[ACLU-CU ALERT] UPTV to discuss free speech issues

[Champaign County ACLU Announcements]

A subcommittee of the Urbana Public Television (UPTV) Commission will be meeting next week to discuss proposals to restrict what can be aired (or how to air) public access programs.   The Champaign County ACLU chapter encourages supporters of free speech to attend the meeting:
 
Wednesday, November 7
10:00 a.m.
2nd Floor Conference Room 
Urbana City Building
400 S. Vine Street
 
Background:  Some local residents contacted UPTV Commission to complain about an anti-Semitic program that is aired on the public access channel.  Commissioners explained that government cannot censor programs based on their content.  The concerned residents then proposed some alternatives to accomplish censorship, including:
 
- Eliminate all public access programming and limit use of cable channel 6 to only government and education programs.  They argue that City of Champaign has never allowed public access and airs only government and government-related meetings; Urbana has "PEG" which is Public Access - Education - Government and allows members of the public to sign up as PEG members and then have the right to submit programs to be aired during open times on the PEG channel.  The PEG program has been in place since 1994 and is funded by a 2% tax on cable television bills.
 
- Allow only locally created programming.   The idea is that the particular program that is currently offending people is not locally created.   Many, perhaps most of the public access programs aired on Channel 6 (including ACLU's Freedom Files aired at 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays) are not created locally.
 
- Privatize channel 6 which would basically mean the city would contract with a private company to manage the programming so that the private company would be able to censor "offensive" programs.
 
The UPTV Commission's subcommittee will be discussing these (and perhaps other) options on November 7.   We believe that the Commissioners want to continue the free speech policy that UPTV has had for the last 13 years. They need support from free speech advocates in the community.
 
If you have any questions about this topic, please contact Esther Patt, President of Champaign County ACLU at estherpatt at hotmail.com.
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