Sandwich Community Television

Your Voice. Your Vision.

SCTV Rules & Operating Procedures

ACCESS RULES

  • SCTV Media Access Center studio and equipment is available to members on a first-come, first-serve basis. Any person, group, organization or institution located in the town of Sandwich is eligible.
  • Anyone using SCTV Media Access Center must be oriented to the philosophy of access, SCTV Access Rules and Operating Procedures and producer’s contracts.  Anyone using access equipment must be certified to operate that level of equipment or facility.
  • Programs produced with access equipment and facilities must be cablecast on the access channel.
  • Anyone who produces programming using SCTV access facilities and equipment retains ownership of the copyrights to that program.
  • The SCTV Community Bulletin Board is to be used by not-for-profit and community groups to publicize activities and events. Event or activity prices will not be included in Bulletin Board notices.
  • The use of SCTV facilities and/or equipment should only identify themselves as public access community producers, not as employees or staff of SCTV or Comcast.
  • Access users under the age of 18 must have a signed “Parental Consent Form” on file with SCTV.

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

SCTV is a not-for-profit organization that provides Public, Educational, and Government Access services and a public forum for its community. We provide media training, facility and channel access to promote media literacy so that the community may exercise their First Amendment Right to free speech.

ON SITE BEHAVIOR

  • No possession or use of any illegal substances and/or weapons.
  • No one will be allowed to operate equipment or spend time in SCTV facilities while using or appearing to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
  • Abusive language and/or actions will not be permitted in the access facility, or by telephone, mail or email. Members, staff and guests are expected to treat each other with dignity and respect.
  • Members will not be allowed to loiter in the access facility. Personal business and phone use should be kept to a minimum.
  • Members are responsible for supervision of guests and children during productions or edit time. Children should not be left unattended in the access center.
  • Pets and non-working animals are not allowed in the public areas of the access center. These areas include the reception area, training room, conference room, edit suits, kitchen, studios, controls rooms, and hallways.
  • Violation of these rules will result in immediate expulsion from the access facility and property and will result in the following actions by the Executive Director:
    •   Offenses, either minor or major may result in permanent revocation of membership.

GRIEVANCES

When a membership if suspended or revoked, a registered letter will be sent to the member with notice of the action taken by the Executive Director.  The member has the right to appeal the action by writing to the President of the SCTV 11 Jan Sebastian Drive, Unit 10, Sandwich MA.02563 asking for a hearing at the next board meeting. The Board will notify the member in writing of the time and date of the hearing, along with any other procedural matters that may pertain. All decisions of the Board of Directors regarding the suspension or revocation are final.

Any grievances regarding assignment of workshop space, channel time allocation, equipment, studio and facility use or any other matter regarding SCTV should first be discussed with the Executive Director. If that does not provide an adequate solution, a grievance may be filed in writing to the President of the Board SCTV, 11 JAN Sebastian Drive, Unit 10, Sandwich MA 02563. The Board may invite the person filing the grievance to appear at the next available meeting of the Board to discuss the matter. All decisions of the Board of Directors regarding these matters are final.

PROGRAM CREDIT FOR UNDERWRITING AND GRANTS

Underwriting for programs must be for goods, services, in-kind contributions and/or donations that aid in developing and improving programs. Credit for underwriting should be as follows: “This program was made possible through a grant by

…” or “Goods and services used in this program were contributed by…”. SCTV credit must still be included. Staff must be informed, in advance, of any such underwriting credits and consulted about the proper format for underwriting credit. Producers should not include telephone numbers or street addresses of underwriters, but may list business or organization name and town.

GENERAL HOUSE RULES

  • Please plan your production times according to posted hours so that production and clean up can be completed before closing.
  • All members are expected to clean up after themselves. Food may only be eaten in the kitchen. Food and drinks are not allowed in the edit suites or control rooms. Studio sets must be broken down, and all personal items removed from edit suites and control rooms by the end of a member’s scheduled time slot.

  CATEGORIES OF MEMBERSHIP

  • Individual Membership — $25

Voting privileges, open access to training, production equipment and facilities and channel time.

  • Organizational Membership — $75 for 3 individuals; $15 for each additional member.  (Educational institutions, local governments, health care, social services, arts, environmental, religious, and any other nonprofit organizations. Membership covers three people representing the organization; the three people receive the same benefits as individual members. Additional members who join through the organization pay at reduced rate of $15.00 each.
  • Business Membership — $100 for 3 individuals; $15 for each additional member. (Members would receive the same services as an organizational member and services for the same number of people. All programs must relate to the organization’s purpose.)
  • Family Membership — $60 for up to 4 individuals in the same household.
  • Senior/Youth Membership — $15 for youths up to age 18 and seniors 62 and over.

