10 Ways Davis Media Access Builds Community

News from Your Community Media Center - March 2009

1. “First Fridays” winter concert series at the Odd Fellows
DMA is committed to providing unique local cultural opportunities. To that end, we’ve teamed up with the Davis Odd Fellows to present a winter concert series benefiting KDRT-LP, 95.7 FM and the Odd Fellows. The series launched Friday, Feb. 6, 2009 with performances by Rubber Souldiers and Loose Acoustic Trio, continued March 6 with Joe Craven and Aesthetic Cling, and will conclude April 3 with Waiting for Bruce and Dave Nachmanoff. Shows start at 7:15; doors open at 6:30. Concerts take place the Davis Odd Fellows Hall, 415 Second Street in Davis. Tickets are $15advance/$17 at the door general, and $10 for students w/ ID. Beer and wine are available for purchase. More information, an interview and with Joe Craven and tickets are available at http://kdrt.org

2. Open Media Sessions
DMA offers Open Media Sessions each Tuesday evening. Open Media Sessions offer an overview of various aspects of "new media" and are geared at giving community producers more tools and information to help them on their way. All sessions start at 5 p.m. and take place at Davis Media Access, 1623 Fifth Street in Davis. For more information, please visit: http://davismedia.org or call (530) 757-2419. The sessions are free and open to the public, though reservations are requested. The topic for March 10 & March 17 is uploading content to YouTube and transferring tapes to DVD.

3. Programs of Note
"Student Voices" premiered in January on KDRT. A monthly, 30-minute talk radio program, “Student Voices” is hosted by a group of students from DaVinci and Davis High schools. Shows to date have featured discussions of inclusiveness and the various social pressures faced by teens today, and the social uses of technology. Hosts solicit audience participation to further the discussion. The show airs Wednesdays at 5 p.m. on 95.7 FM, and archived shows can be heard here: http://kdrt.org/node/869

4. Kid Vid Camps Scheduled for Spring Break
DMA has opened registration for the next installment of its popular "Kids Video Camp" workshop. DMA’s training is generally geared to youth aged 14 and older, so Kid Vid camps present unique learning opportunities for younger kids . Kids Video Camp is a one-week session in television & radio production for youth aged 10-13. Participants will produce a program in DMA's television studio by storyboarding, and operating cameras and sound equipment,. They will also get an introduction to media literacy & the radio booth at KDRT.

The class dates are daily from 9 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday, April 6-10. Attendance at all five sessions is required and prompt attendance is a must. Cost for the week is $150 per student and is payable in advance. Kids must live or study in Davis to be eligible to participate. Workshop forms are available at DMA, located at 1623 Fifth Street in Davis or at www.davismedia.org. Class fees must be paid at the time of registration. The class is limited to 10 participants. Registration is first-come, first-served and closes April 3 at 5pm. For more information, please call Jeff Shaw at 757-2419, Ext. 14. Dates for summer workshops will be available later this month.

5. Strengthening the school-community connection
DMA recently agreed to take on the rest of the programming and management work for the Davis Joint Unified School District’s Channel 17. Channel 17 is perhaps best known for airing DJSUD Board of Education meetings, but the channel airs a plethora of programming and resources available for students, parents and educators alike, such as “Game of the Week” and “Arts in Our Schools.” DMA also manages an internship for high-school students, who regularly crew for DJUSD event coverage. Money for these educational access activities comes via the City’s franchise agreement with Comcast cable, and not from the General Fund. For more information, reach Production Manager Jeff Shaw at jeff@davismedia.org.

6. New technological directions; partnership with Denver Open Media
Denver Open Media (DOM) was one of the grantees in the second round of the $25 million Knight News Challenge, which funds digital information innovations that transform community life.

DOM’s project will enable public access TV stations and community technology centers to use common tools to create web sites that enable the transfer of video between the web site and the TV station. The whole project is based on an open-source Drupal web package. DMA was chosen as one of six beta sites around the nation, bringing expertise and in-kind services valued at $33k to our community. This project is spearheaded by our Director of Operations, Darrick Servis, with help and support from other colleagues and volunteers. If you’d like to learn more, please visit http://groups.drupal.org/open-media-project

7. Partnership with Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI)
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at UC Davis has been partnering with DMA to create a series of programs called OLLI Presents. OLLI volunteers record & edit many of their lectures and presentations, using DMA equipment and training, and air the resulting shows on DCTV Channel 15, Thursdays at 5 p.m.
Highlights to date have included “Sex and the Law,” featuring Davis icon Dr. Herbert Bauer, and “Women Writers of Davis,” with Karen Joy Fowler, Spring Warren, Eileen Rehndahl and Shawna Yang Ryan. Future broadcasts will feature Davis athletic notables, music and science courses and events. We’re delighted with this partnership and the resulting programming. For more information, please visit http://extension.ucdavis.edu/unit/osher_lifelong_learning_institute/

8. Davis Youth Media Project
In conjunction with the Davis Teen Center and Mel Lewis, Climate Coordinator for the DJUSD, DMA is involved with a burgeoning youth media project. In informal conversations to date, these partners have identified the following goals: develope initial media projects for Davis youth; develop leaders amongst Davis youth to sustain project; facilitate media trainings at the Teen Center; and bring content to KDRT, DCTV and a new Davis Youth Media blog. The project has launched with the Student Voices radio show and a scheduled media training at the Teen Center on March 18. For more information, please contact DMA Production Manager Jeff Shaw at jeff@davismedia.org.

9. Monthly studio shows highlight community organizations, train volunteers
Under the direction of DMA Production Manager Jeff Shaw and Studio Manager Diane Dedoshka, DMA’s been producing regular monthly studio programs to highlight community leaders, issues and events. Recent shows have included discussions about the Amgen tour of California and its start in Davis on Feb. 15; marriage equality in California; local Obama campaign volunteers; the Green Summit; Yolo Hospice, Davis Bicycles; Yolo County Food Bank and DQ University. Some of the programs are also aired on KDRT-LP 95.7 FM under the title “From DCTV,” and many are available online at davismedia.org.

10. Opportunities to get involved
So many ways! Visit http://davismedia.org to get involved!