MPBN 20th Birthday Scrapbook

That. You don't. Believe me. I'm Bernie Rosati and I'm writing Phelps. We'd like to welcome you to look at 20 years of public broadcasting in May. We'll be joined by many of the broadcasters and engineers who developed to manager that work over this period. Some of them we've never seen or heard before on this side of a camera or microphone. But rest assured they were and are all very important to what you know is Public Broadcasting in Maine today. Now the sixties. And I find it hard to believe that it's. So many years ago that the weather is now. Maine Public Broadcasting Network began. And I moved on with 1962.

Floyd Elliot had a dream that was just getting underway. The dream of a statewide public television network. And now it's a reality. You know Maine is to be congratulated. It's a leader among the States and its effectiveness is television to the lives of people. The main public broadcasting network. Makes me in a better place to live. To actually place in the state of Maine. You know. That quality that makes me so unique. Is the same quality. That makes its public broadcasting system. So delightful. And so important. In 1963 a legislative act and a bond issue established an educational television network for me. It was supported by legislative appropriation and licensed to the trustees of the University of Maine. It's three TV stations WMUB Channel 12 and oron am Channel 10 and Presque Isle and WMUB Channel 13 and

calous coverage 75 percent of the state with instructional and educational programming. During the school day mamy TV broadcast instructional programming to its audience is fulfilling its obligation to the state in the late afternoon and evening hours programming turned to adult education in such subjects as music history English Literature vocational training and other topics designed to make our life a little easier. About 70 percent of the programming was rented from suppliers like eastern educational network and National Educational Television. The rest of the network's offerings were developed here at the network's production facilities at Alumni Hall. The public affairs of Maine were the basis for much of the evening's fair produced by the network. The topics ranged from kids in the courts handguns and the control of the illegal drug trafficking in Maine to the controversy over the construction of an oil refinery. I remember very quickly a legislator at the time and business troll took me out into the hall between the Senate and the house. I was lobbying for this in the legislature

and said Rigney that side sign says the House will represent. I don't mean that Snoddy to sign over. And I said What does he say. That's why you're not going to get your money. And at that time ogre's or eat nothing with a million dollars at that point. Convince the legislature that they could be instructional television. All the schools we had in mind beyond is talking to Parviz And of course cultural programming sophisticated entertainment programming. But in a very minority sort of way if we were really not going into school and we promised the people that we could cover 98 percent of the school. We started out in the base my beaux arts and science the south Wang. All we had was two empty rooms a couple of desks a filing cabinet and a redheaded secretary and there was nothing. We had two pieces of paper. All the construction permits we went from literally

zero to why are you how I felt it was important very important that we touch the pulse of the people of me and we had the product now. But I felt very strongly that we needed to get out. Into the country and meet the folks and find out what was going on. We also traveled to Canada. I can remember a couple of trips that we took to Canada because our signals in the northern part of the state were going in a caravan we got a very favorable response. From the Canadian viewers. We might go to Prescott locales and we visit with the people there and they began to realize that we cared about them and that was very instrumental in getting favor the response from the legislature in the years to come. And we like to think that that is still continuing here. But you dont make program decisions that affect the lives of people in the state of Maine. In alumnae all alone you've got to get out. Touch the pulse of the people. That's what we tried to do in those early days.

About a year later back in. 19 I believe it was 1965. The college had a new president it was Ed Young and under him we took over the university closed circuit system. And that in that context I produced and directed a series along with Professor Dick everich on anthropology. It was a rewrite of an earlier series that we redid and brought it up to date updated the information in that in that series when we began coming over here and changing what was the women's gym into a television studio which. Took a lot of doing. We'd take some more. We began really by doing anthropology. I've always wondered was it a good way to teach anthropology. Looking back on it now it wasn't a good way to teach anthropology. It was one of a number of good ways. And we I think we exploited most of the possibilities and we spent an awful lot of time and Dick particularly put

many many more hours I'm sure into doing a record in class than you ever would have been doing a regular plant and equipment. And this the facilities that we had to use not even in this building to begin with but over in shambles hall where. We're a Paleolithic. And we started over there and put the entire year of introductory anthropology on tape and it was used locally for a while just on this campus. And then when the studio was building here are installed here we moved over here and began to do it for the entire state. And we did 90 programs. How many times. Three three times. And I was thinking more like 300. But it weirdly was very crude compared to what you see here now as far as facilities are concerned we're talking earlier about putting masking tape over

