The public, educational, and government TV channel is in full swing within the West Chester community. Many students and residents might wonder what the channel’s purpose is, and this is what I’m here to tell you. Channel 33 is available to all Verizon customers. It is strictly produced by the public and community, and is used to distribute educational and government content to all of its viewers. This channel has many benefits for the residents of West Chester. Foremost, its purpose is to bring together the university and community’s relationship, while developing means of technology along the way.
I am currently interning for Mayor Carolyn Comitta, and I have been assigned to be the primary liaison between the borough and university regarding the PEG channel, otherwise known as the public access channel. As a fourth-year communication studies major, I have worked closely with Dr. Boyle, Mayor Comitta, theBorough Council, and my department, to monitor the progress of the station. As the semester went on, I constantly got updates on the channel and relayed this information to the community so we were all on the same level. Once the station was available to viewers, one of my responsibilities was to develop public service announcements to display on the channel; some of which include scheduled times of Borough Council meetings, future events and activities going on within the community, and parking information for residents of the borough. A hope for the channel is to be able to provide viewers with taped committee or Borough Council meetings that air during the week. This will be a way to include them in government decisions, as they see at a closer level what is going on in the community around them.
My goal is for both off-campus students and residents to hear about this channel through means of advertising or word of mouth. Even though I will be graduating in a few short weeks, I hope to come back one day in the future to see the PEG channel fully functioning with an overflowing amount of content. Possibly featuring university events, concerts, and departments, while also focusing on the borough and their events, meetings, and trips, that are so readily available to residents within the community.
Look for updates on the channel as it continues to develop content, and spread the word. Please tune in to learn more about your university and the community of West Chester!