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A Note from the Director

Recently, KDRT DJ Eddy Owt and DMA Studio & Facilities Coordinator Ray Orosco teamed up to record touring band Black Viiolet in the newly relaunching Davis Media Access (DMA) TV studio. By all accounts it was a worthwhile endeavor and fun, although not everything went as expected.

Sharing in these conversations, I found myself repeating something that’s been a mantra for many years: DMA is not a production house, but a community-based learning lab. We learn by doing, and we help others learn by doing as well. We’re lean on resources but rich in ingenuity and enthusiasm.

So yes, moving from an analog to a digital mixer is a learning curve, and good audio is as vital to a video production as the video itself. I trust Ray and Eddy (and others) will practice more and figure this out–and then help others along the way.

I’m excited to see–at long last–our TV studio coming back online following a long pandemic and an even longer remodel process. Back in the day, we supported public access and the desires of individuals to get trained in TV production. Countless changes in both media use and media technology later, and the call for individual use is scant. Instead, we focus on community-benefit projects such as local election coverage, arts and culture performances, and nonprofit partnerships.

There will come a moment when we once again offer PSA Day and some open studio time, but maybe let us get that new switcher dialed in first…

Further thoughts on Yolo County

On a call recently with a nonprofit executive director who is new to the area, she said “Yolo County is very intimate - everyone seems to be connected to everyone else.” I think that’s true, and also not true.

As I’ve been navigating the county and developing new partnerships through our Yolo Local project, I keep returning to the almost wholly unmet information needs for the Spanish-speaking population. As our ecosystem assessment highlighted, that’s one-fifth of our total population. This week my collaborator jesikah maria ross and I applied for a grant that would allow Yolo Local to connect more deeply with folks who need civic information in their own language. Although it’s a daunting time to be doing such work, we are pressing forward on that front.

Meanwhile, we are pleased to be in cahoots with our friends at PBS KVIE/Abridged for the launch of their weekly Yolo County newsletter, which will lean into Yolo Local’s assessment findings to inform editorial. They’re a great group of folks and I’m looking forward to digging in. A reminder that you can sign up for the weekly newsletter, which drops Wednesday afternoons, here.

In community,

Autumn Labbé-Renault

Executive Director

 

Yolo election results: So far, Davis schools tax is winning by a few dozen votes

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By Bill Buchanan for Davis Media Access

Posted 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 6

Measure N, the latest school parcel tax to go before Davis school district voters, is winning — but not by much.

The results won’t be final until the Yolo Elections Office counts all ballots, including ones that voters mailed on or before March 5 but don’t arrive for a few days after. The office explains the process in “Why it can take time to certify an election.”

As of this morning (March 6), the measure to impose a $768 tax per parcel of property in the Davis Joint Unified School District has received 7,194 yes votes, or 66.91 percent of the total counted so far, against 3,557 no votes, or 33.09 percent.

The measure needs two-thirds approval to pass, and has cleared that hurdle by less than one-third of 1 percent so far. For now, that margin of victory works out to about three dozen votes.

In other words, the outcome is too close to call as of March 6. Measure N supporters quoted in a story today by Monica Stark of the Davis Enterprise were hopeful. A story by David Greenwald in the Davis Vanguard called it a nailbiter.

Other Yolo results

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Candidate, position statements available

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Each election season, DMA produces candidate and position statements for contested local races. This season's lineup includes 17 candidates running for: Congressional 4th, Senate 3rd; Yolo County Supervisor Districts 3,4,5; Superior Court Judge Dept 14; and position statements for Measure N in Davis. DMA's coverage is nonpartisan and a free service for candidates and the community; we take no position and make no endorsements. https://dctv.davismedia.org/collections/election

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DMA partners with WCC on E-Learning Lab

Appreciating this recent article about DMA's multi-year partnership with Woodland Community College on its E-Learning Studio.