lenses and going to where do special effects just just cover up everything in the light in the camera's lens except Dick's head. And then we would superimpose them into what they call an Indian fellow or something around there. I remember. Once we were here for all day he had to go home change it close to three times. That's one thing that hasn't changed it's still awful hot. It's warm. Would you like to do this all over again starting where you started but with what we have for equipment now that that changes the perspective a little bit. I think it'll be interesting I don't have any idea how all these gadgets work but I like to try it for you if we do bring We were really just beginning to get into it. When I left the electronics were we're here then and we've moved the control room out to the other room and we were beginning to work with the more sophisticated electronics in 1970. But more important maybe the philosophical question because the network made a very interesting transition in three years I was here. I've really always felt it was the three years that the network came out of the closet because we really got deeply involved in public

affairs. We were doing controversial programs we did a program for national distribution on the highest point oil refinery and it was controversial and it was there were some difficulties with that. We did a monthly series a documentary a public affairs series that I would like to think was the predecessor to 60 Minutes it was very similar in format. What we did on the state of Maine. And those were the days when people began to criticize us because we were getting involved in public affairs because we were taking stands we were we were. Making ourselves known in the community and in fact the network was in the process of making news. We were part of the news making process the governor's press conferences are true resulted in all kinds of difficulties legal difficulties as a matter of fact. Really was the time when the networks said I think we've grown up and we can be a part of this state politically educationally still politically and as journalists and I think there are some commercial stations out there

that remember those days when we were doing public affairs documentaries and they began doing them because they learned that they could be done. So it was an interesting transition point and and I think it was more a philosophical transition than it was an electronic transition. But yet we were in those same years getting into the new electronics I can set up public affairs educational television. I we just systematized education which I do believe in but also where I was responsible for the public affairs coming out of Washington for a number of years I learned at that point. This is education and particularly as it is done in public broadcasting where I think there's a little less biased that is sometimes commercial. So would you do it again. Yes absolutely absolutely. I would do it again. I get. I along with a lot of so-called pioneers and old timers in this and all he like to see things happen. I definitely am on the overall

is really pleased what happened both in public broadcasting generally and particularly in VBN here in NE. I would like to see a strong educational development in the program which my original aim is not all that weight but it certainly can be a lot stronger both at the elementary or secondary level and also at the higher education level I think we are missing the boat instead of what could really be done. But I'm extremely pleased at what I do want to get. You bet if I can have time to let the wounds heal I can move on again. But it was a very very interesting and satisfying. It was always fun and always different and always challenging and I'll tell you I agree with Don. If the opportunity came along to do it over again or to go back to those days and start then I certainly wouldn't have the time. I think it was worth doing it and it did a great deal for me too.

I'm glad we got into it. It's something that television is something that is once it's in your blood. It just never passes through it. It's there it exists. I had the opportunity in later years to be on the periphery of it doing public relations work so I didn't escape it completely. But. Oh yes absolutely. Oh yes I would too. It was it was very exciting very exciting time. I got to work with a lot of people and help you know really in the early days we really knew we were building something. So it was great. It's expansion of the Portland area the satellite operation now. Now all of various other aspects of radio folks coming aboard too. So it's really blossomed into something worthwhile and I think the people in the state of Maine have something which is very valuable here. My impression is talking here and around the other place that they do appreciate it. The dreams of the past 20 years ago have definitely come true. Am very very grateful and want to thank those that are watching that or were

involved with this 20 years ago. I want to thank those people who had faith in us to get the things started in faith in us to program it and to leave other parts of the country in terms of what we did. And I hope they're satisfied with what we tried to do. I know in the very beginning I had a feeling that I wondered if the thing was really going to go here. But as time went on. I thought the slogan when it was slow steady. And. I think MPB is right up with the best of them because I just came back from a round trip to California driving our fuel prices watch public television all the way and we are no longer here about them having handlers and have to take a backseat to any kind of an event in the 70s.

