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NewTV is Newton, Massachusetts’ community media center, paid for through fees assessed on local cable bills.

Residents of the City of Newton, members of Newton-based non-profit organizations, employees of Newton businesses and City of Newton employees are eligible to become members of NewTV. NewTV offers services to the community, including production services, original programming and training.[1][2]

History

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In the 1980s, Newton’s Mayor, Theodore D. Mann, traveled to cities around the US and saw that independent public access television stations were being established. He wanted to see that happen in Newton. At the time, Continental Cable held the local access facilities and channels. Mayor Mann got to work organizing community members to form NewTV’s first Board of Directors. By 1990, this Board was established and set out to find a home and employees for NewTV. Construction began at the NewTV facility in 1991 and it opened on June 7, 1992.

NewTV spent its first fifteen years at its Lincoln Street location. There, it expanded from a single channel (NewTV 13) to a three-channel line-up (community, education and government). In 1994, NewTV began producing Newton News, a weekly news program. In 2006, NewTV moved to its current Needham Street location. In 2013 they did a build-out to expand the facility to approximately 7000 square feet.[3] On October 3, 2013 NewTV launched an HD channel through a partnership with RCN. NewTV was the second public access television station to be offered an HD channel in Massachusetts. NewTV now has three HD channels with RCN.[4][5]

The station is funded by a 5% fee paid by cable TV providers Verizon, Comcast and RCN.[6] It also collects membership fees from participants and holds fund-raisers.[7][8]

Programming

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NewTV operates three separate television channels, each designated for public, educational, or governmental content, since NewTV is a P.E.G. station. According to the Boston Globe, "Residents of Newton, members of Newton-based nonprofit organizations, employees of Newton businesses, and Newton municipal employees are eligible to use NewTV: to get free use of TV production equipment and facilities, cable TV channel time, and training in TV production, media literacy, and Internet access."[8]

The Community Channel features programs produced by members of the Newton community or programs sponsored by members of the Newton community. This channel provides a forum for free speech and self expression.[9][10] Some programs have been distributed statewide, or even nationwide.[11]

The Education Channel features programming produced by members of the public and private school community in Newton, whether it be parents, students, school administrators or interns. Since the programming on this channel is monitored for educational content it is not a public forum like the other two channels.[12]

The Government Channel features coverage of public municipal meetings. There is also programming produced in collaboration with municipal and state departments that focus on issues affecting Newton.[13][14][15]

Other programming

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Newton News is a half-hour weekly news program focused on news happening in Newton. The program is produced by a news director and most reporting is done by interns. Many interns have gone on to professional success in broadcast journalism.[16][17][18] The program airs on all three channels.[19]

The Original Programming department produced narrative content that was distributed throughout the nation, the most notable of which was The Folklorist. This series shows on all three channels [20][21]

NewTV has a production services department to produce client videos.[22]

In January, 2004, and again in January, 2005, disputes arose over the airing of a news program called Mosaic: World News from the Middle East. Opponents argued that the program provides a distorted view of Arab broadcasts, a venue for antisemitism, anti-Americanism, and "terrorist propaganda".[23][24][25][26] Supporters of the program, while conceding that the broadcasts may on occasion contain "anti-Semitic and anti-American content" argued that episodes "give Americans a diverse array of information about how the country is portrayed in the Middle East", and that their broadcast is a free speech issue.[27] Mosaic has also been criticized by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America, which claims it "whitewashes terrorism and promotes extremism".[28] Objections to Mosaic centered around the programs use of news broadcasts produced by the Hezbollah-run Al Manar television; Al Manar was designated a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization by the United States in 2004.[29][30]

In 2004 local environmental activists used the station's equipment to produce a documentary film about the Angino family farm, the last farm in Newton, as part of a campaign that persuaded the town to preserve the farmland from development.[31]

