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ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: June 2, 2009 <br />Action Agenda <br />Item No. `{' - (' <br />SUBJECT: Resolution Recognizing The Peoples Channel for Ten Years of Community <br />Service <br />DEPARTMENT: County Manager PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No <br />ATTACHMENT(S): <br />Resolution <br />INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />Laura Blackmon, 245-2300 <br />PURPOSE: To consider a resolution recognizing The Peoples Channel which is celebrating ten <br />years of service to the Orange County community. <br />BACKGROUND: In 1995 a small group of concerned residents formed a non-profit <br />organization to facilitate Public Access TV for Chapel Hill and surrounding areas. That <br />organization was The Peoples Channel (TPC). The station opened its doors in the summer of <br />1998. On May 30, 2009 TPC will celebrate the completion of its 10th year with an event at <br />TPC's facility at 300-AC South Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, from 4:00-8:00 p.m. The event is free and <br />open to the public and will also be broadcast live on Channel 8 in Chapel Hill and Orange <br />County. There will be local bands, activities for kids and adults, free local North Carolina <br />Barbecue, and a dessert potluck. <br />For ten years TPC has been promoting the advancement of democratic ideals by ensuring <br />community members have access to electronic media and by promoting effective <br />communication through community uses of media. Through TPC area residents have access to <br />a free speech forum through media production, education and distribution of cable television <br />programming. Orange County and TPC have worked together for many years to broadcast <br />Board of County Commissioners' meetings. <br />Over the years countless people have come to TPC to create and distribute their own media. In <br />a few weeks TPC will expand its services into neighboring Durham, North Carolina, which until <br />recently had public access services operated by Time Warner Cable. <br />TPC's founders, Board of Directors, local media producers, and volunteers are proud of The <br />Peoples Channel's past achievements and excited about the opportunities that lie ahead. <br />Despite legislative changes regulating cable TV and times of economic hardships, TPC has <br />continued to grow. The 10 year celebration is a time for the community to reflect on the <br />importance of having a space in the media for the community to speak to itself. In times of <br />greater media consolidation over the last decade, TPC has represented an electronic green <br />space free from commercial interests. <br />