I mean even his commitment to public affairs grew with programs like the nightly productions of main news and comment and coverage of the Republican and Democratic convention. Performance programs with a mainstay of our evening schedule. Downey smiling with the late Marshall Dodge and the teleplay the birth of a state were just two of TV's fine offerings. In support of a commitment to instructional programming. The main public broadcasting network as the network was now known created the news machine its French counterpart La Machine Megi and the nationally acclaimed bilingual Labuan of unsure. To inventive programs north of the Namaskar egg and the land in me urged their viewers to take an active part in the direction of the programs by voting on their outcome's public awareness on subjects of state and regional concern was enhanced by programs like the tri state energy interconnect law awareness series. Stepping out a program for the women of Maine and a time to live a series developed for Maine senior citizens. With the advent of color NPB and past technically into the 70s. The network's

engineering staff not only converted MPB into color operation it worked outside to develop a closed circuit television and radio medical interconnect. It developed student university radio stations. Planned and built one new network television station Austereo a public radio network and link this with the Stars by establishing MPB own satellite downlink. In the late 60s partly in the 60s Whoy we operated with vacuum tubes. We had almost a complete control room full of vacuum tubes. In the 70s we made the transition into the more modern technology of transistors and integrated circuits. And then aspect of operating and in and the maintenance the routine maintenance that was required went down dramatically. The solidstate equipment was a lot more dependable. It worked better made better pictures made better sound.

It made life easier in one way for the technical group but a lot more complicated another way because color is a whole new aspect of television. It's like going from mono FM into stereo FM. It doesn't just double it quadruples the problems of different kinds. When I came there was a commitment to do a lot of locally produced public affairs programming. The technology was black and white no videotape editing was live and go and do it. And we did it every day. And the changes that I'm most aware of were technological and the impact of those technological changes on the kinds of programming we did as as new technology came along the programming became more and more sophisticated. In one year election coverage originating from the bank or Daily News we did political campaigns we went to the Augusta armory at that time was before the Civic Center was built and covered the Republican

campaign of the state convention rather and then we went to Waterville and covered the Democrats. It was a busy year. We went to we went on the road to Machabeus and covered Senate hearings chaired by Senator Muskie on whether or not an oil refinery should be built there. Back when things were simpler we had a small camera Park there in the statehouse and we did nightly interviews with legislators and so forth. It was the type of thing that at the time worked very well. But as the equipment got more sophisticated we became a little more reluctant to use anything. It didn't look very good after a while in comparison to other things. And so I think that perhaps late in my time here the delay we kind of backed off on the legislative coverages and started doing things that were a little more interesting little different to the original enabling legislation that created the maney TV network stipulated that it couldn't be used for political purposes. And when we decided during the during a current congressional campaign that we were going to put all the congressional candidates on the air and not only interview them but do a phone in and have the

audience interview them as well. There were some eyebrows raised questioning whether this was a political use of the network. We argued that it wasn't. We argue that it was fulfilling our FCC mandate to provide programming in the public interest. But we actually had to put a program on the ear with one of the First District congressional candidates and have have ourselves threatened with an injunction not to do anymore in order to call the question and have that question finally decided in the courts and the courts finally decided that the federal law superseded state law in that case. And it was indeed legitimate for us to be doing that kind of program and it became a landmark decision. Well it did because we did a great many political programs subsequent to that and debates became almost a staple around here. And we did more of it than any other television outfit in Maine. And I know it every year we did a series of debates shivaree was a program which I

believe Dan. Either Dan or I or you or I collaborated on the startup of it. We decided that there was a need for a vehicle to get the talents of folksingers country singers whatever the state of Maine. Out to the people of the state of Maine other than just the normal barroom playing that they were doing or some concert situations that they were doing and we attempted to create a concert atmosphere inside of our studios. Which as it turned out worked sometimes and did in other. So of course we've replaced that whole concept with remote location work where you actually pick an adventure going to cover and do it rather than create an event in the studio. But at the time period given the technology and given the need for that and I think the program that particular program to fill the vital function in that it got the talents of the people in the state of Maine out to the people of the state of me and by the people by the people started. Before I came to work at MPB and by the people was a public access program that in its inception was quite unique. I received a lot of publicity and

was a viable programming vehicle for a period of time in which anybody could produce a television program and get on and say what they had to say and it did include peoples including people from a variety of faiths from extreme viewpoints politically. Right down to somebody who just decided that they wanted to read Charles Dickens on the air. We had some programs of which North of Namaskar egg was one and the land that made was another that depended in their structure on the viewing audience making decisions at the end of the program calling them in and thus guiding the next week of programming and that viewer or active aspect of television is something that we've done several projects on and they really haven't been done to any other place really was a pioneering effort. I think the news machine which was a current events news program for kids had never been done. We converted that to machine Magique the same program in French

