autumn's blog

Davis Media Access is excited to announce several new workshop tracks. We’re launching this month with our Core Competency series. These workshops will be offered at least quarterly and are free to those who live, work, study, or volunteer in Davis.  Prerequisite: attendance at a DMA General Orientation within the past 18 months. All workshops are offered at the media center, located at 1623 Fifth Street in Davis.

Later this quarter, we’ll roll out our Cinema Skills workshops, and a community lecture series to boot, with the first topic addressing online privacy & media literacy.

Final Cut Pro X Media Management - Wed., Sept. 13, 2017,  7 - 8:30 p.m.

Keep organized as you collect media for your production, so that editing can be a creative exercise. Tips on staying organized for fiction and non-fiction pieces, as well as some advice on the types of shots to collect and how to shoot them. By using the organizing tools available in Final Cut Pro X (events, tags, markers, stars), or even pen and paper, you can focus on the story you are telling, instead of searching for the elements you need( or wondering if you even have them). Investing some time in staying organized will save you lots of time when you edit and make it easy to try variations as you think of them. Lecture format w/overhead. Feel free to bring your own laptop.

Canon XA-25 Orientation: Camera Basics (7 - 8 p.m.) & Composition (8 - 9 p.m.) Thu., Sept. 21, 2017

DMA is offering two workshops back to back.  Sign up for one or both.

In the first session, learn the basics of operating and configuring the Canon XA-25, DMA's workhorse HD camera, available for checkout to volunteers. We’ll cover automatic and basic manual configuration, as well as various audio options.

In the second session we cover composition for your video or photo shoot.  Whether shooting fiction or non-fiction, certain ways of framing your image, accounting for lighting, and using selective focus can help communicate your story to the viewer. This workshop will help the filmmaker, documentarian, and photographer understand the ways in which composition can affect the viewer, both positively and negatively. Hands-on demonstration w/ Q & A.

DCTV Website: Reservations & Resources Training Wed., Sept. 27, 2017, 7-8:30 p.m.

Training for how to use DCTV's website to make reservations, create show records, add episodes, and otherwise manage your production(s) at Davis Media Access.  A review of available equipment and the requirements for checkout or use will also be included.  Moving forward, this workshop and the skills learned in it will be required to make use of DCTV's facilities. Bringing your own laptop to follow along is suggested, but not required. Lecture w/ overheads and Q & A.

One of DMA’s projects is KDRT 95.7 FM—low-power, non-commercial grassroots radio located in Davis, CA. Launched on Sept. 24, 2004, KDRT airs an eclectic mix of music and public affairs programming, and builds community by promoting dialogue, encouraging artistic expression, and acting as a forum for people who typically lack media access. KDRT’s mission reflects its values: localism, social equality, public participation, media literacy, diversity, and, of course, community media.

It’s been a busy summer of engineering for the new antenna, vetting new programs, and having the programmers shadow experienced DJs and learn the core competencies needed to broadcast on non-commercial, educational radio. In the process, some of our existing programs shifted around a bit. Please find the full program schedule online, or pick up a copy in the lobby at DMA. In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek at some of the new shows:

funk.jpg

“Praise Time with Preacher” Tuesday 4-5 p.m. DJ Preacher says, “Gospel music is very powerful, whether one is a Christian or not. Through the music and chat in my show, I hope to help you find in you the thing I strive for every day: my spirit. You have it too, and I will work to help you find it and show it to the world. As I say most nights before I go to sleep, ‘We fall down...but we get up.’ We can work together to get up and listen to each other, and bring each other up.”

“Smashed and Rehashed” Live Tuesday 5-5:30 p.m. Local musician Justin Cox (The Polyorchids) hosts freeform conversations with local bands, artists, promoters, and others who actively shape local culture. This show tilts in the direction of indie and punk music because that’s where Justin interacts the most, but it’ll reach far beyond that as well.

