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Berkshire Public Access Threatened By FCC Rule Change

The Pittsfield Community Television logo
Pittsfield Community Television

In August, the Federal Communications Commission voted to change 35-year-old rules on how cable companies pay for Public, Educational and Government access television and radio stations nationwide. Shawn Serre is the Executive Director of Pittsfield Community Television and WTBR, public access stations that would be impacted by the move to cut back the amount of funding private corporations must provide them. He sat down with WAMC explain why the changes threaten some public broadcasters, and how new legislation proposed by Democratic Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey could protect them.

Josh Landes has been WAMC's Berkshire Bureau Chief since February 2018, following stints at WBGO Newark and WFMU East Orange. A passionate advocate for Western Massachusetts, Landes was raised in Pittsfield and attended Hampshire College in Amherst, receiving his bachelor's in Ethnomusicology and Radio Production. His free time is spent with his cat Harry, experimental electronic music, and exploring the woods.
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