Media Bridges Cincinnati

Location:
Cincinnati, OH

Media Bridges is Cincinnati’s Community Media Center providing the education, equipment and environment for people to communicate effectively through media.

Media Bridges offers the following services at no cost to its constituents:
• Distribution of media produced by local individuals via four community television channels, accessed by over 166,000 households in Hamilton County
• Multi-use facility and state-of-the-art video production equipment for community use
• Beginning and advanced technology classes in video, audio and computer skills
• Youth programs that engage local schools and community organizations in the construction and evaluation of media
• Video and A/V services and consulting for Cincinnati Non profit agencies

Project Description: 

I. Statement of Need
Media Bridge’s venture into the LPFM world is a step we feel very comfortable with, but at the same respect it will weigh heavy on our staff and man power to get the Radio station up and running. We seek a VISTA to contribute in the structuring of a stable working infrastructure. To develop and implement a content management system and a volunteer management system will help offset duties from a paid staff member, which could be used towards more direct service. The LPFM radio station is particularly critical at this time as the construction permit expires in August of 2009. Failure to be on the air by that time may result in our losing this precious community resource.

Culture Concerns
When local media diversity suffers, local creativity does too. Media Bridges’ LP-FM Station will augment its mission and provide total access to the Cincinnati media market. The few noncommercial stations that air area artists are limited to certain genres or specialty shows just a few hours a week. Growing cities like Cincinnati need strong channels of communication. To solve our local media crisis, we need media outlets like WVQC that bring back local voices, embrace diversity, encourage discussion and provide an outlet for creativity.

II. Program Description
The noncommercial, volunteer-driven, low-power FM radio station will increase both the number and the diversity of voices on the air, ensuring that Cincinnati has a media forum that brings residents together to contribute to the public discussion. Low power radio is the ideal community medium for three reasons. First, it is local. An LPFM signal extends only 3-5 miles, just enough to cover a community. Second, it is accessible. Radio is cheaper than both the internet and television, and 93 percent of Americans tune in to it at least once a week. Finally, low power radio is affordable. Affordability is one of the greatest barriers to participation in the market place of ideas.

Goals and Objectives
To increase Cincinnati’s access to local, community-based media by:
• Providing a locally owned station that broadcasts at least 50 hours a week
• Airing at least 40 hours a week of original programming produced by volunteers
• Training at least 40 local programmers

To increase the diversity of voices in local media by:
• Actively recruiting women, minorities and people of low income for programming and Advisory Board positions.
• Offering broadcast training classes for less than $100.
• Prioritizing shows with unique content, to ensure that a wide variety of voices are represented on the air.

To promote local arts and culture and provide much needed exposure to local musicians by:
• Airing several hours of arts and cultural programming each week.
• Designating blocks of airtime for local music
• Creating a library of songs by local musicians for volunteers to play on the air

To encourage public discussion and civic engagement by:
• Broadcasting city council meetings over the air and on the internet.
• Prioritizing talk and public affairs programs that cover issues of local importance.

Program Timeline
• From August 2008-July 2009: WVQC is currently in the construction phase, which includes fundraising, marketing, purchasing equipment, conducting outreach, training volunteers and drafting station policies.

• On August 1, 2009, WVQC will hold a community event to celebrate our debut on the airwaves and officially begin broadcasting 51 hours a week.

• In the first year of broadcasting, from August 2009-July 2010, WVQC will conduct periodic evaluations and use the results to improve the station’s service to the community. In the future, the station will continue to expand and improve, becoming a fixture of local media and enhancing the quality of communication in Cincinnati.

WQVC is a start up LP-FM Station and the first several years will be a vulnerable time. Media Bridges will need all the support and resources it can get to make the station a strong foundation within the community. It is this networking and the hard work of the VISTA’s and the CTC VISTA Project that will benefit our cause.

The VISTA’s goals will be to develop an online content management system that will allow Media Bridges to do the following:

• Public File: To assist the the Station Manager in keeping detailed logs of information relating to WVQC’s.

• Community Comments: The VISTA will acquire and organize Public comments to be reviewed by the Station Manager and summarized in station reports.

• Surveys: The VISTA will conduct surveys of programmers and class attendees to document their gender, racial background and average income. They will also seek input on station policies and measure satisfaction with station operations.

Project Tangibles: 
Tangible products created by this project will include: a volunteer management system for media producers and volunteers; a Public File content management system that allows for input of surveys, comments, and input from the community; and a database of members, donors and volunteers. These projects would be useful to low power radio stations and community technology and media centers across the country. They would, of course, be accessible to any and all organizations that are working on similar projects and they could be shared with organizations like the Prometheus Radio Project, which could share the technology with similar organizations across the country.

Supported Projects



Outreach, Marketing, and Volunteer Coordinator

Katie Finnigan
9/20099/2010

Media Bridge’s venture into the LPFM world is a step we feel very comfortable with, but at the same respect it will weigh heavy on our staff and man power to get the Radio station up and running. We seek a VISTA to contribute in the structuring of a stable working infrastructure. To develop and implement a content management system and a volunteer management system will help offset duties from a paid staff member, which could be used towards more direct service. The LPFM radio station is particularly critical at this time as the construction permit expires in August of 2009. Failure to be on the air by that time may result in our losing this precious community resource.

