IT'S NOT 'JUST' ACCESS
I don't know if any of you have ever attended an Emmy Awards ceremony, but last night I had the surreal pleasure of being at the one in Boston. It occurred to me, as I sat there waiting to hear if my daughter Jul3ia's name would be called, that access folks often underestimate our own value in the general scheme of television media. So many times I've heard people say, "Oh, it doesn't matter if the show isn't as slick as what you see on the other channels. It's just access." And, yes, I guess technical quality isn't the first thing that concerns access producers when they are learning and creating shows about subjects that are really important to them.
But last night, when Chronicle's Mary Richardson called Jul3ia's name and our entire table full of people (including the chief meteorologist from a Springfield news station and several other broadcast industry producers and celebrities) started screaming and jumping up and down, I realized that there are times when being as good or better than the programs on the other channels is important. The crowd at the awards ceremony certainly noticed us last night, and for an industry that is so often pushed aside and marginalized, it was a stellar moment.
Jul3ia's music video won the Emmy in a technical category - Outstanding Advanced Media Animation and Motion Graphic Design. She took her first studio class when she was 12. She didn't go to college. All the technical skills she needed to become an Emmy winner, she learned at an access center. She produced her video, Reality TV, entirely with equipment provided at her local community media center.
And in her acceptance speech, she said all that. Then she thanked her access center, and the Alliance for Community Media, and said, to all of those hundreds of people from mainstream television, "Access is a gift to all of us." I don't think I've ever been so proud and grateful to be part of this organization and this profession. Because, we're not just access - we are something extraordinary.