PROGRAM CONTENT RULES

  • Presentation of the following material on community access channels is prohibited:
    • Any program or material that is commercial in nature.
    • Any material, which is intended to defraud the viewer or is designed to obtain money by false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises.
    • All advertisement of (or information concerning) any lottery, gift enterprise or similar scheme offering prizes dependent, in whole or in part, upon lot or chance; or any list of the prizes drawn or awarded by means of such a lottery, gift enterprise or scheme, whether said list contains any part or all of such prizes.
    • Libelous or slanderous material.
    • Material that is obscene according to local community standards or is otherwise illegal.
  • Regarding Fundraising Programs, the following is permitted:
    • Non-profit organizations that are members may produce one (1) fundraising program per year.
    • The format of that program may be either a live auction or a live telethon.

USE OF EQUIPMENT

  • General Rules:
    • Equipment is available on a first-come, first-served, non-discriminatory basis.
    • Cancellation of equipment and facility reservations should be made at least 24 hours in advance, except in cases of emergency. Repeated last minute cancellations may results in loss of privileges.
    • Any materials for productions, beyond those supplied by SCTV must be supplied by the user and must be removed after the production. Sets, props and production materials may not be left in the studio.
    • Individuals using SCTV equipment, studio or post-production facilities will not change wiring or components without staff permission or supervision. No attempt should be made to work on or repair equipment. Any damage caused in this manner will be charged to the user! A loss of privileges will result from such equipment abuse.
    • Individuals using SCTV equipment and facilities should report any defects or problems to the staff. Members should advise staff when problems are encountered. Producers found to be misusing or abusing the equipment may be asked to repeat training, testing and/or be subject to loss of privileges.
    • Producers found to be misusing or abusing the equipment may be asked to repeat training, testing and/or be subject to loss of privileges.
    • No smoking, food or drinks should be brought into the studios, control room, master control room or audio or video edit suits. THIS RULE MAY NOT BE WAIVED.
  • Use of the Studio
    • Reservations may be made up to eight (8) weeks in advance for live shows and four (4) weeks for taped

General Rules of Scheduling and Use of Studio

a.    Reservations can be made in person or by phone to a staff person only.

    • In order to schedule the studios and control rooms, a community user (and all crew members) must be certified for studio production.
    • No studio production may take place without staff supervision, unless the producer or another crewmember has been given studio supervision certification.
    • Producers are entitled to a maximum of six hours per session with a maximum of 12 combined hours per week in the studio, post-production or editing facilities. Scheduled studio time includes time needed to set up, break down and clean up in studio.
    • Users must show up on time for scheduled studio productions and must have the studio and control room equipment and sets put away before the end of the scheduled time period. It’s generally good practice to allow at least one (1) hour before and after the time needed to tape the actual production for set up and cleanup of the studio.
    • Users under the age of 18 who wish to schedule the studio or participate in a studio production must have written permission from their parent or guardian.

Use of Editing and Post-Production Facilities

    • To schedule and use the editing or post-production facilities, a community user must be properly certified for such use.
    • Users under the age of 18 who wish to schedule the editing and post-production facilities must have written permission from their parent or guardian.
    • Producers are entitled to a maximum of 3 hours per session with a maximum of 9 scheduled combined hours per week in the studio, post-production or editing facilities.  Scheduling outside these parameters will be made at staff discretion. These guidelines are designed to allow everyone equal and fair access to the post- production facilities. Grievances concerning scheduling should be brought to staff attention immediately and should be resolved at that time.

Use of Portable Video and Audio Equipment

    • Reservations for equipment may be made up to four (4) weeks in advance and should be made at least one week in advance. Reservations can be made in person or by phone to any operations staff member.
    • Equipment must be picked up and returned previously agreed upon time. Failure to return equipment when due will result in a written warning and subsequent violations may result in loss of privileges in the future.
    • Equipment may be checked out for forty-eight (48) hour periods during the week or longer for weekends or holidays. An equipment use will be applied against each group, organization or institution each time its individual members check out equipment for that entity’s use. Any extended reservations or modifications of reservations must be approved by the Program Coordinator.
    • Producers holding equipment reservations must follow these checkout and check-in procedures.
    • There is advanced production equipment available for lease to professional videographers.  Fees for this advanced gear is available at the studio.   Individuals requesting the lease of this equipment must be screened by the staff or the Executive Director.  The studio may also be leased for commercial production-see Executive Director or staff for rates.

Check-Out of Equipment

    • Sign Equipment Check out form.
    • Assemble and test requested equipment. It is the producer’s responsibility to make sure that they have all required cables and connectors to facilitate production.

Check-In of Equipment

    • Equipment must be returned on scheduled time.
    • Any problems with equipment or damage should be noted on Facilities/Equipment Incident form and brought to the attention of staff.
    • Users are responsible for loss or damage due to negligence or abuse while the equipment is checked out to them.
    • Eligible users under the age of 18 who wish to borrow portable equipment must be accompanied by a parent, guardian or qualified adult access user, who signs a release stating that the adult accepts responsibility for the equipment and its use by the minor.

I have read the Rules and Operating Procedures and agree to abide by them.

Name:

Signature:

Date:

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