for specialized Franco-American audience that had never been done. We jumped from that and to project facts which was kind of a massive growing enterprise for all of us into high quality production that we could compete with New York and all those other places Boston and and mounted a complex program series for the high school and that's what makes you so sure. Presenting situations for high school and college students to apply problem solving techniques to. So we did a lot of I think interesting innovative creations in the instructional television area in that period of time the early 70s the willingness of the network to try anything. A lot of those things hadn't been done before a lot of us sat around and said I don't know whether we've got the technology to pull this off or not but let's try it anyway. And anything anything goes and we did phone ins on television. We put a camera in the

state house and everybody said Oh that'll be deadly and it won't work. But it was the only way to get a live picture out of the state house so we did it. We we did the first stereo simulcast in the state. The first ones were done right here in the studio and all kinds of things like that including mounting an enormous election night broadcast that included interconnects from several campaign headquarters and this feeds to New Hampshire and feeds from New Hampshire and if anything was fair game in those days because we didn't know enough to say it couldn't be done. One thing I'd like to say about the comparison that I find between cable television and main public broadcasting style television that is that it reaches the people it makes a real effort to be where the people are and to hear what they have to say and to give them a chance to say it too. For that reason. I treasure my years in MPB and was a great experience. We

contributed to the entire pattern. No one group can consider itself either totally indispensable to the effort or the only successful participant in the. 70s brought us public radio first from then to Portland and soon throughout the state. Domain public radio draws some of its service from National Public Radio. It develops much of its programming locally by using the resources of the University of Maine and of its state. Combined with its classical music format. This varied programming schedule allows Maine Public Radio to meet the needs and desires of its audience. Three or four months after I came in July September. 19th the 20th when it was I forget the date exactly when on the air. And it was as if people had been sitting there waiting for the stereo light to come on in their sets. Not

even going out for lunch as we generated more mail that week I think than any week. 13 years since then not only was the first public radio with me it was the first stereo broadcasting in this part of Maine. It was quite a surprise for people when they found out what it could sound like. I think the first time I took to the airwaves was to substitute for Les Spencer and played an hour of Frank Sinatra 9:00 in the morning. I remember portrait of sound. And then I don't know I guess I got up early with John. Was my next adventure because John was the first to learn something to be heard. I beg your pardon. I did the calendar and I took over part of a program called expression for Jim Schaus because when he laughed. And. Then. There was somebody else who was doing a jazz program I think five nights a week.

And when he left I was hired full time and I started doing that job showing money for. The name of Susan's program brings something to mind. It's been an important aspect of especially the radio side of MPB as if I recall correctly in the name of roots and branches was a suggestion made to you by Tom Bailey. Yes that's right. Whose initial contact with MPB and radio was an early music program which I produced 65 or some god awful lot over a couple of years. And Tom was the first of what I think are called in other places community producers volunteers because of a particular area of interest in expertness or a good record collection or whatever or any combination or any of their contribute to the overall mix of programming that goes over the air from the time I came I was involved in some

way with news reporting or writing or board operator or a little of everything. And we started various news programs and we depended heavily on the wire for a long time. In fact of NPR's All Things Considered didn't come along until what 73 70. 24 73 and it's about a year later it was well after we went on the air about a year later main things considered which was then called All Things Considered and Maine became loosely patterned after NPR is ATC and we operated. I was going to say on a shoestring budget but there was no budget for the program. And the goal here is we've got to we could contribute from time to time and that's changed quite a bit in that. Today we have. A bit of a Biggerstaff Plus we have a pool of freelancers and stringers and we do have a car which we've had for three or four months.

Radiocarbon that you're mentioning all things considered brings to mind NPR which was probably the first really big change that took place in programming about a year after we went on the year NPR was brought kicking and screaming into the world. PE at that time but I don't know whether to what degree they still do it had a policy of obtaining a lot of material from local stations and they said as well they show the extremely high criteria for technical quality and interest and things like that. And one year in the mid-70s I forget what year it was. I totaled up what we've said and what they had accepted and we had had it all well over a 90 percent submission rate acceptance of submission rate which I thought spoke extremely well for the quality of the work that was being done. Alumni Hall in order to offer this range from full length to concerts of which there were a lot of hour long documentaries a lot of

new stuff. Keith for us and Bill was here would do. We never did anything for NPR. That's right. That was a policy I like having is written around. We did not produce programs for NPR and produced a program for the main audience. That was appropriate in the subject matter and quality for our national airing then we would send it. John I think generally that period was was as productive and vital as any is any material in the network's history in spite of the fact that you know a few people were doing we didn't have the money and we didn't have the time and we didn't have the experience to do it. I'm not sure what it was that we had but it was certainly among the most professional satisfying times that I spent. We all got along extremely well work extremely well together professionally and personally and somehow worked we grind these things out in our

