JAG Membership Benefits

by Stephanie Gibbons, Membership Chair



When one thinks of the Membership Committee, it may be as the group that takes in information about a new member, welcomes them and helps them get acquainted with JAG as an organization.  Or you may think of us as that irritating committee that pesters you to fill out a membership survey.  But the Membership Committee is much more than that.  This committee is continually looking at JAG from the member’s point of view… why did you join JAG? Are you getting the most out of your membership?  Are there other benefits you need or want?  So the committee recently when back to the drawing board as to the membership categories we offer and what is most valuable to each of the types of membership.

The Eastern Video Expo……. There and back again!

by Paul Distefano, Eastern Regional Sales Manager, DeSisti



After the two-year hiatus as a result of the apocalypse, as I like to refer to it, what a pleasure it was to participate in this year’s Eastern Video Expo, IN PERSON, again!  Since I was privileged to have been a part of the expo, in all its forms and names, since its start in 2003, I was asked to comment on this year’s conference.  When I was asked, the first thing that came to mind was the term “full circle”.

5 Takeaways from My First Eastern Video Expo

By Dana Healy, VP Cablecast Community Media



The Jersey Access Group hosted the Eastern Video Expo LIVE for the first time in a couple of years. Hello! My name is Dana Healy, and I’m the VP of Cablecast Community Media. This was my first time attending the Eastern Video Expo! Being the new kid on the block, every attendee I met was a new face. Here are my 5 take-aways from the New Jersey-based event.

Spotlight Clark: New Facility is a Very Busy Place in Clark

By Don Smith, Staff, Clark TV



Clark TV-36 is owned and operated by the Township of Clark as OurClark Media TV36 which is part of the Communications and Business Development Department under the Direction of Elizabeth Clee.  The TV-36 Staff includes Phil Scardilli, TV/Multimedia Teacher at ALJ High School who has been with the station for 20 years and Don Smith who brings over 25 years of experience in local television.

An Exciting Night at the JAG Awards

By George Fairfield, JAG Awards Committee, Chair



The curtain has come down on another JAG Awards season.  On behalf of JAG and the Awards Committee, I congratulate everyone; not only all the Award of Excellence, Distinction, & Recognition winners, but also ALL those who entered even just one program into the JAG Awards.  These days it is not easy for a PEG station, a Non-profit, or an Independent Producer to create a program.  We all have budgets to navigate through; we all have to maneuver through the different agendas along our paths; and let us not forget how we all must constantly pilot through the obstacles the pandemic keeps throwing into our way.  Nevertheless, with all this and more swirling around, our PEG community produced and entered into the JAG Awards Competition some of the most diverse programs ever.  AND we had some of the most diversity among the winners than I can recall.

An Exceptional Event For Operational and Technology Training at the Eastern Video Expo

By Bob Duthaler, Executive Board, Chair



I said this throughout the Eastern Video Expo and even in another article in this newsletter (Challenge – figure out what article and email me your answer), it was great to have an in-person portion of this year’s event, something we have not been able to do since 2019.  But what helped separate this year’s event was our hybrid approach.  Our in-person Trade Show as bookended by two virtual conference session days.  Once again, we were able to pull in tremendous speakers throughout the country as they shared their knowledge and learning experience throughout their career.

JAG Sharing Programs & Knowledge

by Jesse Lerman, President/CEO, TelVue


It was a welcome change to finally be back in person at the Eastern Video Expo 2022.  One of the big benefits of in-person events is how much easier it is to engage when it comes to feedback and collaborative-based discussions such as User Groups.  So we were excited to be hosting the JAG Shared Server User Group to kick off the in-person conference day.  The JAG Shared Server is one of the many great perks of being a JAG Member Station, making it easy to share programming within the JAG community and find relevant local programming for your station.  Here are some interesting statistics from JAG Shared Server:

President’s Message June, 2022

by Bob Duthaler

JAG Honors One of Its Own and Another Who Promotes JAG

One of my favorite times during the year is our annual JAG/Eastern Video Expo and Conference.  This year was no exception.  In fact, there was something even a little more special about this year, as it was the first time we have gathered in person since 2019.  This year we gathered for our Trade Show, Banquet and JAG Awards on Wednesday, May 25th at the Crowne Plaza in Edison, NJ.

Spotlight: Princeton “Within crisis, are the seeds of opportunity” – Marilyn Monroe

by George McCollough, Princeton



The crisis for Princeton Community Television began in 2019 when the organization was unable to negotiate a contract to manage the access channel with the Town of Princeton.  In a startling decision the Town decided to take advantage of a recent law which allowed a Town to utilize its franchise fees to offset property tax increases.  Public outcry could not reverse the decision.  Like many public access stations across the country, Princeton TV found itself at a crossroad.