Naperville's community-access television station will wait for legal advice before airing a program depicting an occupied Palestine.
Meanwhile, station leadership continues to debate a policy change that would put on hold programs deemed to contain hate speech or propaganda until targeted groups can produce a rebuttal program.
Over the weekend, members of NCTV's board of directors were asked to watch copies of "Life in the Occupied Territories," a program submitted by Naperville producer John Bagley.
At a meeting of the board's executive committee Tuesday, President David Miller said he felt unsubstantiated statements in the program may prevent the station from airing it.
"I think that it was one-sided largely by omission," Miller said. "In other words ... with roadblocks he never explained why there are roadblocks, that perhaps maybe a person with a bomb does not get across the roadblocks."
The program also included overlays of graphics at the end that Miller worried were simply not true.
The committee voted to delay the tape's airing until the station confers with lawyers.
Also at the meeting, residents Kanan and Vivian Rosenstein repeated their request that the station consider altering its policy to give groups targeted by hate speech or propaganda in a prospective program the chance to produce their own tape before the first one airs.
Kanan Rosenstein said he represents a "loose coalition" of residents who are prepared to produce a program opposing Bagley's in the next three to four months.
"It's not going to be somebody's speech because that is a very easy program to do, putting a camera in front of somebody's face with no rebuttal or discussion," Vivian Rosenstein said.
The Rosensteins said they are not suggesting censorship, just reminding the station of its right under the First Amendment to choose what it airs. They said they are referring specifically to programs that could be defined as ethnic, religious or political propaganda.
In response, the committee voted not to air "Life in the Occupied Territories" until the full board reviews policy changes June 18.
Board member Jay Johnson warned against deciding to further hold a program that currently meets station requirements for content.
"The producer of that show also has rights ...," he said. "And we have to be aware of those."
05/28/03