primitive fashion and NPR would take a close look at them and I know Susan had a lot of the folk music programs excepted from that broadcast. Never never been a question in my mind 10 years ago or now that given the will given the budget that especially for radio because of its flexibility. Sure. This organization has the ability to be a real central part of various portions of man's life particularly cultural also political also other social social issues going into it now. It covers the State like a web. It's a small state. It is and it makes it it makes it doable. That's right. It's interconnected and the way that we're seeing now that somebody

can sit in Portland and talk with somebody in no and vice versa and keeping in touch with the people in Maine Public Broadcasting I find that radio is grown that there will soon be four public radio stations in the state of Maine and several television stations all affiliated with the same public broadcasting. It is better now than it ever has been before and it was just great. Being a part of it and I wish all the best. To Maine Public Television and those of you who are watching this program now. You're watching a great network and I'm very happy to have a part. As the decade closed the staff of MPB and could look back on a number of programs which served a common need to entertain and inform New England Christmas and home to the sea brought us back our memories a fresh breeze blows Down-East entertained us with the words and music of main roots and branches explored music and those who performed at shivaree Billboard It means folk and country musical talent.

College basketball began a trend of sports broadcasting that would stay with MPB into the 80s legist state broke new ground in legislative coverage and woods and waters introduced us to the people who protect and enjoy our woods. For nearly a third of the history of public broadcasting at the University of Maine. I had the privilege of serving as the general manager of the main public broadcasting network during that period of 1969 in 1975. It was a period of unprecedented growth and progress for Public Broadcasting in Maine. It was a period of replacing the first generation of equipment from black and white to color. It was a period of building the radio network in the station's license to Bangor Portland and eventually to Presque Isle. It was a period of commitment to local and state programming programming and news and public affairs an emphasis on the environment and other issues. It was a time that I will cherish always in my memories and I hope it was a

period of time in Maine that helped to develop and to produce the type of public broadcasting service that you enjoy in Maine as provided by the main public broadcasting network. So to all of you and my colleagues at the University of Maine at MPB and I extend my best wishes and congratulations on reaching this important milestone. Twenty years of service to the people of Maine and many many more. Thank you. The 80s finds MPB and continuing many of the programs of the late 70s. Statewide leads and the public affairs front continuing a tradition of fine informative programming. 1 800 continues to open the telephone lines for us audience to discuss the program's topics with its guests. And mainlined Washington brought means elected federal officials closer to their constituents. The station's general interest in programming has explored such topics a small woodlot management on the series yankie would love the popular pastime of quilting was the subject of a 13

part series quilt fever and MPB and went to the horses as it covered the horse show scene in Maine. The network also looked north and east to its growing audience in the Canadian Maritimes with programs like the Quebec question briefly a lumière. I know Santa and the kid you mean public radio continue to mix its fine classical music format with its informative public affairs and offerings topped documentaries locally produced like the main that's missing. Discuss our state and its future in the world today as seen by its citizens. From MPB in television and radio production facilities in Portland. Come to Portland string quartet and conversations w WMG also produce dramatisations on the life of art of this report and home of the day. The network worked together on a production of a schedule of college and high school sporting events MPB PBS also continues and increases the number of simulcasts it participates in

these productions use the best part of both worlds. Radio provide stereophonic sound and television provides diptych. When I first joined the network in 72 a large part of our time was spent in a big concentration of our production effort was an instructional programming for elementary high school college level and that. Had I guess its heyday through the mid seventies and then we began to shift our emphasis towards. I guess what we would identify as audience components or selected segments of our audience special interest groups within the audience and. From there. And we've moved into more general programming. When I first started working we were doing four or five Talking Heads programs every every week and had to be just sitting right there. The emphasis now has shifted to more specials and more quality produced programs. I feel that you know a lot of time is being put into

into shorter programs. But there's there's more emphasis to it. We've had a lot more sports coverage in addition to that we've also done a lot of other types of programs that are necessarily sports but that remote nature including the Levit type programs we do but love it with 1 800 attachments to those Kingo a lot. What Jim was saying diversity of programming I think is one of the big changes that has occurred here since I've come. We do a lot more different types of programs and a lot of new and innovative type programs. I think Sam and River for example is well we all kind of laugh at that program but it was the first for the area certainly to have. We got a lot of interesting feedback from that from folks especially in Canada to be on the telephone with two guys standing in the middle of Penobscot River in downtown Bangor. That was a big kick. There were jet planes flying. If you don't fly along with the fact that we almost lost it all about. I meant it didn't have to do with this.