“Rap Snacks” Live Wednesday 6-7 p.m. Join your host, Kay-Beezy Fa Sheezy, as he takes you on a weekly hip-hop source-sample voyage. Rap Snacks will delight your ear holes as you experience live the oh-so-fresh vinyl records that inspired hip-hop producers to create the legendary tracks that shaped an entire generation. There are no artificial flavors or preservatives as the wheels of steel that stay spinning do not rust. Word is bond, kid!

einstein%20music_0.jpg

“Silver Nine Volt Heart” Live Thursday 6-7 p.m. Join your host, Rodriguez, as he swings the gate wide open for a cool musical trip featuring sounds from all points of the compass.  Being mindful that "everything connects to everything else,” on “Silver Nine Volt Heart” you will find the many colorful threads that make up the tapestry of recorded sound...just click it on and let the music start.

“Cowboy Tracks” Live Friday 1-2 p.m. Join DJ Nancy Flagg around the campfire to hear heartfelt cowboy music and poetry. Something deep in your soul will resonate to stories from the early wranglers, Mexican vaqueros, Hawaiian paniolos, Silver Screen buckaroos, rodeo riders, contemporary real cowboys, and all who appreciate wide open spaces, freedom and the cowboy lifestyle.

Curious about KDRT, DCTV or DJUSD Channel 17, and want to learn how Davis Media Access can help you? Plan to attend one of our General Orientations!

Potential volunteers should attend an orientation, held monthly. They last about an hour and include the history of Davis Media Access, a tour of the facilities, and information on how to get involved. Anyone is welcome to attend an Orientation, but to use the facility for your own productions you have to live, go to school, or volunteer at an organization in Davis, California.  

DMA does not charge for the use of our equipment and facilities and attending a General Orientation is the first step for getting involved.

alrnewphoto.jpg

The example that always surfaced was, “if the Ku Klux Klan comes to us and wants to air programming, do we have to air it?” Back then, and in a town like Davis, that seemed like a very remote possibility, and our discussions about it seemed academic. But in the context of American politics today, the question has surfaced anew on community media forums.

The answer then, and now, is yes. It’s neither an easy nor a comfortable answer. Talking about free speech is a slippery slope, especially when hypothetical scenarios meet grim reality, as they did in Charlottesville.

Centers such as Davis Media Access (DMA) are rooted in the tradition of public access channels, which are platforms for free expression and free speech. In conversation with perhaps 100 community members over the years who have complained about programming espousing a viewpoint they didn’t like, I’ve always said that free speech is a double-edged sword.  We may not like or appreciate every viewpoint aired on our channel, but as a colleague of mine says, ‘it’s above our pay grade to decide what is legal; that’s a decision for the courts.”

The City of Davis, assisted by CCG Consulting, is studying the feasibility of developing a citywide fiber optic network and is asking residents and businesses to help by taking a broadband speed test and participating in a cost survey.

To take the Speed Test: use the link below. Be sure to use your home or business WiFi If using mobile phones/devices:  http://ccgcomm.com/davis.html

To participate in the Cost Survey: Block out any information that will identify you on a copy of a recent bill that includes broadband, and send it to CCG Consulting (CCG) via 2 options noted below.  It’s also okay if your bill includes multiple services. CCG will use bills only to gather broadband prices, taxes and fees.

    •    Scanning and emailing an electronic copy to data@ccgcomm.com

    •    Faxing a copy to (941) 209-5315

Summaries of survey results will be included in a Citywide Fiber Optic Network Feasibility Study Report available for public review.

DMA is partnering with FDyC to sponsor Teen Media Nights here at the media center, beginning April 21. Open to youth aged 12-19, these Friday-night sessions provide mentoring and instruction in video production, DJ’ing, music production, mixing and scratching, and more.

In 2014 Frankie Woods founded a youth program in Davis, California called FDYC (Future Development Youth Center) to mentor under-served youth in the community that needed guidance, direction, focus and purpose. With Frankie's twenty-year background in music production, DJing and videography, and a passion for mentoring youth, he took it upon himself to marry his experience with his desire to give back, and thus the FDYC program was born. Frankie is also a part-time DMA production staffer, and this partnership developed out of our shared commitment to youth media. Email fdyc.org@gmail.com for info and to register.

DMA thanks filmmaker Alvin Remmers for including DMA in the world premiere of his film “Closing the Palms—The End of An Era in Davis,” which had two successful screenings on June 4. DMA received a $1,200 donation for our work on the event, for which we are grateful.

