Here you will find a copy of the tctv2 Procedures. These are rules set up at the Coordinator level to ensure smooth and equitable access to equipment and air time. We wanted the rules to be play fair, be nice and have fun, but we found that we needed to elaborate some. So here they are.
Please feel free to comment on these rules. Especially if you are a tctv2 producer, we want to know what works and what doesn't work for you.
APPENDIX E Operating Procedures for Traverse Community Television (tctv2) General Information What is tctv2? tctv2 is a Public Forum for discussion of community issues and personal expression. It is governed by the Cherry Capital Cable Council (4C’s), and operated by contract between the 4C’s and the Traverse Area District Library. How Does tctv2 operate? tctv2 operations, facilities and channel space are governed by policies developed by community volunteers who serve on the 4C’s Advisory Subcommittee (Subcommittee) and approved by the Cherry Capital Cable Council. The day-to-day and ongoing activities of tctv2 are carried out by a professional staff under the direction of a Coordinator. The Coordinator reports to the manager and Board of Trustees of the Traverse Area District Library. tctv2 operates under Procedures developed by the tctv2 staff and approved by the Subcommittee. The Procedures guide tctv2 staff decisions to ensure that equipment and resources are fairly available to the widest number of people who want to use the resource. Who Can Use tctv2? The resources of tctv2 are available to any qualified (as defined by the Public Access Policy) person. Producer Responsibilities First Use Programs produced with tctv2 equipment must have their first-time showing on a tctv2 channel. Commercial Gain You may not use tctv2 equipment or facilities for profit or personal gain. The equipment and facilities are available for the express purpose of producing programming for tctv2. Address Correction Periodically, tctv2 must get in touch with producers in case of questions about programs or updates on procedure issues or other matters. tctv2 must have correct address and phone information for producers. Producers must inform tctv2 of any address or phone number changes. Conduct tctv2 producers are responsible for their own conduct, as well as the conduct of any guests that come into the studio in connection with their production. The Producer is responsible for any damage caused to the tctv2 studio and/or equipment by the Producer or his/her agents, employees, guests, or invitees, and shall pay for the repair or replacement of any of any damages to the tctv2 studio or equipment. This liability is independent of any liability of the group or organization that the certified producer may be representing. tctv2 reserves the right to refuse the use of Public Access facilities and equipment to any person appearing under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or otherwise not under full control of his/her senses. Paperwork Producers must have a Producer Compliance Form on file with tctv2 before using any equipment or airtime. A producer submitting a program for playback on the channel must also submit an Airtime Request Form (Appendix B) for each program. Misrepresentation During Production tctv2 producers are responsible for any misrepresentation arising from their production activity. Misrepresentation by any individual or group as being under the employ of tctv2 will be considered a major violation of the policies. Program Content Program Content Producers are responsible for the total program content of programs they submit for playback on tctv2. This includes obtaining all approvals, licenses, clearances, etc. for programs. Responsibility for Program Content Producers are responsible for any misrepresentation, loss, liability, or damage arising from their programs. tctv2, TADL, the 4C’s, Charter Cable, their directors, officers, and staff shall be held harmless against any claims arising from a producer’s program. Programs May Not: Contain any advertising material designed to promote the sale of commercial products or services, or material which identifies any product, service or trademark or brand name in a manner which is not reasonably related to the non-commercial use of such a product, service, trademark, or brand name of the product. Programs may not use the name of a business as the name of the program. 1. Contain direct solicitation or appeal for funds or other things of value for any and all purposes (except in the case of tctv2). 2. Contain tctv2’s phone number without prior approval of tctv2. 3. Contain obscene, pornographic, indecent, libelous, or slanderous material. 4. Cablecast a lottery, or any advertisement of or information concerning a lottery. 