TV3…So Now What?

– Allison Goldsberry

Does anyone really care anymore about what should happen to TV3?  Should anyone even care at all?

I would argue that plenty of people care and those that don’t should care. If TV3 is allowed to go black, only then would we realize how we let a great community resource slip through our fingers. No one seems to care now because there is nothing good going on at the station. Flip to it and chances are you will change the channel right away because there will either be a blank screen, a fifty-year-old movie, or board members trashing critics of the station who have legitimate complaints.

That poor programming is a direct result of allowing a small group of people control the station for years. This group has lacked complete responsibility for the station’s finances, has done virtually nothing to attract new members, and has used the station and its equipment to create movies and shows for themselves and their friends.

It’s time for the city to do something and rid the station of the dysfunction that has been allowed to fester for two decades. There is now plenty of evidence that clearly shows how incompetent the current corporation has been in running the station- a report by City Solicitor Mark Rumley, two performance evaluation hearings, a financial audit, and report by an independent judge. All of this has now placed the responsibility of fixing the situation squarely back into the city’s lap, where it has been all along.

Two things should happen immediately to start creating a better station- everyone on the current TV3 board should resign, and the city should use some of its Comcast money to hire an independent, professional person or group to oversee the station temporarily. If the current board resigns, and an independent entity is not brought in to get the station in order, all that will happen is that another self-interested group will take over and the cycle of dysfunction will continue. It has happened before and it will most certainly happen again.

Another option is to take each of the channels funded by Comcast money- 3, 15, and 16- and put them all together in one place. Many communities do this and it makes a great deal of sense. In this scenario, the cable money is pooled and used to fund the government, education, and public channels. Everything is run out of one place, including video production classes in the schools, coverage of city meetings and events, and community members coming in to produce their own shows.

I used to be a member of the TV3 board and I witnessed the dysfunction first-hand. I had to leave because I was ganged up on and bullied by board members when I tried to help them resolve a conflict they were having with a community member. I have been critical of the board and the station since then because I feel it is the right thing to do to help create a public access station that is better and open to everyone in Medford, not just a chosen few.

More on TV3…

Judge Issues Scathing Report Against TV3

The judge’s full report

Report on TV3’s Financial Statements

Melanson Heath’s Letter to TV3

Past TV3 Stories from InsideMedford.com