Goal 1: Develop and implement a system to keep the station up to date and in compliance with FCC regulations.
Goal 2: Implement a Volunteer Management System
Goal 3: Implement sustainable Marketing & PR Plan

Katie Completed the following projects and assignments.

To increase Cincinnati’s access to local, community-based media by:
• Providing a locally owned station that broadcasts at least 50 hours a week
• Airing at least 40 hours a week of original programming produced by volunteers
• Training at least 40 local programmers

To increase the diversity of voices in local media by:
• Actively recruiting women, minorities and people of low income for programming and Advisory Board positions
• Offering broadcast training classes for less than $100
• Prioritizing shows with unique content, to ensure that a wide variety of voices are represented on the air

To promote local arts and culture and provide much needed exposure to local musicians by:
• Airing several hours of arts and cultural programming each week
• Designating blocks of airtime for local music
• Creating a library of songs by local musicians for volunteers to play on the air

To encourage public discussion and civic engagement by:
• Prioritizing talk and public affairs programs that cover issues of local importance






Youth Channel Development/Education Department Assistant

Elizabeth Goussetis
7/20087/2009

Media Bridges Youth Channel (MBYC) is a project-based learning experience focused towards the youth through a mentor-based initiative.

In the course of his/her duties the Youth Channel Development/Education Assistant will provide development assistance in the areas of volunteers, grant writing, event/class coordination and fund development with the additional specific charge of developing the resources, policies, procedures and outreach to launch Media Bridge’s Youth Channel efforts.

Assist the Media Bridges education department in providing video technical skills to the public.

Assist at the Media Bridges Master Control Center, assuring the smooth application of the implementation of the 1st Amendment of the United States Constitution.

Elizabeth has assisted the education department in all of the stated areas, and has built a solid framework for a sustainable youth channel program. She launched the Youth Media Club, a new program which has attracted new youth to Media Bridges. She produced several videos with elementary school students as part of a 20-week outreach class at a local public school, which initiated an ongoing partnership with the school. She applied for a $1,000 grant to fund our summer camp program. She recruited two high school interns through a media internship program for minority high school students. She also established Media Bridges as a partner organization for a media career exploration program for high school students sponsored by an association of journalism professionals. She developed a youth policies and procedures handbook for Media Bridges, opening the door to more youth involvement in the future. She expanded the youth channel from a four hour block of programming per week, with an additional youth block timeslot for college student productions. She structured the youth page on the new web site, manages the content of the page providing information about the youth program to the public, and has also developed social networking outreach through Twitter, and avenues for video distribution through youtube, vimeo, ListenUp, and local youth filmmaking site IndieViz.

Establishing a youth leadership board was part of our original plan for the youth channel, but that was not completed. The initial lack of youth involved with the organization made that difficult and also unrealistic at this time. Elizabeth has been able to recruit youth participants, which will pave the way for a youth leadership board in the future. There has not been a full-scale volunteer management system put into place for the youth program. Although Elizabeth recruited volunteers and worked with staff to improve volunteer procedures, the Media Bridges volunteer management system is in the process of restructuring, so a youth volunteer management system was put on hold until a better structure is implemented by the operations department. In the meantime, Elizabeth has worked to create opportunities for youth volunteers and has streamlined youth volunteers into the overall volunteer process

Although it was not originally included in the project proposal, Elizabeth created, designed and maintained a youth section on the Media Bridges Web site, created social network outreach (Twitter, Youtube, Vimeo, Facebook) and established additional distribution methods for youth-produced videos online, through video-sharing sites. At the beginning of her service year, the Media Bridges Web site had no information regarding youth programs and was not being updated because we were in the middle of a redesign. When the new site went live, Elizabeth became active in overall site maintenance, specifically in creating the youth section

There are significantly more youth in the building, on a regular basis, than there have ever been in recent memory. New precedents, policies and procedures have been set that have made Media Bridges a more youth-friendly organization and have broken down barriers to youth participation. Elizabeth has also provided support for youth-oriented projects initiated by Media Bridges producers, volunteers, staff, and other nonprofits. We plan to absorb the new programs and activities into the current staff, continue initiated programs such as the youth media club, and continue using the youth policies developed.”
- Jeremy Wolford, supervisor






"Youth Media Block" Program Building and Outreach

Lauren Bratslavsky
9/20069/2007

Goal 1: Research pre-existing youth oriented media curriculum, policies and programs
Goal 2: Develop manual with existing resources, create MBYC policies, procedures and journal outreaches for future use.
Goal 3: Grant Writing and research funding options focused at the Media Bridges Youth Channel and Operation Department
Goal 4: Research, design, implement a volunteer managment model to be used withthe MBYC.

Lauren has been an integral part of ensuring a year- round, sustainable youth media program. She has been developing policies, researching, compiling content for the Youth Media Block and leading several of the outreaches and youth- media classes. The VISTA has also been vital in assisting the Education Coordinator with her duties such as classes, curriculum development, and community outreach.




Transmission Project