Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Lehrer News Hour piece on Cohousing (was: [C-L]_Lehrer New Hour...)

[Raines Cohen (rc2-coho-L]

On 12/27/02 1:58 PM, Diana Porter < porterd [at] cinci.rr.com> wrote:

>I am surprised that no one has responded to the video portrait of 
>cohousing on the Lehrer News Hour on the 23rd.  What did people think of 
>it?  

I watched it first at fellow Cohousing Network boardmember Ann Zabaldo's 
unit at Takoma Village Cohousing, and then, with instant replay vio TiVo, 
in the reading room at TVC after a a very scrumptious common dinner, 
along with several people there.

>I thought it was a sympathetic piece and helped to make cohousing a 
>"household word" with the public television crowd. 

10 minutes of prime time PBS is quite nice! It made the point better than 
any other presentation I've seen about how working out issues with 
neighbors through consensus is a FEATURE of cohousing, not a bug.

> There were several 
>shots of adults and children of color but it tended to focus on parents 
>with children so that the true diversity that makes up many communities 
>wasn't highlighted. 

It did at least have a mix of urban and rural communities; Swan's coho 
laundry room appeared twice! Video, especially network TV (even PBS), 
tends to amplify trends already present, so it's not surprising that a 
few key messages/images get emphasized. The apparent lack of racial 
diversity in the segment came up in a discussion today about using the 
tape for recruitment/evangelism of additional coho projects.

> This said, it was very positive and hopefully made 
>some of the audience long for more community. 

I know that Swan's we got at least one info request a few minutes after 
the segment started airing locally; any other similar experiences? I saw 
that Eastern Village Cohousing showed the segment as part of its 
orientation and tour of Takoma Village Coho today.

> Any suggestions as to how 
>local groups could follow up with public television to get publicity for 
>cohousing groups forming in their television area?

I sent customized emails to group contacts and TCN members and prospects 
saying, in part:

>>If your group is in the developing or recruiting phase, this is a great
>>opportunity to follow up with local media exposures; make sure that people
>>can find your group, not just via the Communities List at
>>www.cohousing.org, but also through local resources. It might be worth your
>>while to contact your local PBS station and make sure they've got your
>>info; they might be able to do a community service bulletin of some sort.
>>If nothing else, this may help encourage your neighbors to say hello!

Joani Blank wrote on Coho-L:

>http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/economy/july-dec02/cohousing_12-23.htmlL

Ooops, typo: remove the trailing capital L and it'll work:

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/economy/july-dec02/cohousing_12-23.html

On 12/28/02 9:15 AM, Catya Belfer-Shevett <catya [at] homeport.org> wrote:

>Did anyone manage to tape it, and are you willing to make dupes?

That would be contrary to U.S. copyright law, to the best of my knowledge 
(and no, doing it for free is not an exemption; "fair use" as currently 
interpreted is narrower than most people think it is). You can also view 
a video (RealMedia or Windows Media formats) at the Lehrer website, or 
order a tape ($50). The Cohousing Network has received several requests 
for tapes, so we're looking into alternative means, but given the 
(relatively) small quantitites we're talking, licensing fees would 
probably cost more.

Raines
 (who enjoyed a quick peek at Liberty Village this week, including the 
"18th unit" (a snow cave/igloo)

Raines Cohen <my initials,2,dash,coho,dash,L at my first name .com>

  Member, Swan's Market Coho [Oakland, CA] <http://www.swansway.com/>
Happy to be home after a week away.

  Facilitator, East Bay Cohousing [on hiatus] <http://www.ebcoho.org/>
Scheduling .

  Boardmember, The Cohousing Network <http://www.cohousing.org/>
Which broadcast word of the Lehrer show far and wide; if you didn't get 
an email, then the network doesn't have your address.


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