LMCTV: So Much More than a Public Access Television Station

“Access! Access! Access!” . . . is what LMCTV is all about, explained Matt Sullivan, LMCTV Chief Operating Officer, at the Larchmont-Mamaroneck Local Summit’s October 18 breakfast program. Since its inception in 1983, LMCTV has been the Larchmont-Mamaroneck-Rye Neck community’s public access television station.
Since those early days, it has focused on serving three segments of the community – the public, the school districts, and the municipal government. It provides the community with access to local government/school proceedings, while at the same time providing those bodies with access to broad audiences. As times, needs, and technology changed, LMCTV expanded its services in order to fulfill its objective of providing the best service to the community. Panelists – Sullivan, Studio Production Manager Dena Schumacher, Senior News Producer Sheyla Navarro, and Office and Community Bulletin Board Manager Sharon Latimer-Mosley – highlighted key LMCTV offerings for the Local Summit audience.

LMCTV Programming

Of the many services LMCTV provides, it is probably best known for its local programming, which airs on three different channels (Cablevision 75/76/77 and Verizon 34/35/36). Sullivan shared that in 2015 alone, LMCTV covered 150 municipal meetings, 80 sports contests, 225 student-produced segments, 200
community events and on-location shows, and 50 segments of its popular news show, “The Local Live.”

Keeping the community informed of local government proceedings is a fundamental part of LMCTV’s mission. Channel 76/35 is dedicated to municipal meetings; it airs live and replayed coverage of
village board, town council, and school board meetings (both Mamaroneck and Rye Neck). LMCTV also covers other key municipal meetings and provides a platform for local official and candidates to be heard, through programs such as “Meet the Candidates.” As Sullivan described, LMCTV “brings democracy to each and every living room.”

According to Sullivan, LMCTV plays a similar role for our two school districts and local not-for-profit
organizations. Besides school board meetings, it broadcasts high school sports contests, concerts, plays and other events and also fosters programming produced by students. Through its coverage of community events and on-location shows, including the Local Summit’s monthly breakfast programs, LMCTV also provides not-for-profit organizations with an important means of reaching the community. In addition, community members can request coverage of their not-for-profit organization’s events, and are also encouraged to produce segments to air on LMCTV.

“The Local Live:” an Ambitious Hyper-Local News Program

One exciting development for LMCTV is its popular new shows, “The Local Live,” a hyper-local weekly news program geared for residents of the tri-municipal area. Now in its third year, the program features municipal and school news, community events, and local issues. Producer Sheyla Navarro described the extensive research that goes into identifying news issues for the “In the Media” segment of the show. From attending meetings, to reading everything she can about the topic, to interviewing the involved parties, she and her team of interns dig deep to identify and clearly present the issues. Often, she finds that “The Local Live” is the
only source of information for local government issues.

Another segment of “The Local Live” is the roundtable discussion, which often features local not-for-profit
organizations. According to Navarro, getting the word out about the valuable services provided by our not-for-profit organizations is an important role of “The Local Live.” The Food Panty, the Community Resource Center, The Mamaroneck-Larchmont Student Aid Fund, and The Center for Continuing Education are just some of the local organizations that have been featured recently. Audience participation via email, Twitter, and call-in, is encouraged for this portion of the program.

Navarro’s goal for “The Local Live” is an ambitious one; she wants it to be “Mamaroneck and Larchmont’s top community news show,” and wants LMCTV to be our primary local news channel.

LMCTV as Teacher and Trainer

As Sullivan shared, beyond its programming, LMCTV prides itself in serving as a training ground for community members of all ages who are interested in learning about video production. Beginning with our youngest residents, LMCTV offers an after-school club – “Lights, Camera, Action!” in all six elementary
schools in Mamaroneck and Rye Neck; the club often serves as students’ first foray into the world of video storytelling. For older students, LMCTV has been holding a popular summer teen filmmaking workshop since 2001 that works with students to write, produce, act and edit short films. At the high school level, there are several more opportunities, including the Varsity Sports program, one of LMCTV’s “crown jewels,” according to Sullivan. The Varsity Sports program hires dozens of high school students to cover Mamaroneck and Rye Neck sports events. LMCTV also works with Mamaroneck High School students to produce the daily morning news brief, “MHS Info.” For college students, there are also opportunities for internships working with “The Local Live.”

And for anyone who is interested, studio production manager Dena Schumacher, is available to help people use the LMCTV studios to create their own video productions. Video equipment can be rented (free to those producing segments that will air on LMCTV, and available to others for a fee), and studio time booked.

LMCTV’s Community Bulletin Board Helps Get the Word Out

Whether it’s a public service emergency announcement or publicity for a local not-for-profit organization’s
event, LMCTV’s digital Community Bulletin Board can help, according to Sharon Latimer-Mosley. Last year, LMCTV featured over 700 not-for-profit and municipal events and alerts. Latimer-Mosley provided tips on how to publicize not-for-profit events, noting that fees and ticket prices cannot be included. A listing may be requested online at: http://lmctv.org/bulletin-board-request-form/ or may be called in.

Separate from the Community Bulletin Board, LMCTV can also help local not-for-profits prepare Public Service Announcements (PSAs) in their studio for airing on LMCTV and for posting on their own websites. Organizations interested in doing so can contact Dena Shumacher.

On the Horizon

As LMCTV continues working to increase access, Sullivan says that consolidations of its operations into a new
facility – the shuttered fire station on Mamaroneck Avenue – is key. Currently in three locations, Town Center for its administrative offices, Studio One at Mamaroneck High School, and its HD Studio Two at 145 Library Lane in Mamaroneck, LMCTV looks forward to having one, visible, easily accessed location soon. In the new facility, Sullivan envisions LMCTV becoming Larchmont-Mamaroneck’s “Media Center,” with expanded class offerings.

How can you ensure the continued health of LMCTV? Although most its funding is provided by the Tri-Municipal Larchmont-Mamaroneck Cable TV Board of Control, which administers the franchise agreements between the municipalities and the two local cable providers (composed of Lorraine Walsh, Mayor, Village of Larchmont; Norm Rosenblum, Mayor, Village of Mamaroneck; and Tom Murphy, Councilman, Town of Mamaroneck), LMCTV depends upon donations from the community to provide its programming and to maintain its facilities and production equipment. In 2015, as shown in its annual report, just over 11% of its revenues came through community support, membership, professional services, and corporate underwriting sponsorships.

On another front, Sullivan urged the audience to petition their local cable provider to provide an HD channel for LMCTV programming. Currently, programs are filmed in HD, and can be viewed in HD on the LMCTV website, but not on any of the cable television channels.

In closing, Local Summit president Elaine Chapnick expressed her appreciation for the important role LMCTV plays in our community. Citing its coverage of local issues that are often not covered elsewhere, Chapnick thanked LMCTV for “performing a very large civic function . . . for providing coverage so necessary to an informed electorate and to our democracy.”

Note: community members are urged to check out LMCTV’s website: http://lmctv.org/ to learn more about the services it offers. Online forms are available to request coverage of an event, to submit bulletin board information, to rent equipment, to volunteer, and much more.

This breakfast forum was hosted by the Larchmont/Mamaroneck Local Summit, an informal community council that seeks to make life better for all in the tri-municipal area. Its monthly meetings are held at the Nautilus Diner in Mamaroneck Diner at 7:45 a.m., usually on the third Tuesday of the month. The next meeting will take place on November 15 and will feature service organizations in our community, including the Elks, the Kiwanis Club, the Lions Club, the Rotary Club, the Women’s Club, and At Home on the Sound.