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12 July 2005

Shameless self-link/favor-asking inside. →[More:]

The Houston City Council is trying to recall the contract of Houston's public access cable organization. Like most cable access channels, this one ran "questionable" content submitted by its citizen producers. (Although all the raunchy stuff aired after 2 a.m.)

One council member is so offended at the content of the access channel that she's launched a campaign to kill Houston MediaSource, the nonprofit org that operates the cable channel.

(HMS receives no local taxpayer dollars. The Council, however, can cancel its contract.)

The City Council is scheduled to vote on the contract renewal on Wednesday (which may be today, depending on your time zone).

My group has organized an email campaign asking the city council to protect free speech, not the delicate sensibilities of prudish council members. We could use your help.

Send a letter?

Apologies if this is an inappropriate request. There's no money involved. Just principle.

post by: mudpuppie at: 23:52 | 8 comments

No problem. I've family in Houston, and even if I didn't, it's just.

posted by invitapriore 13 July | 00:19

Uh, I might have laid the rhetoric on a little heavily, but here's the text:

Houston MediaSource is an invaluable resource for those seeking to get their content on the air. The fundamental laws of this country make no distinction between content that might be found offensive and content that won't. That means that MediaSource has no obligation to cater to anyone's sensibilities - they are perfectly within their rights, are doing a great service to the community, and are conducting themselves according to the principles that ought to be forever held in mind by every citizen. It is their right to remain in service and it is this citizen's request that they do so, a request backed with the utmost purity of conviction. Thank you.

posted by invitapriore 13 July | 00:25

maybe they should join up with deep dish or the like (not sure what's still functional nowadays)

posted by ethylene 13 July | 00:35

What sort of "objectionable content" is it?

posted by divabat 13 July | 02:11

someone will always object to something, right?

posted by dabitch 13 July | 02:16

Gah. Iread that COMPLETELY wrong, sorry.

*hides*

posted by divabat 13 July | 02:19

City councils suck. Everyone in America should go to a council meeting. I've attended a few where the council-people were almost as well-behaved as second graders.

For the most part, no one watches them, they get away with murder, and sometimes when they can't get away with murder they declare a closed "emergency session" and get away with murder with no one watching.

posted by shane 13 July | 09:10

actually, i know some people who dealt with this same issue on a smaller level. if you think there is time or it can help, they may be able to send some materials pertinent to the matter. i have to say the council meeting was hysterical, we won of course, but i don't know if that part was recorded anywhere.

posted by ethylene 13 July | 09:24

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