[Peace] URBANA MAYOR TORPEDOES DN!/UPTV DECISION

[Randall Cotton]

Well, I guess I found out where the resistance was.

I attended the UPTV commission meeting today and presented the petition with
over 550 signatures on it. The petition helped a lot.

However, Urbana mayor Todd Satterthwaite also personally attended and voiced
opposition to UPTV commission approval for acquiring FSTV and broadcasting
Democracy Now!

Now he didn't come right out and say "I'm against this" (though he might as
well have), but he used specious arguments to dissuade the commission from
voting on a motion in favor. One commission member, Kevin Maxson, took up
the mayor's reasoning and the commission ultimately decided further study
was in order and the issue was put off until the next UPTV Commission
meeting, which is two months away (September 13th).

If the mayor had not voiced opposition, I'm convinced the commission would
have voted in favor of DN! and FSTV for UPTV today.

A tentative motion to go ahead with DN! on UPTV was put forth (by commission
member Pete Resnick) and I heard a majority of the commission vote in favor,
but then the motion fizzled after further arguments by Kevin Maxson and the
mayor.

Most of the meeting was recorded (I'm kicking myself now for not recording
the whole thing myself - it got really interesting at the end after the
recording stopped).

There is a LOT more to tell on this.

Fear not, the fight is not over (it has only begun). I'm confident this
effort will prevail, but I will need lots of help.

Right now, I have to put together today's Courier on WEFT, but you'll hear
much more from me on this later.

R