Going behind the scenes of MCTV

Author: Kelly Janis

Tucked on the third floor of Ilsley Public Library lies the studio of Middlebury Community Television (MCTV), a public television station committed to serving the community as a respectable source of information, expression and entertainment. The public access station has broadcasted an eclectic offering of programming to an estimated 1,800 households since 1987.

The station's executive director, Dick Thodal, has plenty on his plate when it comes to negotiating the station's smooth execution.

"I'm sort of a jack of all trades," laughed Thodal. "I have to do a lot of different things to keep the show on the road."

MCTV provides regular coverage of town and school board meetings, church services and major community events. In addition, the station encourages volunteers to produce their own programming using the station's equipment.

"Running a public access station doesn't have a whole lot to do with actually producing video," Thodal said. "It has more to do with making sure people have what they need to produce video."

That programming, according to Thodal, is decidedly diverse. "We don't allow commercial content. But we cover every part of the political spectrum. As a matter of fact, we encourage people who may feel that they're pretty far to one side of an issue to come in and produce programming," he said. "The mainstream media really tends to cover the middle, and people who are on what you may consider one extreme or another don't often get a chance to get their viewpoints out." Thodal said public access television represents the first ammendment in action, and as such has been dubbed "Free Speech TV" and the "Electronic Soapbox." Since Middlebury Community Television is not commercial, it is not hampered by the need to please sponsors. "We don't have a particular agenda as far as programming is concerned. I would say what goes on the air really reflects the concerns and the energy of the people who decide to use our facilities."

Thodal believes that MCTV's most popular broadcast is its coverage of Select Board meetings. "I've had elderly people tell me that they were so glad that the town meeting was on television," he noted. "I would say that probably the elderly are the biggest single group that we have as viewers because they tend to be interested in town affairs. They may be housebound and have time to watch television, so they seem to appreciate a lot of our programming."

Naturally, MCTV sees its fair share of humorous and quirky broadcasts. "We had a brilliant comedy - a tongue-in-cheek report on alleged UFO abductions in Middlebury. It was very funny. It had all this doctored newspaper footage showing UFOs behind the cheerleaders at a football game."

Nonetheless, such content hardly defines the station. "That's one of the things I think a lot of people feel that public access is all about, these crazy shows," Thodal said. "In reality, it's a little more low key. I'm thinking of four hour school board meetings, like we had last Tuesday night."

Public access is not famous for being financially lucrative. "The most efficient way for a network to make a buck is by centrally producing programming in New York or Los Angeles or something like that," he explained, "and then trying to get it out to as wide an audience as possible." In this fashion, hooking viewers is a matter of crafting the wildest car chases and greatest shock appeal. "But with local programming, the thing we have that attracts people is that they'll be surfing through and they'll go 'Oh! That's my neighbor!'" For this reason, while public access programming may have a local appeal, it is not likely to resonate with viewers residing at a distance.

Ultimately, Thodal said, "the programming that we put on is the result of people who really want to connect with the community one way or another."

Youth program coordinator Jody Bergedic - who teaches media literacy in local schools and aids individuals in the studio - further attested to MCTV's value. Hands-on experience, she stressed, is the key to gaining proficiency in filmmaking.

"It's like trying to be literate without ever reading. You can't do it," she said. Bergedic has observed that children often brim with misconceptions regarding the time and effort necessary to produce short films. After working on an actual project "they learn to appreciate the craft, and begin to understand that it's a hard thing to do."

Bergedic observes that many individuals approach the film editing process with the attitude of "'I have a computer. I'm an editor.' God forbid you have a scalpel," she said, "because then you'd be a doctor and I'd really be worried."

Middlebury Community Television, she enthused, is an invaluable resource. "People always say there's no such thing as a free lunch, but there is. Anybody can come in here and - if they put in the effort - can learn how to become a decent producer for free, regardless of what the message is." She said that the lack of censorship and judgement public access offers is crucial in distinguishing it from other venues. "You could say 'I'm an alien from outer space, and that's my mission,' and we'll go 'okay, good job, and we'll teach you how to tell people that message.' You don't get that anywhere else."

If there is any drawback to her work, Bergedic mused that it is the shortage of hours in a day. "I would love to help everybody everywhere in every school in every town, and I just can't."

Middlebury Community Television is eager to extend itself to the College community. "I wish you guys would come down more," Bergedic said. "I haven't figured out yet how to make that happen … but I feel very much like we can have much more interaction than we do. We are available, and we want to work with you."