasure to the FCC at this action to undermine the Cable Act. We can supply materials to help with this action as well.

More info at: http://www.allcommunitymedia.org/latest-news/acm-public-policy-action-update-sept-2018 

The ACMNWR Board is pleased to welcome our latest addition to the board, Cheyenne (Shy) Allott!

About Shy:

Cheyenne (Shy) Allott is a veteran of the comic and pop culture industry, and has been serving in marketing and events roles for almost a decade. Currently a Senior Account Manager at Bonfire Marketing in Portland, Oregon, Shy brings a deep understanding of marketing, sales and event management to the Alliance for Community Media Northwest.

Passionate about inclusivity & representation, Shy has long advocated for social change and awareness in various mediums.

Recorded live at the “Access The Future” Summit held at the end of April in Portland, the Radio Survivor podcast was a great event.  From the Radio Survivor site:

Our first live episode might just blow your mind. Recorded at the Alliance for Community Media Northwest Summit, it’s time to break down barriers between media platforms. That’s we’re tackling podcasting and virtual reality, and how they relate to social justice and equity. Our guests are writer, artist, teacher and activist Reagan Jackson and Sandy …

Source: Podcast #140 – From Podcasting to Virtual Reality, with Reagan Jackson and Sandy Cioffi

The ACMNWR held its 2018 Best of the Northwest Awards ceremony at OpenSignal in Portland, Oregon on April 28 as part the Region’s “Access the Future” summit.  Hosted by Greg Marks, the awards honored 18 winners of this year’s “Best of the Northwest”.

Watch the ceremony via YouTube:

The winners are:

I’m Still Inside
PSAs, Promos, and Station IDs

The Women’s March on Olympia
Democracy in Action

The Unknown
Produced by Youth

Storytime with Miss Bethany
Webisodes

Cooper Slug
Experimental/Artistic/Abstract

On the Road – the Olympic Discovery Trail
Documentary

On the Road – the Olympic Discovery Trail
Informative Feature

Oregon City State of the City 2017
Forums and Events

Holiday Showcase
Local Performance

Community Hotline – 1000th Episode
Studio Talk Show

Tucker Maxon School
Shorts

Rest, Not Arrest
Community Involvement/Empowerment/ Making a Difference

2017 OSAA 6A Basketball State Championship – Clackamas v Jefferson
Sports

Hideaway
Non-English Programming

Just Kidding Around
Shows for Children

The Naz
Inspirational and Religious

The Decision
Instructional, Training, and Educational

Clackamas County Overall Programming Excellence
Capital Community Television Overall Excellence
(tie)
Overall Excellence in Public, Educational, or Government Access Programming

The ACMNWR board thanks our main ceremony sponsor, Castus; also OpenSignal for providing their facility and staff for the ceremony, the judges for selecting the winners out of many entries, Truckee Tahoe Community Television for producing the clip reel, and all the community media producers for all their great entries!

Sales have ended for the 2018 NW Media Summit, but you can still follow along by subscribing to our YouTube channel, and following us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will be streaming sessions and live-tweeting.

Plan your time at the 2018 NW Media Summit and check out our program guide. Learn more about the sessions and our speakers here – PDF warning.

Haven’t registered yet? Purchase your two-day admission for just $75 ($55 for students) through Brown Paper Tickets.

Access The Future is a two-day professional conference presented by the Alliance for Community Media Northwest and CASTUS.

Thanks to Rueshare, we are pleased to offer five scholarships to attend the 2018 NW Media Summit: Access the Future for community media advocates who could not otherwise attend.

About Rueshare: Hosted in the cloud and accessible from anywhere, Rueshare is a powerful, intuitive system made specifically for community media centers to create, track and report on everything that happens at their center. Rueshare empowers staff and members allowing them to engage with their center like never before.

Click here to access the scholarship application. Entries are due by Friday, April 20.

The ACM Northwest Region thanks all of our sponsors for their strong support of the Region and Community Media.  Be sure to visit and thank them at the Access the Future Summit April 27-28 at OpenSignal in Portland!

Presenting Sponsor:

CASTUS provides flexible scheduling systems and on demand streaming servers for community media centers.  Our thanks to Castus for their long-time support of the Northwest Region!  Check out Castus here.

Partnering Sponsor:

Comrex designs and builds equipment that uses the most advanced available technology to connect broadcasters with their audiences. They strive to build reliable, user-friendly tools that engineers can trust to work, even during complicated broadcasts. Thanks to Comrex for their support!  Check them out here.

Summit Sponsor:

Tightrope Media Systems provides industry leading media delivery systems for Digital Broadcast and Digital Signage.  Work around the clock and around the globe connecting you to your audiences, so you can focus on telling your story.  Tightrope has been another long-time supporter of community media throughout the nation.  Find out more about Tightrope here.

Summit Sponsor:

Media Control Systems specializes in television automation products and systems for program recording, playback, and ad insertion.  Media Control Systems (MCS) manufactures its own brand of products and also resells and integrates other TV automation related products.  Thanks to MCS for their help for the Region’s summit! More information on MCS can be found here.

Thanks again to our sponsors; their support keeps registration costs low for our attendees.

As a finalist for the Alliance for Community Media Northwest Region’s Best of the Northwest Awards, you’re in good company. For nearly 25 years, we have recognized exceptional non-commercial content created for and by Pacific Northwesterners.

The awards ceremony will be held as part of the ACMNWR’s 2018 NW Media Summit: Access the Future, taking place April 27-28 at Open Signal in Portland, OR. The Awards will take place on Saturday, April 28. Reception begins at 7 p.m. and the award show begins promptly at 8 p.m.

We invite you to attend both days of the summit or you can buy tickets just for the awards. More information (including registration) can be found here. Or purchase registration and tickets through Brown Paper Tickets.

Also, as a finalist, you can download the following Finalist laurel graphic to show off. Be sure to promote your program and its Finalist status on social media. Remember to tag @acmnwr on Facebook and Twitter.

#AccessTheFuture #BOTNW2018 #NWMediaSummit

Click below for a complete list of Finalists.

Continue reading “2018 Best of the Northwest Awards Finalists Announced” →

Greg Marks is a Tacoma-based actor, motivational speaker, and founder of Right Now Today, a nonprofit that focuses on “humans helping humans.” Since founding Right Now Today, his organization has helped over 500 homeless adults and teens through the 500 Bags of Love program by providing hygienic products, food, and clothing.

At the age of forty-three, Greg decided to become an actor and has had much success. He’s been featured in magazines, television commercials, and TV shows, such as GRIMM, Leverage, Twin Peaks, Meet the Browns and stand in work on Grey’s Anatomy also appearances in feature films such as Abduction of EDEN, 21 & Over, One Square Mile, Simple Creature, and many Washington State based films including an anti-bullying film, Joenah, he wrote and directed.

Read more about Greg and his work with Right Now Today here.

Thanks to CASTUS for their support as the Presenting Sponsor for this year’s Best of the Northwest Awards!