"Park districts are always strapped for cash. Local programming and access can be one way to get the message out there better than any other form of advertising. You will always get more audience response through television. With little Johnny playing Little League or soccer, you will have parents and grandparents watching this more than any other program you do."

IP&R: What is public access television?
"There are three forms of access out there. Predominantly it's called PEG (public, education and governmental). For public access, anyone from the general public can come in, take classes at the cable company, then produce their own programming. E involves schools. Schools do a lot of their own programming; they televise their own school board meetings, pageants or concerts. G is governmental.

"In the past, each cable company came to a city and said we want to provide local cable service. They promised a lot to provide local programming. In the early days, most of these public agencies got free service or free equipment and different deals were struck. A lot of changes have happened legislatively through the FCC [Federal Communications Commission].

Suffice it to say that there have been many changes in the laws that have taken away free perks that agencies (schools, park districts, etc.) used to get."

IP&R: Who decides who gets access?
"Sometimes the cable company runs part of it. Sometimes a nonprofit agency runs it all. In Illinois, predominantly the cable company runs the public and educational component, and the government component falls to the municipality."

IP&R: Who watches public access?
"There's no way to determine audience like there is in broadcast. Electronically they have not come up with a device for measuring it. You must rely on surveys that are done in your community.

"The whole idea of doing this type of programming is not to gauge how many but to disseminate the information and put it out for consumption. Public service is an arbitrary thing. People will pick it up and comprehend it at their own level. It doesn't involve making money. You're not allowed to advertise, sell products or any money-making project. It's for education. Many park districts that use it educate the public about all their programs."

IP&R: What are the "pros" for using public access television?
"The community that you serve becomes more familiar with your services. It becomes more personalized, and you have the opportunity to reach a larger audience."

IP&R: What are the "cons?"
"There is a cost factor. It does take time and energy. Your programming could be as little as a few hours or 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. It could take as little as showing monthly park board meetings, or a public service announcement that's a

Illinois Parks & Recreation * November/December 1996 * 37

IP&R: What type of programming can be offered?
"My local government here in the Village of Mount Prospect runs a G access station 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. We produce our own programming on programs and services the village offers. We also run public information programs, crime prevention shows. When we're not doing live or taped programming, we have a multimedia bulletin board that lets people know about programs and services that are available."

IP&R: How is it funded?
"It's funded through franchise fees collected by the cable company. Each cable company pays a local government (typically 5% of income) for using "rights of way." Villages and cities are guardians of the "rights of way"—where lines go in the ground or through the streets or easements—on behalf of the public. In Mount Prospect, we put all that back into local programming.

"One other model that's unique is Bensenville, Illinois. They have an intergovernmental agreement between the village, the park district, school and library, to do local programming. All agencies can work a lot easier together than they can separately. They get a utility tax rebate so that in lieu of taking money back from the village, they're just offsetting the cost and participating in the joint venture. It's very economical because they get coverage and publicity out for their events."

IP&R: Why will we lose public access if we don't use it?
"As more and more cable channels become available that the public wants to see, they're starting to squeeze out local programming and asking to consolidate it. It's happening all over the country."

IP&R: How can a park district learn more about access in their community?
"You need to contact the local government—usually the city or village manager's office—that handles cable regulation.

Ask who oversees the franchise agreement with cable. Then ask who provides local cable programming. Talk to both. It's down to the wire. It won't be there in the future. Use it or lose it." 

Cheryl Pasqualek is a telecommunications consultant for the River Oaks Communications Corporation in Barrington, Illinois. For the past 7 years, she was the communications administrator for the Village of Mount Prospect, which won several national and regional awards for public access programming during her tenure. Pasqualek will present the session "Public Access TV: Use It or Lose It" on Saturday, January 11, at the IAPD/IPRA Annual Conference.

Public Access Resources
National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA), 1200 19th Street NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20036, 202/429- 5101.

Alliance for Community Media, 666 11th Street, Suite 806, Washington, DC 20001 -4542, 202/393-2650, alliancecm@aol.com.