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A VERY BRIEF HISTORY OF MCCET
(NOW MCTV)
In the early 1970�s Charlene Aumack, the Fort Bragg High School Librarian, saw a demonstration of first consumer portable television cameras - the Sony Portapak - and saw the possibilities for video in education. The school purchased the camera and for the next 20 years Charlene taught video to Fort Bragg students while remaining the school librarian. Charlene and the students brought their programs tape to the cable company, often climbing up to cable headend on Bald Mountain to get them played.
In 1982 Mendocino Coast Community Educational Television (MCCET) became an official Public, Education, and Government Access organization and in 1985 a Century Cable Franchise provided some money that could be used for equipment. The MCCET began as Joint Powers Authority board with 7 local non profits and government agencies responsible for governing MCCET.
Charlene Aumack continued to function as the director of MCCET for many years beyond her retirement from the school district. Charlene retired from MCCET in 2004, she died in 2005 at 87 years old.
In 2005, after years of discussion the MCCET board decided there was a better chance of surviving as a nonprofit organization. In the fall of 2006, after each of the boards of the JPA members agreed with our proposal and voted to disband the JPA, and to recognize the new nonprofit, Mendocino Coast Television, as the organization managing Public, Education and Government Access on the northern mendocino coast.
Small rural areas like ours aren�t usually able to maintain a PEG access organization, we have been able to in large part because of Charlene�s vision and persistence. MCCET/MCTV is one of the oldest community access channels.
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