[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6241493,"mediaKeyId","3255719-cb6a65fa5c121d7dcabd4e76de8786a6","parentId",3255719,"title","Independent filmmaker recounts year-long struggle to get film programmed on university station","audioSeconds",227,"startMs",2429345,"endMs",2656945,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3255719-cb6a65fa5c121d7dcabd4e76de8786a6&start=2429&end=2656","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3255719-cb6a65fa5c121d7dcabd4e76de8786a6/thumbnail_2429345.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6241493/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Independent-filmmaker-recounts-year-long-struggle-to-get-film-programmed-on-university-station","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6241493-550128760461791d82ce66738e21d895/orig.mp4?Expires=1771143777&Signature=TNYVxP7sEdAQFwE6qKIawVlbZvYk6QQeoSoGH3asUk9nufnea4l6Slyka2uW82lNXd4ZWPXqI1rY166FDYtRDwlV-VZKXsIFj7sapJjJzOyvEVBmDKiZEpHwk370b3pyEnCn4y4tIV8EbqJhQm9tIv8IdS1-T5rV9L-GLgpRLopaRyqMMe9mRoOsqQrJ46iSP1sEz7caczvRE3gBc68dFxhUmUCV65h6wBQyAfwkj7r77Pgp92f45RrFy2Cmqi8YfF2LnGFHSvGRR-6r2t-czUjEt6AqMnxB5F~g3N5CRma0GU6NrTATMH4K03tl4Ql59RuscjCNCskOxU6ZpTo7dw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Missoula, MT","date","2025-05-09T20:33:59Z","article","Lynn Merrick, an independent producer and filmmaker, described prolonged efforts to have her documentary aired on the Bozeman-area public station KUSM and said the experience illustrated a need for formalized policies on how independent work is handled.

“I don’t have time to watch that, Lynn,” Merrick quoted Ron Jetson, whom she identified as the station’s program director, as saying after she brought a cassette to the station. Merrick said the tape “sat on it for about 4 months” before she returned and later, after public recognition for the film, the station scheduled a single broadcast about a year after she first submitted it.

Merrick said she was told by multiple people that Jetson makes programming decisions individually and that the station’s friends/fundraising group does not set programming. She said that, when her film finally aired, she received calls from viewers who had been treated rudely when they contacted the station to find out when it would be shown.

Merrick described the experience as censorship and called for clearer, documented policies at university stations so independent producers can understand distribution pathways and scheduling practices. She also named station manager Jack HIPAA and program director Ron Jetson and said she had raised concerns with Marilyn Wessel (associated with Montana State University) without satisfactory resolution.

Workshop presenters did not adopt any formal recommendations. Merrick’s account was presented as a first-person example of barriers independent producers face when seeking distribution on institutional public-broadcast outlets.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","MCAT Producers' Workshop, Montana Media Beyond Public Access Television","oneSentenceSummary","Filmmaker Lynn Merrick told Missoula workshop attendees she struggled for more than a year to get her documentary shown on KUSM, describing inconsistent programming decisions and limited transparency about how independent work is selected.","taxTitle","Missoula, Missoula County, Montana","taxId",4050,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6241495,"Bitterroot’s BVTV: low-power television operator describes volunteer start, funding and technical limits",102,1951605,2053800,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3255719-cb6a65fa5c121d7dcabd4e76de8786a6&start=1951&end=2053","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3255719-cb6a65fa5c121d7dcabd4e76de8786a6/thumbnail_1951605.jpg","/articles/6241495/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Bitterroots-BVTV-low-power-television-operator-describes-volunteer-start-funding-and-technical-limits","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6241495-68be7a003604143a4186f3ed0e095066/orig.mp4?Expires=1771143777&Signature=Fry5~wl71flSeJuLV2~oMzadyZ58RNUJ2Fqawb8Bry63z8iXO8MbDpJRRrSm-LTp1031DlTnGcT9RG5WYHF4OCDlfZk7UeRZEIGK5xuq5ePRb8caPlCEMqtgof2ZtlE4GWbxyFM4tyHsSlnYhy66V5HoBROTm1CXnCZQcF8YR-aM2gF~QpJABq-AZcz8DGOo8zPYmdTMvv4uzy4NWsNYLPt9Y~Kg5LkKKyHuYdz0IwrgQK4vOQSXm0GBpaGQXkHe5v6wsV5i7yhpF2ZBnuBIXdu41~thn9Hwadr9fRU9tLIahA61-vHdQ3C8cSJsoUhpQBlyWMvpw6tLGEdHgSdT3g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jim Parker, a leader with Bitterroot Valley Television (BVTV), described BVTV’s volunteer founding, funding mix and technical limits at a Missoula workshop on community media.

“BVTV went on the air in 1988, in August of 88,” Parker said, recounting the station’s founding and the role of local volunteers who built programming and raised underwriting. Parker said BVTV later received a $165,000 grant to help purchase local production equipment.

