The Acushnet Cable Advisory Committee was originally formed when the Town of Acushnet negotiated a contract with cable television providers. The initial contract was negotiated by the Board of Selectmen. The Selectmen then appointed a Cable Advisory Committee prior to negotiations on the extension of the original contract. The Cable Advisory Committee was charged to review and negotiate future contracts, review and establish cable policies and obtain cable television rights from cable operators and/or providers.

The committee members establish policies related to the broadcast of cable shows, on channel 18 and policies for the community bulletin board which is also shown on channel 18 on a round the clock basis. The committee is authorized to sign the payroll vouchers for the camera operators and other cable activities, which may include the purchase of cameras, video tapes and audio equipment needed for the four broadcasting locations within the town.

The committee is in charge of the daily programming schedule for the government channel, channel 18 and the community bulletin board also shown on channel 18. The normal schedule of programming show program events taped during the previous week beginning on Saturday of every week. The number of events programmed for showing during the week depends entirely on the time of each event, but in most cases we show three different town meetings at various times during the day, each day for the entire week. The bulletin board is updated weekly and events are posted when requested by town departments or other non-profit agencies.

The members of the committee supervise the following certified camera operators. These are the individuals who tape the various civic events and/or town government meetings that are shown on the government channel, channel 18. The committee also films events of a community interest that are shown on the public access channel, channel 95.

All camera operators must go through a period of training with the JVC camera prior to filming any town event. The Committee trains the operators on the fundamentals of filming an event. Covered are such basics as the inner workings of the JVC camera, how to "white out" the camera prior to filming and the procedures the camera operator must go through to ensure that the filmed event is reviewable and ready for broadcasting. The committee then insures all the camera operators follow a standard set of operating conditions prior to filming an event. This process the committee believes will insure that the viewing public gets a product that is comparable to the industry.

Certified camera operators are:

• John Golda
• Eric Golda
• Michael Green
• Donald Lopes
• Fred Nazarchyk
• Garry Rawcliffe
• George Souza
• Chandler Leonard
• Marc Dean
• Lori Walsh- Secretary

The committee would like anyone interested in becoming a camera operator to contact us. The committee has openings for alpha S.C.A.L.A. & VIP operators (bulletin board), editors and studio camera operators (Town Hall) as well as calzone operators (portable camera operations at the Senior Center and the Acushnet Elementary School). These positions range in pay from $50 to tape an event to $20 per hour to edit, operate the bulletin board and produce film clips.

The committee welcomes comments or suggestions: please feel free to make any comments or suggestions whether they be on the color of the web page, the filming of the many town events, the number of times an event airs, or any other recommendation.

Contact the cable committee at : 122 Main Street, Acushnet, MA or email address below attn: cable committee.

If you have a complaint, please click on the following link, fill in the complaint form and send it to the cable committee chairman for action on your complaint

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