When is Public Access Television Coming to Fresno?
By Mike Rhodes Supervisor Bob Waterston appears to be a little unclear on the concept of free speech. Community media advocates attended the Fresno County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, March 28, 2006 where a proposed agreement to bring Public, Education, and Government (PEG) access channels to the Fresno cable system was discussed. The proposed franchise agreement, presented by staff, would have provided one government and two education channels. The proposed agreement did not specifically designate a public access channel, although staff said the board would have the ability to establish one in 2009, or even earlier, if Comcasts transition to digital conversion moves faster than expected. The problem, as explained by General Services Director and chief county negotiator John Navarrette, is that Comcast has a limited number of channels available. Navarrette said that with the current analog system, Comcast can only provide the County with three channels. Sue Buske, who is a