References

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  1. ^ "Telecommunications/Cable". newtonma.gov.
  2. ^ "Resources". newtonculture.org.
  3. ^ "Paul Berg out at NewTV". Wicked Local Blog.
  4. ^ Adams, Jenn. "Oh, The Changes I've Seen at NewTV".
  5. ^ Bogomolov, Anastasia (October 3, 2013). "NewTV and RCN Roll Out HD Channel #613". Newton Patch.
  6. ^ Paige, Connie (19 January 2006). "VERIZON ENTERS CABLE PICTURE ; NEGOTIATING FEES TO BE 3D PROVIDER". Boston Globe. ProQuest 405005833.
  7. ^ Gelbwasser, Michael (22 May 1997). "Katz and the cable: Actor-comic performing benefit for Newton TV". The Jewish Advocate. ProQuest 205214289.
  8. ^ a b "Cable TV access offered". Boston Globe. 11 August 2002. ProQuest 405482557.
  9. ^ Cantrell, Cindy (July 12, 2015). "Retired teacher brings learning into the community via NewTV".
  10. ^ Pyenson, Andrea (2011-09-07). "Grabbing the spotlight with two hands". Boston.com. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  11. ^ Aucoin, Don (2010-06-19). "They're making a mark". Boston.com. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  12. ^ Sullivan, Magdalen (February 12, 2015). "A New Vision: NewTV Offers Film Opportunities For Local Students".
  13. ^ "NewTV to host 5 debates ahead of Newton election". Brian Yates Alderman-at-Large.
  14. ^ Lovett, Laura. "Ward 3 councilor-at-large candidates debate at NewTV". Newton TAB. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  15. ^ "NewTV Adds Broadcast Pix for Full HD Production". GovernmentVideo.com. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  16. ^ "Diane Macedo to Anchor ABC World News Now". www.adweek.com. Retrieved 2018-04-17.
  17. ^ "Community: Diane Macedo anchors News Now and America This Morning – ABC NEWS - Portuguese American Journal". portuguese-american-journal.com. Retrieved 2018-04-17.
  18. ^ Turner, Jared (2017-07-10). "Chris Conte". WTVF. Retrieved 2018-04-17.
  19. ^ Rosenberg, Steven (May 15, 2014). "Local-access cable shows are sharpening their focus".
  20. ^ "NewTV's 'The Folklorist' takes home Emmys". June 16, 2016.
  21. ^ Ishkanian, Ellen (September 14, 2014). "Newton cable show wins Emmy Award".
  22. ^ "Imagine eMagazine". emag.imaginenews.com. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  23. ^ Stewart, Rhonda. "Middle East News Reports Are Not Welcomed by All, The Boston Globe, February 5, 2004. Accessed July 31, 2006.
  24. ^ Viser, Matt. Mideast Cable Show to Air 5 days, The Boston Globe, January 6, 2005. Accessed July 31, 2006.
  25. ^ Nielson, Jason (12 February 2004). "David Project's head challenges New TV". The Jewish Advocate. ProQuest 205194037.
  26. ^ Stewart, Rhonda (12 February 2004). "'MOSAIC' MAY GET REBUTTAL ON CABLE CRITICS PLAN ALTERNATIVE TO PROGRAM ON MIDEAST". Boston Globe. ProQuest 404889281.
  27. ^ "Supporters disagree, saying that the broadcasts give Americans a diverse array of information about how the country is portrayed in the Middle East. They say although there is anti-Semitic and anti-American content, it’s an issue of free speech." Andrews, Sarah. Arab News Program Sparks Outcry Archived 2007-03-11 at the Wayback Machine, The Newton Tab, January 20, 2004. Accessed July 31, 2006
  28. ^ Hollander, Ricky. "'Mosaic' Deceptions", Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America, April 17, 2004. Accessed August 3, 2005.
  29. ^ Nasser, Cilina (23–29 December 2004). "Al-Manar in the dog house". Al Ahram Weekly (722). Archived from the original on 3 August 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  30. ^ Viser, Matt (6 January 2005). "MIDEAST CABLE SHOW TO AIR 5 DAYS". Boston Globe. ProQuest 404947867.
  31. ^ Cocian, Lisa (25 August 2005). "AS COSTS DROP, LOCAL ACTIVISTS MAKE THEIR POINTS VIA VIDEO". Boston Globe. ProQuest 404969199.

Further reading

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  • Freund, Michael (24 February 2004). "Defending Israel on cable TV". Jerusalem Post. p. 4.
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