Televising local municipal meetings in the air

Taxpayers gave rave reviews when Luzerne County Commissioner meetings were televised briefly in 2001.

An estimated 25,000 viewers tune in weekly to Channel 61, the Lackawanna County public access station that airs Lackawanna County Commissioner and Scranton City Council meetings.

This phenomenon of allowing the cameras to roll as legislators do their work started nearly three decades ago with the advent of C-SPAN and is spreading to municipalities throughout the nation.

Citizen activist Tim Grier wants to videotape Wilkes-Barre City Council and Luzerne County Commissioner meetings because he believes that would give residents a more complete picture of what elected officials are doing.

Some county and city officials welcome the idea – and so do local media experts and some citizens who were interviewed last week.

Wilkes-Barre businessman Sheldon Block thinks televised municipal meetings would spur interest in local government.

“Having the meetings on television will get more people talking about the city and then they might get involved,” Block said while having his morning coffee at Tony Thomas’ Deli on South Main Street last week.

But, another Tony Thomas regular, retiree Frank Miscavage, has a different perspective.

“I don’t like the idea,” Miscavage said. “Eventually it will turn out to be a publicity thing for the elected officials. They will want to hog the camera.”

It could happen, Block said, adding: “You might have some publicity hounds, but I believe the good far outweighs the bad.”

One of their companions, Bell Furniture owner James Bellezza, is all for the idea. The move would let citizens know who their elected officials are and how they operate, he said.

More informed electorate

Bringing municipal and county government into the homes of Lackawanna County residents has already created a buzz in the Scranton area.

Lou Danzico, former president of the board of Scranton Today, said Channel 61 was created by Scranton Tomorrow and the Scranton Public Library. The station has been airing Scranton City Council meetings for seven years.

“I’m going to the hardware store last Saturday and a man stopped me and asked if I was involved with Scranton Today,” Danzico said. “He said he now attends city council meetings because he feels it’s important that he do so.”

Karen Bazzari, president of the Channel 61 board of directors, said the station’s mission is to create a more informed electorate.

“Broadcasting meetings allows people not able to physically attend the meetings to still participate in the process,” Bazzari said.

A survey conducted four years ago showed that 33 percent of its audience, or approximately 25,000 viewers, tune in weekly to Channel 61, Danzico said.

Mark Migliore, who has been involved with the meeting production for three years, also receives feedback from residents.

“Airing the meetings is absolutely important,” Migliore said. “It’s invaluable when you think how many people can actually view them. Where else can you get the information completely unedited and from beginning to end?”

Wilkes University students and Harrisburg residents Nicole Braddock and Tasha McNeillie believe televised meetings would help them become better acquainted with the area.

“A lot of people can’t attend the meetings,” Braddock said. “It would be a lot easier for them to see them on TV and find out what’s going on.”

McNeillie agreed, adding that more people would be able to access the meetings and learn about their government.

Grier taking action

Grier, the tattooed public advocate who recently challenged Luzerne County’s bond borrowing practices, thinks airing Wilkes-Barre City Council meetings would be an eye-opener to those who have never attended a session.

“Elected officials demeaning and belittling residents would hopefully become a thing of the past if they are videotaped,” Grier said. “There is secrecy and nepotism and deceit coming from both the Luzerne County Courthouse and from Wilkes-Barre City Hall. Wilkes-Barre wants to put up surveillance cameras to watch the neighborhoods, but the council does not want to adopt a policy ensuring civil rights are protected.”

Grier inquired about televising council meetings last week while he videotaped a recent meeting with his own equipment. He said he would turn the tape over to Service Electric for airing, but felt the city should look into doing it.

Service Electric, the city’s cable television provider, would have to answer legal questions before taking any action, said Larry Shewack, the company’s general manager. He acknowledged Grier has contacted him about the idea.

“First of all, council would have to approve airing the meetings,” Shewack said. “Once we have that, then there are technical specifications that must be met to assure a quality broadcast.”

Shewack said the Federal Communications Commission mandates free dial space for public access programming and said the cable company would not charge to air the meetings. Service Electric, he said, would not get involved with the production, or taping, of the meetings; that would be council’s responsibility. The tapes could be aired multiple times at different time slots to try to reach as many viewers as possible.

Officials want pros filming

Most elected officials interviewed have no problem with televised meetings – as long as they are done professionally.

Three city councilmen – Bill Barrett, Tony Thomas Jr. and Mike Merritt – are open to a discussion on the issue as long as taxpayers don’t have to bear the financial burden and the taping is professional.

But, council Chairwoman Kathy Kane said she has no interest in putting city council on the tube.

“I don’t feel Tim Grier or anybody from the public should do the taping and then turn them over to the cable company,” Barrett said. “If we were to do it, I would want to do it right, either taped or live. I don’t think it would be a bad thing and I favor looking into it.”

Luzerne County Commissioner Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla said she would like the commissioner meetings to be televised, but would like an experienced company to do the filming, not a private citizen.

“Many people have an interest in the county and can’t get to a meeting or they work,” Petrilla said. “If they were taped and aired at different times, they could watch it at a later time.”

If a company is interested in taping the meetings, she would encourage them to talk to all three commissioners, she said.

“I would be in favor of it at least on a trial basis,” Petrilla said. “As long as it’s not disruptive to the meetings.”

Petrilla said behavior might improve at meetings – and minority Commissioner Steve Urban agrees.

Urban said decorum at the meetings improved when the commissioners were being videotaped a few years ago. The issue arose again in 2005, but a $30,000 price tag to produce the tapes put a halt to the idea.

“I think it added a degree of civility to the meetings,” Urban said. “People knew they were on TV and knew they were being recorded.”

Urban said he thinks it’s a good idea to resume the televising. He said he has traveled around the country and has seen many municipal broadcasts.

“It allows viewers to hear debate on both sides of the issues,” he said. “When you talk about openness in government, you can’t be any more open than that.”

Local professors like the idea

Media professor Jayne Klenner-Moore isn’t all that worried that the camera would influence behavior and believes the practice provides an opportunity for citizens to see their local government in action.

“As you may or may not know, cameras become an invisible part of the room over time, especially if the issues heat up and emotions begin to run high,” said Klenner-Moore, a King’s College professor. “So I’m not sure that after a brief honeymoon period that there will be any change in behavior by participants who will be on camera. People become accustomed to the camera being in the room and revert or maintain behavior patterns.”

Wilkes University professor of communication students Jane Elmes-Crahall doesn’t see a downside to the idea.

“Any kind of democratic government is fragile if not conducted in an open climate,” she said. “Voters would be able to make better and more informed decisions about our elected officials at city and county levels.”

Klenner-Moore said with advance notice and advertising, viewership would increase over time, particularly when hot button issues arise.

“I think that any opportunity for the citizenry to participate in any way in local government is of great value,” she said. “I would recommend that if this does happen then someone should do audience analyses of what is being watched, how often, and for what reasons. This will help to understand how the process can be improved.”