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DMA to livestream LWV Yolo County Supervisor District 4 Candidate Forum

LWV Yolo County Supervisor District 4 Candidate Forum

LWV Yolo County Supervisor District 4 Candidate Forum

Edit: The recorded program is available here.

Starting at 7 pm on Wednesday, Jan. 31, DMA will livestream abd record the League of Women Voters Davis Area's Yolo County Supervisor District 4 Candidate Forum. Please use this link to view.    Click on "Notify Me" to setup an alert regarding the upcoming stream.  Also please subscribe to our channel!

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DMA to livestream Annual City of Davis Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration on January 15

30TH ANNUAL CITY OF DAVIS DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. CELEBRATION ON JAN. 15

30TH ANNUAL CITY OF DAVIS DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. CELEBRATION ON JAN. 15

Starting at 10:30am on Monday, January 15, DMA will be livestreaming the 30th Annual City of Davis Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration.    Please use this link to view.    Click on "Notify Me" to setup an alert regarding the upcoming stream.  Also please subscribe to our channel!

https://youtube.com/live/a5X500xc3vg?feature=share

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Amplifying Nonprofits' Work: I-80 Teach In

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Few nonprofits have a media arm, so it makes sense that many in Yolo County turn to Davis Media Access (DMA) for help in documenting important community events. Helping others amplify their work is a big part of our work! We were happy to assist the Davis Futures Forum (a project of Cool Davis) with its  I-80 Teach-In on Dec. 7.  #nonprofits #DavisCA  #climateaction #communitymedia

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Media literacy not new, but school inclusion is

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Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 873 in October, which integrates media literacy into the core subjects that all students learn throughout K-12 in California’s public schools. California joins New Jersey, Illinois, and Delaware in teaching media literacy in grade school, in particular.

The bill was authored by Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park), and supported by the Los Angeles County Office of Education, Common Sense Media, the California News Publishers Association, and Media Literacy Now, among others.

If you’re not familiar with the term, media literacy is a discipline that develops critical thinking skills around media to determine its credibility and accuracy. It’s something we have woven into our workshops, internships and policies at Davis Media Access (DMA) for decades, and I’m really pleased to see the legislation pass because I believe it to be one of the most important tools we have to counter disinformation.

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2023 Philanthropy Awards celebrate volunteerism - DMA honors Sara Marie

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The Yolo Community Foundation (YCF) honored 32 recipients of its 2023 Yolo Philanthropy Awards, celebrated Nov. 6 at the Davis Veterans Memorial Center. Local nonprofits were invited to honor one volunteer each year for their exceptional contributions to a nonprofit.

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Davis Picks It Up "In the Studio"

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DMA Intern Kristin Trent interviews Cathie Bullis, co-founder of Davis Picks It Up (DPIU), a local non-profit that eliminates litter locally to prevent impacts on land and ocean ecosystems. Bullis discusses the litter-to-ocean pipeline, crime solving on the job, found treasures, and her favorite things about DPIU.

For more information email davispicksitup@gmail.com. Youc an watch the episode here

 

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Youth-led Fridays for Future joined Global Climate Strike Sept. 15

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On August 25, 2023 the Davis Chapter of "Fridays for Future" completed its 200th Climate Strike March, which begins each Friday at noon at the Veterans Memorial Center and concludes at Central Park at the corner of Fifth and B Street. This youth-led group also joined in the GLOBAL Climate Strike Sept.

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KDRT & youth both come of age at DMA

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On Sept. 24, KDRT 95.7FM — the radio station based here at community media center Davis Media Access — turned 19.

DMA was the first public-access community media center in the nation to launch a Low-Power FM (LPFM) station. Since then, many have followed, and just recently the Federal Communications Commission opened a rare window for applications to open frequencies on this non-commercial educational radio spectrum.

DMA’s Jeff Shaw was recently a featured speaker at a regional meeting for potential applicants put on by the Alliance for Community Media.  Since KDRT was started during the first licensing period, Jeff is often called upon to offer a long-term perspective on many topics involving the facets of operating an all-volunteer community LPFM radio station.

