Sneak Peak at a project I've been working on:
https://communitymedia.network/

This is a website with information about #DIYTV and #NewEllijayTelevision, a history of independent video from the #videofreex through to #youtube and suggestions on how to proceed in to the future.

It's still growing. There are almost certainly typos, formatting issues, dead links, awkward phrases, incorrect information, missing instructions, etc. Over the next week or three I'll be adding links, embedding videos, sharing code, and writing additional supplemental and instructional materials.

But the site is up and it works, and I have a page through which you can by a hand bound zine style copy of Community Media: A Handbook for Revolutions in DIY TV.

The mural depicts lots of things, but that scene specifically is supposed to represent on of the #videofreex carrying a Sony AVC-3400 (AKA the portapak) taping an instance of police violence in the seconds before the officer turns on him.

It's a chilling scene to watch.

You can see that moment from the perspective of the cameraman for a few seconds in the trailer for Here Come the Videofreex: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=iXAkIjztp4w

The whole scene, from his perspective and from another perspective, appears in the film. Right up until the point everyone runs.

I'm finally in to the meet of #SubjectToChange.

They're done talking about the #videoFreex and they're in to TVTV and the work done in Appalachia.

There's so much to this movement, this era, and I'm glad it was cataloged.

Now I have to try and hunt it all down.

A couple of notes:

1 - early TVs are pretty forgiving of the resolution limitations of the Sony Portapak format.

2 - black and white TVs were at least as common in this era than color TV, and many shows were still black and white (even where some networks had started broadcasting in color.)

3 - The #VideoFreex could have used some more light.

Well not *just* the #VideoFreex

Also The Raindance Foundation and TVTV and trying to read the issues of Radical Software that are available.

It's amazing how Of The Times some of this content is, and how Ahead Of the Times some of this content is.

I'm reading about Intersectional Independent Media Production from more than 50 years ago, and where they succeeded and failed.

This #DIYMedia movement is older and weirder and way cooler than I thought.

@vanillacherry @ND3JR That's what the #VideoFreex were doing in NY in 1971, and TVTV in CA in 72 or 73.

They broadcast rock bands, and local news, and other stuff.

What would be broadcast today? Who knows! I think that MNN in NY gives us at least a small glimpse in to what folks would do.

(and in case you were concerned that it was all rock and roll and bread and circuses, here's the #videoFreex interviewing Fred Hampton of the black panthers in 1969: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIbeTS8G5co

Imagine what else is sitting in their vaults.)

Adding tags to this thread about the EIAJ documentary so I can reference it later #DIYMedia #citizenMedia #EIAJ #VideoProjects #videoFreex