KDRT will broadcast live during all three days of DMF as follows:

•     Friday, June 16 from Sudwerk Brewing Company Dock Store beginning at 5 p.m.
•     Saturday, June 17 from Armadillo Music beginning at 3:45 p.m.
•     Sunday, June 18 from Woodstock’s Pizza beginning at 12:45 p.m.

Join KDRT broadcasters for the live-music action at these venues, or tune in live to KDRT 95.7 FM in Davis worldwide. In addition to the musical artists performing at those venues, KDRT DJs and DCTV camera crew will be roving the streets of downtown Davis on Saturday, collecting interviews, sounds and samples from other Davis Music Fest venues, and sharing them over the air and via social media.

At Da Vinci Charter High School in Davis, CA, Scott Stephen Bell's 10th-grade students were asked to create a Radiolab-style podcast suitable for radio replay, as part of their study of WWII. They were asked to incorporate the following questions into their project: what is the cost of war?  How can a radio documentary covering the major people, events, and concepts of World War II provide perspective on issues that the world faces today? And, are you able to relate to the listener and explain why this topic is important and how it impacts our world today?

The students' finished documentaries were reviewed first by their peers, and then by a panel of KDRT programmers and Davis Media Access staff. Programs were ranked in order and the top five segments are being aired on local radio station KDRT 95.7 FM and worldwide at kdrt.org. Air dates and times are May 28 at 2pm, May 29 at 8am and May 30 at 4pm. DMA and KDRT are pleased to partner with Da Vinci teachers and students in the exploration of making history come alive via the medium of radio.

Attend a General Orientation

Looking for something to do this summer? Come learn about community media and get involved. The first step is easy. Just come to orientation Wednesday, June 14 at 6:30 pm

Friday Nights with FDyC at DMA

DMA is partnering with FDyC to sponsor Teen Media Nights here at the media center, beginning April 21. Open to youth aged 12-19, these Friday-night sessions provide mentoring and instruction in video production, DJ’ing, music production, mixing and scratching, and more.

In 2014 Frankie Woods founded a youth program in Davis, California called FDYC (Future Development Youth Center) to mentor under-served youth in the community that needed guidance, direction, focus and purpose. With Frankie's twenty-year background in music production, DJing and videography, and a passion for mentoring youth, he took it upon himself to marry his experience with his desire to give back, and thus the FDYC program was born. Frankie is also a part-time DMA production staffer, and this partnership developed out of our shared commitment to youth media. Email fdyc.org@gmail.com for info and to register.

alrnewphoto.jpg

Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) formally released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to eliminate the Main Studio Rule. The rule requires each AM, FM and television broadcast station to have a main studio in or near its local community. The notice proposes to eliminate the requirement that the main studio have full-time management and staff present during normal business hours, and the requirement that it be able to originate programming. This is part of a suite of proposed rulemaking by FCC Chair Ajit Pai designed to make life easier for big corporate telecom companies.

Simply put, in a media landscape that is already automated and homogenized, this ruling further releases commercial broadcasters from any public interest obligations in the communities they “serve.” Everything will be done online. If your community has an emergency, good luck getting information through these outlets.

Please, just for a moment, contrast this scenario with what happens all year long at KDRT. Part of a busy and vibrant community media center, KDRT boasts programmers of all ages, playing what they want; highlights local voices, nonprofits and events; and helps local musicians develop audience. KDRT’s volunteers participate in this community, from annual events such as Celebrate Davis, Street Food Rodeo, and Davis Music Festival, to ongoing commitments like Thursday Live! at Davis Odd Fellows, and Second Friday Art Abouts  at Armadillo Music.

Now is the time: KDRT is at risk

I’m proud that we manage KDRT on about $25,000 per year. Most of KDRT’s capital is in its awesome volunteers, which lets us run on this tiny budget. DMA provides a lot of administrative support and a home for the radio station, but its expenses are real: licensing agreements, streaming fees, insurance, rent, utilities.

Here’s the reality: right now, KDRT is at risk. We've been fund raising since March, we are very grateful to our donors this year, AND we still need to raise $6,000 more to meet our $25k goal before June 30. It's hard going this year, but one look at the news I’ve shared underscores the importance of keeping our local institutions strong. And this fund raising is the difference between our community having these services, and not having them. Every year, it's that simple.