Parker said the station’s audience and finances are a mix of community support: about 40 percent of its budget comes from underwriters, roughly 20–25 percent from member contributions, about $2,500 a year from Hamilton cable franchise fees, and the remainder from production fees and occasional grants. He also said BVTV had nearly 800 dues-paying members and “more underwriters right now, I think, than KUFM.”

Technically, Parker described low-power television as a line-of-sight technology that struggles with mountainous Western Montana terrain. To extend coverage, BVTV operates translators: Parker said the station added a translator near Corvallis, plans one near Florence within 12–14 months, and hopes to add a fourth translator at Sula to reach remaining pockets of the valley.

Parker also described organizational and regulatory steps BVTV took while forming: early construction-permit setbacks and a multi-year process to obtain nonprofit 501(c)(3) status. He emphasized the station’s reliance on volunteer teams for production and fundraising and said local production and team-based training were central to BVTV’s model.

No formal actions were taken at the workshop. Parker’s account provided attendees a practical outline of how a community low-power station organizes, funds itself and addresses geographic challenges.","At the MCAT workshop, Jim Parker described the volunteer origins, funding mix and technical challenges of Bitterroot Valley Television (BVTV), a low-power station that launched in 1988 and relies on underwriters, members and translators to reach its audience.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6241500,"Missoula workshop: speakers call for public role, transparency in building Montana public-television system",188,223525,412160,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3255719-cb6a65fa5c121d7dcabd4e76de8786a6&start=223&end=412","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3255719-cb6a65fa5c121d7dcabd4e76de8786a6/thumbnail_223525.jpg","/articles/6241500/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Missoula-workshop-speakers-call-for-public-role-transparency-in-building-Montana-public-television-system","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6241500-e41cb2a2547477d142cec7b40220aa11/orig.mp4?Expires=1771143777&Signature=L449KVBe9Bpt4qBqEdEdB1PDuIoXo9ClP7sOpWXeZnz61tbe2Md3VrhKCGXfEv5J-JoO6qPf-UmywqcmVx3Qps4Goy3sy7OtyI8sKK4It3CZ0-vJgDrwYsowludLxSxcVpb1HEqqCfpnIztEu8cUfq096F4CVkqqNGHlnawhPw0Hs9BnzQEWLkPzHZTzRBCOX35cYGs0mbgU5BTGUkcdN93bqHsgfwSY0RLLBMdPxOUzV-r-L1t-Y1aNpgt71PTINtBW4TsI1lQYOmyEO6Fxcw5kf18KrLjbiFaJ0P~3VzwV1ZE0I~F7-QbqzXjDeAG6MmiOmhA7RENyPvrJbC41iw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Speakers at a Missoula workshop on “Montana Media Beyond Access” said Montana still lacks a fully institutionalized public-television system and urged more open public participation in shaping one.

“Public television in Montana…is a controversial issue of public importance,” McCarthy Coyle, reporter and editor of The Independent, said, adding that he has “heard almost nothing” about who is doing what and where the money is coming from. “I see a major responsibility not being met by present telecommunications providers.”

Workshop organizer Mary (MCAT host) and Coyle framed the problem as one of access to information about institutional plans for public television. Coyle described public television broadly — from commercial licensees who must “serve in the public interest” to institutional public broadcasting associated with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) — and said Montana has struggled for years to develop a statewide institutional system.

Speakers raised three recurring concerns: the lack of regular, clear communication from universities and public broadcasters about timelines and budgets; the influence of private cable companies on planning and funding; and the limited opportunities for independent producers to learn how and when their work will be distributed on statewide outlets.

Coyle cited a recent controversy — a senator’s hold on CPB funding after a program about grazing drew complaints — as an example of how programming questions can trigger policy and funding debates. He also pointed to a 1989 special-session law that, he said, provided substantial tax relief to cable, radio and television interests and reduced local tax revenues by about 44 percent in some communities; he said that loss of local funds reduced resources that might otherwise support local programming and infrastructure.

Speakers suggested structural alternatives, including joint licensing arrangements between universities and community groups, more active outreach to independent producers, and bolder state-level pilot projects that would combine cable, public-education links and low-power stations to pursue “universal service.” Coyle and others urged regular, public consultation during planning and noted that past planning efforts — which they said have consumed state and federal dollars over many years — often reflected institutional visions rather than broad community input.

The workshop did not produce formal motions or decisions. Instead, presenters urged Montanans to press institutions and elected officials for clearer timelines, budget detail and opportunities for independent producers to participate in programming decisions.","At a Missoula workshop on “Montana Media Beyond Access,” speakers said Montana lacks an institutionalized public-television system, urged clearer public participation and transparency about funding and private-sector ties, and cited recent federal and state policy decisions as complicating factors.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Independent filmmaker recounts year-long struggle to get film programmed on university station

Bitterroot’s BVTV: low-power television operator describes volunteer start, funding and technical limits

Missoula workshop: speakers call for public role, transparency in building Montana public-television system