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Brookline hears public praise for community media as Comcast license renewal proceeds
Summary
Residents and Brookline Interactive Group leaders urged the Select Board to protect local access programming and noted risks to funding tied to cable-subscriber revenues during a public hearing on Comcast's license renewal.
The Select Board held a public hearing on Comcast's upcoming cable license renewal on Oct. 21, 2025, and heard more than a dozen speakers urge continued support for Brookline Interactive Group (BIG), the town's community media center.
The hearing is part of the federal- and state-required ascertainment process to collect public comment on local cable-related needs and Comcast's performance ahead of the license expiration on April 30, 2026. Comcast representative Angela Holm Barson said the company is negotiating the renewal with town staff and will consider public testimony in those talks: “We have been working on, negotiating the existing license with the town of Brookline,” she said, and “I look forward to hearing your testimony tonight regarding your cable related needs.”
Why it matters: BIG broadcasts civic meetings (select board, school committee, many subcommittees), produces community programming and youth media training, and provides a public-access channel Comcast carries (Comcast channel 8 for civic meetings; channel 6 for community programming). Speakers told the board that BIG’s recordings are essential for civic participation, especially for busy residents and seniors who rely on live TV and archived meetings to follow municipal affairs.
Speakers described BIG’s reach and services. Jessica Smizer, BIG’s executive director, told the board BIG airs “between 6 and 12 local public meetings a week” and that membership rose from 32 to about 150 in 2025. Town meeting member Jim Franco and others said BIG helps newcomers learn town government and highlighted BIG’s youth employment and training programs. Students and program participants described hands-on learning and community benefits.
Several speakers urged the board to secure stable funding for BIG. Select Board member Paul Warren and others raised the issue of “cord cutting” — declining cable subscriptions nationally — and asked whether the current legal structure, in which PEG (public, educational, government) funding derives from a percentage of cable-subscriber revenue, will continue to sustain local public-access services. Comcast’s representative said federal law ties franchise fees to cable subscribers only and that she could not predict whether that statutory structure will change.
On the question of senior access and affordability, Comcast confirmed it offers a senior discount and other programs and said it has worked with town staff in the past to provide details to interested residents.
The Select Board did not take a vote on the license at this meeting. Chair Bernard Green said Comcast and other stakeholders will return for a public hearing on Oct. 28, when the board expects representatives from Chestnut Hill Realty, Flock Safety and co-chairs of the Police Community Advisory Committee to be present.
Ending: The hearing closed after public comment. Board and town staff said they will collect the testimony and continue negotiations with Comcast; the formal renewal process will include further public hearings and a license negotiation period before the 2026 expiration.
