President's Message | March 30, 2020

Rep. Pramila Jayapal 

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (WA) has become the 35th co-sponsor of the Protecting Community Television Act (HR 5659) in the US House of Representatives. If there was ever a time to remind Members of Congress about why it is important to support community television – it is now.   ACM members are providing essential communication service at the local level in a way that national networks simply cannot.  

For example, major equipment suppliers in our industry have provided workflow solutions so that PEG channels can easily integrate Zoom, WebEx and other remote meeting technologies on their channels. This provides support for local governments to continue meeting and provide open government in an emergency.  PEG providers have been busy teaching local elected officials how to conduct business in remote settings.  

It is an impressive story.  Be sure to tell your Senators and Representatives of that importance and the need to maintain these services well into the future, and ask them to co-sponsor the Act.  

ACM Upcoming Webinars 

We will talk about those success stories and ways community media channels are serving during the Covid-19 crisis on a webinar presentation April 15 at 3 pm ET.  We will discuss: how PEG organizations are facilitating open democracy in the crisis, how we are assisting emergency communications, and how we are supporting the personal and spiritual needs of residents who are forced to stay home.  
Please feel free to promote the webinar to as many people as you can, so we can spread the word about the impact of our channels at this time of need.  Sign up here.

We will also be sharing Best Practices for Remote Meetings on a webinar April 8 @ 3 pm ET.  ACM members have been compiling best practices and suggestions in the past few weeks, and we want to share that collective wisdom with you so you can support local governments and other organizations in weeks to come.  Sign up for the webinar here. 

 Around the watercooler

I will be continue to hang out at the Watercooler later this week!

Stop by to chat, release some steam and connect with other ACM members across the country. We have had both young children and cocktails show up at the Watercooler – who knows what will pop up this week! 
Join me on a Zoom call. 
Here is when we will huddle: 

Tuesday 4:30 pm ET

Wednesday 2p m ET
Thursday 12 Noon ET
Friday 4:30 pm ET

Meeting ID: 625 793 4140
Password: H2O

Have a great week!

Mike Wassenaar
President & CEO
The Alliance for Community Media