From its inception, KDRT has been more than a low-power community station, more than a project of DMA, and more than a place to just play music or talk. It’s been a volunteer-fueled community, one that connects to our larger community both by running live broadcasts from community events, and each and every week in front of the mics and the sound board in the KDRT studio.

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Davis Senior High School 2023 commencement available via another website this year

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Please note there was an error on the Davis Senior High School website which instructed those interested in purchasing a DVD of the 2023 DHS graduation to contact Davis Media Access.  Another organization videoed the 2023 DHS commencement and it's available to view online on their website.

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Yolo County NonProfit Directory

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Big thanks to Yolo Community Foundation for publishing this directory in advance of the Big Day of Giving!

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"Meet the Candidates" - Davis City Council District 3

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DMA recently recorded candidate statements for Donna Neville and Francesca Wright, who are running for the District 3 seat on the Davis City Council. The council called a special election to fill the District 3 vacancy left by Lucas Frerichs after he was sworn in as Yolo County Supervisor in January 2023.

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SF Press Club honors ‘Davisville,’ ‘Timeout Radio'

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KDRT radio programs about marathons, teens bullying their friends, and Davis’ relatively good fortune in coping with California’s drought and wildfires have all won awards for excellence in the 2022 San Francisco Press Club Greater Bay Area Journalism Awards.

The club announced the honors during its annual awards dinner Dec. 8 in Burlingame. Several outlets won multiple awards, ranging from SFGATE, KQED public radio and India Currents to San Francisco Classical Voice, Bloomberg, the San Francisco Chronicle, and El Tecolote. 

Rohan Baxi, a student at Da Vinci Charter Academy High School in Davis, won third place in radio/audio sports features for his December 2021 “Timeout Radio” program, “26.2 miles,”  on marathons.

Bill Buchanan, a longtime Davis journalist and host/producer of “Davisville,” won second and third place among radio/audio public affairs programs (with staffs of 1 to 4) for “Amid drought and frightening wildfires, Davis is relatively fortunate” (September 2021) and “New UC Davis research says teens who bully often target their friends” (March 2021).

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KDRT Highlights

Get your moves ready for the next Sonic Rehab, Monday, Oct. 12, 1-3 p.m. PDT

Put your drinks down and get your shakes on for the next Sonic Rehab! DJJJ is bringing it once again with insanely amazing dance tracks from Brother 2 Brother, Miro, Talc, Cass & Slide, and more! The plan is to set you down nicely after with music from Cowboy Junkies, Neil Young, and a local artist from El Dorado Hills. Also two versions of the same song in different languages! AND MORE!! Should be fun? NO! IT WILL BE FUN.

LotD Live + KDRT Vinyl Bazaar – Oct. 11, 2026

Left of the Dial Live, KDRT, and the That California Sound crew co-present the fall 2026 Vinyl Bazaar this Sunday, October 11, from 12 to 5 p.m at CaliCraft Brewing. The Bazaar features multiple vendors representing dozens of genres and thousands of titles. All ages are welcome to attend this fine event. For more information, visit ThatCaliforniaSound.com.

Electric Compost Heap – Oct. 9, 2026

Tonight on The Electric Compost Heap, Dug Deep provides hours of excitement, featuring new music from Arab Strap, Measuring Cup, Dinosaur Jr., and Anton Barbeau, who is appearing tonight at Watermelon Music! If all this weren't enough, we'll also spin another edition of Top of the Heap, our exceptional music feature. Hope you can join us at KDRT.org.

Yolo Backyard Bulletin – Oct. 8, 2026

Our guests are Erica Kohl-Arenas and Anuj Vaidya to talk about the amazing Imagining America conference coming to Davis!

Dashboard Diaries – Oct. 8, 2026

This week on Dashboard Diaries, DJ RayK has tons of great music lined up from Traffic, James Brown, The English Beat, Haircut 100, Tower of Power, World Party, and dozens more. Hop in and let’s get lost for a couple of hours.

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