5. Contain any content which would subject the producer to prosecution under any applicable local, state, or federal law for the production or presentation of obscene material, libel, slander, invasion of privacy, or copyright or trademark infringement. Neither tctv2 nor TADL will attempt to make any determination as to the constitutional legality of any content submitted for telecast. Viewer Discretion Warning Producers are expected to alert tctv2 staff to programming that may be inappropriate for younger viewers, or offensive for adult viewers. Excessively violent material, offensive language, or sexually provocative content should have a warning disclaimer at the beginning. Producers should request that playback of their program be restricted to after 10 P.M. to preserve a "safe haven" for viewing by all audience members. Local Sponsor Notice Programs submitted for cablecast, whether made with tctv2 equipment or not, will contain a tag at the end stating the name of the local producer, and the city or township of the producer's residence or place of business. Bicycled Tape Intro/Outro Each bicycled tape submitted for playback on tctv2 will contain a unique opening intro and a unique closing outro by the presenting producer (the producer who signs the airtime request form). Program Scheduling and Cablecasting Scheduling for Playback Producers request playback times for their programs by submitting a properly filled out (both sides) Airtime Request Form. Producers may request their preferred time for playback on a first-come first-served basis, as determined by the date and time the AIRTIME REQUEST FORM is received by a tctv2 staff person. Every attempt will be made to playback the program at the requested time, but this is not guaranteed. If no specific time slot is requested, tctv2 will schedule playback times at tctv2's discretion. Playback times may be scheduled no less than two weeks nor more than two months in advance, except in the case of some programs considered timely, and only with the Coordinator’s approval. Except in the case of “live” programs and other programs deemed timely (at the Coordinator’s discretion) programs must be presented at the time that the airtime request is made. Locally produced programming will have priority over bicycled programming. Bicycled programming and filler programming will be not be scheduled until all local programs have been scheduled. tctv2 Tag Every program submitted for cablecasting on tctv2 must be tagged with a proper end tag. Time Slots Playback is normally scheduled for either 30 minute or 60 minute or 90 minute or 120 minute time slots. A program does not have to fill the time slot exactly, but it cannot exceed the time slot. Labeling Video tapes, DVD's or electronic files submitted for playback must be clearly labeled with the Title of the program, Name and Phone Number of Producer, exact program length, and in-cue time. If the editing program provides one, a slate and a countdown should be used. Number of Submissions tctv2 will schedule no more than one (1) series program and/or one (1) individual program for any individual producer in any 7 day period. Series Programming tctv2 Producers may request SERIES status for their locally produced programs with a common theme, format and length. This will lock in a time slot for the current time period: either January 1 to June 30, or July 1 to December 31. Producers must submit a completed SERIES PROGRAM AGREEMENT to qualify. To request series status, a producer must submit at least three (3) completed programs with the SERIES PROGRAM AGREEMENT. Additional shows in the series must be presented in a timely manner, but in no case less than two (2) days prior to the scheduled playback time. This allows time for processing and "dumping" the program. If a producer fails to submit a new program in the agreed-upon time, an old program may be replayed. If a producer fails to submit a new program three (3) times, the series agreement will be terminated. If a series is terminated for reasons of the producer's inability to supply programming, the producer shall be ineligible for series status for the next 6 months. Series status will be reviewed at the end of each period. Producers wishing to continue their series must submit a new series agreement each period. Maintaining a consistent time slot is not guaranteed. tctv2 may use a lottery or other non-discriminatory method of assigning series time slots if necessary. Preemption tctv2 reserves the right to pre-empt any regularly schedule program in order to better serve the public interest, as determined by the Coordinator. One example of what might better serve the public interest is the transmission of disaster or emergency information or instructions. Pre-empting a scheduled program for another first-run taped program does not better serve the public interest. Pre-empting a regularly scheduled program for a live program that covers a one time special event may, but it will not automatically. Training and Certification Procedure for Signup tctv2 offers training workshops several times each year to all qualified persons on a first-come first-served basis. The number of participants is limited so that all participants get lots of hands-on experience with the equipment; therefore, interested people should sign up early. There is no refund for missed sessions or dropping out of the sessions. Basic Training The tctv2 workshops consist of an orientation to introduce trainees to the concepts and rules of public access television, plus sessions explaining how to use the equipment without damaging it. Persons wishing to become producers must complete the basic workshop or satisfactorily demonstrate knowledge of the equipment and its proper use to the studio coordinator. Advanced Training From time to time special workshops may be offered to enhance the producer’s knowledge and skill of some aspect of video production or post-production. These courses will be offered on a first-come