UPDATE: Cox Communications has withdrawn their proposal to move their local access operations for Aquidneck Island from its current home in Portsmouth. According to the company, they decided at a meeting on Thursday to postpone any final decision on whether to relocate to Bristol any time in the near future.
NEWPORT, R.I. – In last night’s Newport City Council meeting, Charles Berlutti, long-time producer of cable television show Crossed Paths, told the council that Aquidneck Island is likely to loose its public access production studio located in Portsmouth.
Berlutti made an appeal that unless islanders speak up the candidate forums and other programming produced at the Cox Communications building on East Main Road is scheduled to end in February 2010.
Cox has announced, according to Berlutti, that they are building a new facility in Providence and the real estate in Portsmouth is being sold. The plan, so far, is to allow Berlutti’s team to utilize a studio in Bristol. Berlutti feels the trek across the bridge is likely to reduce the number of participants for the cable shows currently produced in Portsmouth. He is also concerned about the equipment they have acquired including new cameras and lighting.
Even the Rhode Island Public Access website is on Berlutti’s side with their mission statement that says, “”The Authority” believes that public, education and governmental access television are all about creating community programming with few or no barriers to the producer. Public Access television in Rhode Island – it’s television that you make.
In Rhode Island, The Authority provides public, educational and governmental access in every town in Rhode Island except New Shoreham.”
“It may not be a done deal yet,” Berlutti says with hope. There is a meeting later today with the Cox Communications producers where the case will be made to maintain Aquidneck Island’s true local access to public access broadcasting.
Loading ...
Newport, RI