What kind of special feeling do you people any of you have for programs that are done live versus some pretty recording or rather be live all the time. It's a whole different feeling a whole different attitude. There's an exciting one in the crew. It's not there when you tape. And I think with the time and also because everybody knows if we really mess it up we can go back and start all over again. And when you're alive that's your life. It's much like going on stage I suppose from the standpoint of tension. I agree with Jim I think it's important that things be live on even if they're not live which they sometimes are not. When we have to get a candidate who's going to be in town at some time and not air time we stress that we can't stop. And that makes it live. That's live on tape. There's no going back. Well I started work at MTV and when I was a student back in the 60s when they were really locked into the studio effort then the transition came when I came back to work on TV and in 74 and of course at that time we had a large mobile unit a very large mobile is always a large. Was 40 some odd feet long and didn't

move with anything less than a Kenworth tractor. That was a short lived thing as we realized we couldn't support that kind of a B. So we ended up with a smaller units we now have or we go in that field and do various remotes his followers mentioned the sports notes that we do day primarily sports and I do primarily music Ramona's. That was an emphasis we shifted out of the studio. We did 60 some odd programs music programs in the studio we still continue to do some but the majority of them are now done on location down here in Portland. That's a necessity because short of putting one harmonica player or one man band that's about all you could do in this studio you really have to move to a location. So the stuff we do down here is primarily classical music or folk or jazz but it's all done on location and that's thanks to the advent of the newer technology that will allow us to do it. I think we've really benefited from the fall out if you were from music and sports modes we think nothing about going and right now we're going to have to go back number of a number of times to do a program on a transatlantic catamaran that's being built.

For example our commanders are going to try to get out of the way mainline Washington was an effort put a lot of new ground. And whether or not we ever get to do that again I don't know but it certainly was a service that. Made people I think appreciated it. We originally tried. And Jim was the original producer of it. Maybe you should go on but as I understand it you have to have all four of them or at least two of them together down there. We had originally hoped to get a to try and use it as a debriefing format primarily which we would have a two members of our congressional delegation on at the time a person from the Senate person from the house and through the reporters questions from those folks that were invited try to provide folks with a perspective through the representatives of what was happening in Washington. Well there was pressure being applied what kinds of

considerations were being made. How were those considerations being made. Who was trying to influence those considerations. Unfortunately I don't think much of that ever ever came through in the final bill and broadcast political people are political people and they give you the answers they want to hear. Well the other factor in that was that only one person appeared at one of the later stages and that probably probably wouldn't have been that way if we'd had two people competing with each other. I don't know. It's the kind of thing you have to do. It's Monday Morning Quarterbacks trying in trying to figure out what will happen. What's exciting about public television in Maine. Maine Public Broadcasting Network radio and television. What's exciting to you all about the rest of the 80s. I find I can. I came down here to Portland when in 81 I guess and the facility at that time really consists of nothing more nothing more than a monitoring site for transmitters. Since that time we've added video tape

recorders we've added cameras we've added staff to it. And of course obviously the end result of that is programming. This particular division is growing we have a new station manager who has the old radio program. You may be right he's getting old. I think that's because he sees the problems that we have. But I think the exciting thing for the 80s is what is happening with the industry as a large at large. The the of arrival of a lot of new distribution techniques and how the television signal gets from whoever has put a program together to those people at home. The new satellite service is expanding cable services video disk video tape all of that I think is going to cause us to think long and hard about where we fit into that scheme of things in terms of the types of programs we do and how we get into people.

Now of course radio is expanding with the two new transmitter sites in Dallas and Waterville coming up and we're very excited about expanding our audience to the central main area the Agusta Waterville area and across the border into Canada. We'll get a much stronger signal now over into New Brunswick and St. John area and hopefully up the cable systems throughout the Maritimes. One of the other things that we've done with radio and it's a tiny and it's a corollary not necessarily meant to be a simulcast is we've done a lot of public affairs work and read to you as well. Sometimes the radio public activities have been sort of an engine to start working with reading my TV together and I think we can see a lot of activities here where we're 3-D and TV work as a unit sharing a lot of information. But I think more programs of not necessarily public affairs is that are about all kinds of different areas have never been touched programs have never been done for a lot of things that we've tried here at MTV.