first-served basis to all certified producers. Training as a Group Special sessions for qualified Groups interested in certain aspects of video production (i.e. studio production only, or field production only) are available. The purpose of group training is to accommodate those organizations interested only in a specific type of show. Specifics as to pricing and topics can be arranged with tctv2 staff. Refresher Courses Producers are encouraged to attend refresher courses. There are two ways to review material and get a brush-up session. In addition to special refresher courses with a specific topic, which are offered from time to time at the studio, certified Producers are welcome to sit in on specific sessions of the ongoing workshops to review information. There is no additional charge if Producers have already paid for the courses. More information is available from tctv2 staff. Equipment Usage Equipment Use for tctv2 Programming Only It is not the intent of tctv2 to compete with any commercial production or duplication business, or any other commercial business. Therefore, tctv2 equipment, studio facilities, airtime and other resources are to be used only for the purpose of producing programming for tctv2. Any other use is expressly prohibited. Purpose of Equipment Usage Procedures The equipment usage procedures are designed to encourage the heaviest possible usage consistent with the fair and equitable accessibility to equipment by all Producers and consistent with proper care of the equipment. Remember that tctv2 equipment and facilities can be used only to produce programs for tctv2, and all tctv2 equipment and facilities can be used only to move programming toward playback on tctv2. Some procedures are designed to encourage local use and discussion of local issues. General Procedures for Checkout Equipment may be checked out on a walk-in basis, if it is available, or equipment can be reserved up to (but not more than) two months in advance. Procedures for checking out equipment are: 1. Refer to scheduling computer or ask a staff person. 2. Present your equipment request, either written or verbal, to a tctv2 staff person. Reservations are not official, nor recorded, until a tctv2 staff person enters it into the computer. You may request a printout or an email of your reservation for confirmation. 3. Be sure to keep your appointments. Your reservation means that equipment is not available for other producers—if you are not going to use your equipment, be sure to call us as soon as you know so that we may make the equipment available to others. Procedures for Field Equipment Check out and Check in Plan to spend about 20 minutes checking equipment out and another 20 minutes checking equipment in. tctv2 staff people will check out all equipment by entering its number into the computer, and check in the equipment in the same way. This is to ensure accuracy. Producers may request a printout of the transactions for confirmation. Videotape, Disks, and Hard Disk Space Producers will be provided with sufficient storage resources for their raw footage and program needs. The videotape remains the property of tctv2 and must be turned in upon completion of the production. The number of videotapes provided to any one producer will be limited, so if the producer wishes to keep archival footage, it is the producer's responsibility to buy suitable videotape or disk stock. Videotapes will be recycled after completion or cancellation of the producer's project. Portable Equipment Portable equipment (equipment approved for off-site use) is available to qualified Producers on a first-come first-served basis and may be reserved in advance. The check-out time period for cameras, lighting, and sound equipment is in 24 hour increments. The checkout time period may consist of a maximum of three consecutive 24 hour periods. After the maximum checkout period, the equipment must be returned to tctv2. There will be no handoffs of equipment. Checkout time period for the portable editing equipment is in 1week increments. The checkout period for portable editing equipment may be extended if no other producer has reserved it. At the end of the checkout period, the equipment must be returned to tctv2. There will be no handoffs with the portable editing equipment. Editing Bays and Equipment Off-line editing equipment shall be available on a first-come first-served basis and may be reserved in advance. Editing sessions are available in up to 4 hour increments, or at the discretion of tctv2 staff people to encourage the most efficient possible usage. To encourage uses such as the logging of raw footage, there shall be no limit to the number of sessions available. Editing time may be given to walk-ins if the producer is more than 5 minutes late for a reserved session. Equipment Knowledge All tctv2 producers must be trained and certified on the equipment they are using. All tctv2 producers take full responsibility for any loss or damage to the equipment they have checked out or are using. Studio Usage The producer who reserves the studio for a production, whether live or to tape, is responsible for finding certified crew people to work in the various crew positions. Changes to Procedures tctv2 reserves the right to make changes to Procedures at any time. Please notify staff if you encounter any lack of clarity in this document.