New government channel to educate Nevada County

If C-SPAN is here, can NCTV be far behind? Starting Dec. 19, Nevada County residents will be able to watch local government meetings around the clock on an exclusive government channel aired by Nevada County TeleVision (NCTV).

In addition, a partnership with Suddenlink cable in south county will enable residents in Truckee, Colfax, Lake of the Pines and Alta Sierra to watch NCTV and the new government channel.

"My vision is to help unify the county through live broadcasts of (local) government meetings so citizens can better understand and participate (in the government process)," said Lew Sitzer, director of NCTV. "(The new channel) will include not only planning commission meetings, but also board meetings of the fire district and the water district."

The channel will "bring citizens closer to knowing what local government does and, by implication, make them more informed voters," said Bill Carlquist, engineer and operations manager at NCTV.

"The new channel will also free up space on our (existing) channel for more educational programs," Sitzer said. "We are hoping to develop programs based on what is happening in schools. For instance, if a class is presenting a history project or a panel discussion, a dance or a music recital, it can be recorded and broadcast for the public."

NCTV also offers classes and internships for school-goers interested in television broadcasting. The addition of a new channel could increase available work at the studio by 50 percent, Sitzer said. Consequently, more work opportunities could open up for interns, he added.

Onur Olmez, a ninth-grader at Bear River High School, has been an intern at NCTV for a year. He operates the camera and works in the control room.

Olmez said he was "overjoyed" to learn of NCTV's expansion.

"It will give me more equipment to use and learn from," he said, right after a shooting session Thursday. "We'll probably be having more live shows more frequently."

The new government channel is being added per an agreement that NCTV has with Comcast.

"By federal law, when a cable company is granted a franchise, they agree to provide a certain number of channels for public use," Carlquist said. "Comcast authorized one channel right off the bat. As a part of the agreement, as time goes on and subscribers increase, they will add more channels."

A name for the new channel hasn't been finalized as yet, Sitzer said. But it will probably be called NCTVG, Sitzer added.

ooo

To contact Soumitro Sen, e-mail ssen@the union.com or call 477-4229.