And I think more and more of that is very important of the state of Maine is it's no longer I don't know if it ever was but I think we've had the feeling sometimes that the state was way down in the list of cultural states way down on the list of places that have technology that had access to things that improve the quality of life. And that is not true. Portland for example is a very exciting city to live in. Right now we have a new museum of art with a lot of activities going on there. I know Gordon is going to be doing a recording in back of the ER and squawks like a lot of string quartets which is coming up. These things are happening in the state of Maine and we can tap into those theres going to be more of them and I see this is very exciting. Also what I see is exciting is the kind of love I think I don't want to get too carried away with that. But the great feeling people have for Public Broadcasting in the state

and I think part of that ties in with what weve been able to do bringing to the people of the state of Maine What is going on in the state of Maine and I think that we're going to see an awful lot more of that in the 80s. When I came here in 70 long time a number of credit courses with the university then that sort of went into a dormant period. And now with the advent of PBS his emphasis on adult learning that has come back and. Were serving through campuses who offer credit adult learners out in the remote areas remote from campuses. Theres a great deal of that in the future. I think one of the one of the things that we are doing is the kind of program yankie woodlot and small farm journal those kinds of programs where this technology will be applied and the delivery system will will basically be the same

into that through the 80s I think in terms of the rural aspect of Maine where the the other types of delivery systems I think will be more more useful in the concentrated population areas cable of these kinds of things. But it's it's a delivery system based on the needs of people if they're into to enlarge their educational horizons and their opportunities both formally and informally at the elementary school level as well as the adult level. It's been fun. Public Broadcasting has been fun for me since I've been in it since about 1964. It's always been the place where we could experiment and grow. You can try anything and we have tried and we're still doing it and that's what I see in the future as technology goes where are the commercial stations might be a little bit leery

to say gee maybe we shouldn't try that. Let's go with the Pat theme. We've always had the ability to say See if this thing is going to work and pushing the new technology which has been a lot of fun. Well you know as you look back as we look back here at the satellite utilization for broadcasting Public Radio and Public Television what some of the advances in the technology have done for us it affects all of us. It affects the design it affects Eric's post secondary educational aspects it affects radio as well as my staff which have to put it all together and make it work. It's made the the the routine aspects of what we do a lot easier a lot we don't really have to think about a lot of the basic stuff that used to have to. Well it used to be a real problem to deal with the the interconnects from getting a signal from outside of the station and into our house into our

system. So it's usable for us for our dicks where it say like a character generator or something. It's taken the tedium of making as you were saying the black cards with white graphics on white letters on it. It's. Taken a lot of the tedium out of the work a lot of the. Routine stuff things that were then they were nuts and bolts and had to be done. Since it does take. These time consuming nuts and bolts activities out of out of our schedule. Since are being taken care of by other thing other other electronics whatever. It's going we're going to allow the talent to come out more and more talent all the time. That's how we got our end product through. Yeah. That budget has grown the staff has grown the expertise of the staff has grown. We have a fine group of people are very talented people.

And of the rest of the 80s and beyond. Where are we headed. And how will we get there. I think it's the advent of small format. Video recording devices has made instructional television a much more flexible tool in the schools. Talking about K through 12 I think that the growth of instructional television in the schools has been as a gradual but steady over the years and I think it'll continue to grow as it becomes more flexible easier to use in terms of scheduling and those those kinds of things. I think one of the things that we saw in the early days were credit college credit courses and those PBS has now gotten this picture and made it possible to market courses across the country. I think that will continue to grow. I think the whole

educational use of it is perhaps going to see a renaissance in the next few years with with additional demands for educational opportunity on the part of people people in Maine I'm talking about now compared to. The norm around the country. And my awareness of it. We stand in very good position. It's good use being made of programming. I think parents ought to know that teachers do not use television programs as babysitting devices in the classroom. They're integrated into the into the classroom program to meet the needs of kids for the most part. Sure there are always exceptions but I think from what I know of what I've seen I feel very good about the quality of use that is being made and the quantity is fairly normal. The typical classroom will use a a series or two through a high school year. The quality is improved dramatically since we started like I can remember early days it