For everyone who has ever told me they love Davis Media Access and KDRT 95.7FM now's the time to add your voice in support of solid, vibrant community media, featuring diverse voices in Davis and beyond. $5 or $50 or $500, it matters not, but please add your name to the list of folks who stand on the side of local media, free from corporate interests. We can’t do this work without you.

Yours in community,

Autumn Labbe-Renault

Executive Director

PS: Mina Alali is a former KDRT DJ. We congratulate her on her success!

Originally published in The Davis Enterprise on May 5, 2017 In its 2015 study “Teens, Social Media & Technology Overview 2015,” the Pew Research Center found that 24 percent of teens go online “almost constantly,” facilitated by the widespread availability of smartphones. I’ve been around kids and technology since before smartphones were a thing, and I’m a mom of three teens. I’d be mighty surprised if those numbers haven’t climbed dramatically in the past two years.

KDRT is a small station that makes so much possible. At the end of 2016, we raised money to boost the signal of KDRT by purchasing a new antenna. We're waiting...and waiting...for the rains to stop, and getting ready to do the engineering for the project. Target installation date is early summer, and we'll keep you posted!

Jesse Deere, longtime programmer of Dead Wax, will be retiring from the show soon.  Dead Wax is a vinyl-centric exploration of Americana, from classic country to roots rock and blues.  Fellow KDRT volunteers and programmers hope to take over in rotating shifts to keep the show going.

Shawn Witt, AKA Rainbow has moved his radio show, Music Eclectica, from Tuesdays at 10 a.m. to Fridays  at 10 a.m.  The program explores every genre of music in a unlimited fashion.

Sam Hawk's Independent and Local, which focuses on local music, has also moved to Fridays at 11 a.m. following Shawn's show.

Bill Wagman hosted Austin, Texas singer-songwriter Amilia K. Spicer on Live DiRT at the KDRT studio, Friday March 31. Spicer has been described as “a formidable singer, songwriter and pianist with a voice that ranges from soaring to smoky…possessing a keen observational lyricism and an innate talent for accessible melodies.”

“Closing the Palms Playhouse - The End of an Era in Davis,” a documentary by Davis filmmaker Alvin Remmers, makes its world premier on Sunday, June 4, 2017 at the Veterans Memorial Theatre in Davis.

The film chronicles the venue’s 28-year history in Davis, features firsthand and archival footage, interviews with Palms founder Linda McDonagh, original Bad Actors members, long-time manager Dave Fleming, musicians who appeared on its legendary stage, and recollection and stories from many Valley patrons. The film also chronicles the last two months of the Palms' existence - filmed in July and August of 2002 - in musical performances from a star-studded lineup, and interviews capturing the raw emotions of the performers and patrons as the clock ticks down on the old barn. Performances filmed on the Palms stage during the last two months are included in the documentary. Interviews with Utah Phillips, Dave Alvin, Mumbo Gumbo, Golden Bough, Steve Seskin, and more are featured.

alrnewphoto.jpg

In Davis, you typically organize a forum or event, and—as it’s said—they will come. But how do you continue that dialog, involving others who weren’t able to attend?

That’s one of the truly powerful things about community media such as Davis Media Access (DMA). DMA frequently records community town halls, events and other forums, capturing that content and making it widely available via cable TV, radio, online archives, and social media. I describe this aspect of DMA’s work as documenting our collective history.

There are numerous other ways we do that, too, whether it’s putting cameras into the hands of middle school kids, bringing elected officials into the studio, or hosting a wide range of experts, pundits, activists, and performers. Together, all this local content informs, calls to action, and helps tell the story of a community that is engaged and cares.

Please support DMA during our annual fundraiser.

I believe that DMA’s work is central to an informed, connected community. Each spring, we ask our community to confirm that by pledging their support of our mission and services. We’ve raised about $14,000 of our $25,000 goal, with less than a month to go. These funds keep KDRT on the air, and help support our work on youth media and local elections. Thank you for your support not only of DMA, but of community engagement and cohesiveness in a time of unprecedented division. Please visit davismedia.org/donate to support our work, and join our list of supporters.

Autumn Labbe-Renault, Executive Director