Get on TV: Public Access across the USA.

Let's say you produced a video such as a short film, a comedy act, an improv session and you want to send it to someplace besides You Tube, I have a list for you. These are public access TV stations across the USA. Here is the link: http://www.videouniversity.com/directories/public-access-stations/

I've taken the liberty of checking out some of these TV stations and this is what I found. Davis, California's DCTV features Democracy Now! Free Speech TV, Yolo County Government 101, and Better Day Films. The last program I mentioned has a link for Better World Films, which you can see on You Tube. Here is the link: https://plus.google.com/u/0/118022677558414330610/posts

Then, I moved on to my home state, Michigan and looked up Ann Arbor's Community Television Network (CTN). They have more than one network under their umbrella: 16 GovTV, 17A2TV (A Squared TV), 18 EduTV and 19 CitiTV.

On A2TV, they offer:

• Access Soapbox

• Access Ann Arbor

• A2TV Specials 
   
• Public Access programs produced by residents & non-profits 
   
• Programs uploaded by independent producers

CitiTV offers:

• Conversations
• Ward Talk
• Senior Moments
• For Your Information (FYI)
• Ann Arbor High School and Community Sports
• Cultural and Community Events
• Election programming
  

I looked into GovTV and got footage of what looked like a City Council Meeting. They have programs on all things local government including historical shows.

What about EduTV?

The EDUCATION CHANNEL, CTN Cable Channel 18, offers educational and informational programming. Watch plays and concerts featuring Ann Arbor school children. Learn a foreign language through Annenberg Media and connect with the U.S. Department of Education through its monthly "Education News Parents Can Use" Satellite Town Meetings. Other regular programs include AADL Presents and The Drexel InterView. Programming also includes live gavel-to-gavel coverage of the Board of Education Meetings.

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Just to show some contrast, I thought I'd go up North to the Upper Peninsula and see how their public access stations are different from the ones "downstate". Well, I got close; I found a public access station in Traverse City, Michigan, which is in the northern part of the Lower Peninsula. This town is home to UpNorth Media Center and their website is: http://www.upnorthmedia.org/

Hyperlinks included, UpNorth TV has such shows as:

• Cross Talk North
• East Bay Calvary
• Family of Faith Ministries
• Happenings
• ICR: Investigating Community Resilience
• International Affairs Forum
• National Writers Series
• Northern Michigan Musician's Journal
• Petoskey Area Public Meetings
  • Robert Abate's World of Blues
  Sorry, Robert. My Open Office Software just doesn't want to come out and play. I hope you don't mind being indented. I couldn't let Blues lovers down and leave you out because of a stubborn bullet point.  

In addition to UpNorth TV, they have a several TV programs under the Government TV heading. I noticed that Traverse City has at least three Christian shows. No Christian or church-oriented shows jumped out at me in the Ann Arbor (nor at the Davis, California) stations.

So, how do you start your own show? Here's how in Travis City.

Link: http://www.upnorthmedia.org/getinvolved.asp