was pretty crude. But today it's really very sophisticated and it's done very well in the state of the art has improved in NZ in every area. And then I see technology being one of the basic challenges we have because we have more with the US to to look at. We can do more instantaneously. The world now is our radio studio is our experience literally. We are doing things in programming that are not in the can. We are not doing just classical music programs and presenting them but we are presenting programs which are originating get four or five points simultaneously and they are used as far as call ins. It is a challenge to the initiative program. I think this is part of it. The technology of satellite communication has been brought very much into radio. I think its great that we are no longer an entertainment service for quite a while educational radio

had a lot of good classical music on and had some instructional programming at this point. We have a mix and we are trying to respond to Maine as an example because its such a variety of publics a listening audiences at different times in different places. I think the challenge is we cant be all things to all people but weve got to pick those areas where there is a service that needs to be provided and Public Affairs. Cultural Affairs. Awful lot of people want to go about whats going on and. And since we are a b and work things that was of interest an awful lot of time. Essentially you dont see any and a substantial change in the kind of service that people have come to expect from TV and radio. Qualitatively Yes I think our program quality as it is in television. We have much better programming available than we've ever had before. We

also have a challenge in that we don't have enough hours now. We've talked about this for television. We have more programs that we would like to share than we can possibly do. And this means that we are having to go through an editorial process and hope that we're right now a loyal audience our radio audience is they're very vocal and very supportive and really feel that public radio belongs to them which of course it does. Oh they definitely do. I think that the thing that comes out there is that we're dealing with an audience that does not follow the national norm of listening to of the border stations they listen to me in public broadcasting networks radio service and that is just exactly the way it goes. And a good number of those listeners survey sheafs that we get back tell us that they listen almost all day long we are aching head and

therefore as a companion we probably are analyzed and criticized much more carefully than our other commercial radio. I think part of the reason for the concern by the audience and the participation is the fact that. They believe us when we say and because they have come to know that to act on their suggestions that we're interested in what they say. And if you if you're encouraged to write in and call in with your comments and you're listen to them people will be more likely to do that. And I think that helps a lot as I already said a little bit earlier. There is so much programming now that is available to us that we have a hard time and finding good spots for a lot of this program. We can always find a Saturday morning Sunday afternoon spot but a lot of people want to see it on in primetime. There are only so many primetime hours. And it's very very hard. Task to put it in. But as far as the future is concerned and public television programming.

I think it's a bright future. I think public television stations and organizations continue to. Use imagination initiative for the ship to get the best possible programming acquired or produced and get it out to the rest of the station. So I see a bright future. Barbara beares you have a number of duties in areas called development and public information that I think most television audience people really might not realize exist at the station and one other thing they may not realize how important they are to the station. Why don't you fill the audience in a way you do. It involves everything from our radio and television program guides advertising work with the main press in the Maritimes press running our six annual membership campaigns doing direct mail campaigns. Corporate underwriting support all those things that work together in that package to bring support and even over well just

under 25 percent of our budget is made up by support from our members and our corporate supporters. And so that's a very healthy chunk of support. And the one that we depend upon dearly that we as we say during our membership campaigns could not do without. We simply could not provide the kinds of programming that people have come to depend on without its membership support. How important. Are activities like development and membership. To the kinds of programming that we can offer on TV and radio and TV on TV. Very very important and I think a lot of growth comes out of this area of the new dollars that we're able to generate through membership and corporate support is where we are able to find the financial support for new endeavors because of the federal cutbacks we've had to make that area grow to take up the slack that has come from

the federal cutbacks so the area is tremendously important for new ventures and and and in some cases keeping the existing programming on the air as really said. I think the demise that was predicted a couple of years ago with the advent of all of the satellite services the audience knows this Home Box Office and start time and there were some cultural services that were started at the same time. Which were predicted to put public broadcasting out of business. These predictions have been proven to be false. Both of the satellite systems that were developed have gone out of business. CBS developed one last so seven thirty nine million dollars. During that time the public broadcast audience has grown by 6 percent. Over those two or three years. The commercial broadcast audience has dropped by about

10 percent. The other 4 percent of the audiences is just calculated to have gone to game shows and video discs and that kind of thing. But in fact MTV MTV and as well as PBS is growing. So I feel very optimistic about the future. We're going to continue to grow slowly and provide services that people are interested in. We couldn't show you everything or everyone that had a part in PBS develop. We tried to get to the high points and get the feeling for the people who have committed themselves to the network develop development. We hope you've enjoyed what you've seen and heard and want to see and hear more in the event you do. MPB and will continue to be here. Good night. Good night. To. You.

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