The End is Near, for 700 MHz Wireless

So maybe it's not really as dramatic as all that, but as far as wireless microphone use in the so-called 700 MHz band, it is now official.

As of June 12, and possibly earlier in some cases, use of wireless mics transmitting between 695 and 806 MHz is officially illegal. The final rule was issued on January 15.

This wireless spectrum has been reallocated for use by public safety agencies, and by wireless service providers. 

As we've said before, the FCC won't have a squad of 'wireless cops' cruising the streets on Sunday morning, looking for violations.  What is clear, though, is that the wireless companies who have spent BILLIONS of dollars to buy up spectrum will be watching.  One of those providers began sending letters to higher profile wireless users last year, warning them that they would be watching for any infractions. 

So, it's time to stop using the systems.  It will be against the law to fire them up after the deadline. Thankfully, church techs now have a firm date to refer to when discussing this with church boards.  It would have been nice if they'd announced the date a bit earlier... say before budgets for 2010 were set, but they didn't. 

Beyond the fact that it's wrong, there is actually an element of danger in continuing to use the systems.  As the FCC order itself points out, your system could interfere with a public safety radio system.  Is it highly likely?  Probably not.  But it is possible, and that would be bad.

So, where to go from here? More on that over at Church Tech Matters this morning!

 

Technorati Tags: wireless microphones,700MHz,Shure,Sennheiser,rebate

What’s to be Learned from a Murder

So, for the last month or so, I’ve been up to my ears in managing media for a very high profile murder trial going on here in Wichita.  I was working for the courts and the trial was big, big news. 

This is not the place to discuss the merits of the case, or the issue itself, but there were a few lessons learned that I thought were worth passing on.

As you can imagine, there was crazy media interest in this case.  More than 150 credentialed reporters, from about two dozen organizations covered the trial.  Enough satellite trucks that we had to close a lane of traffic on Main Street to park them all.

So, what are the take-aways with regard to media relations?

First, if you aren’t tracking social media,you’re entirely out of the loop.  There were thousands of tweets and other social media posts regarding the trial.  I live in the connected social media world, and I was still shocked by the sheer volume. 

I was also saddened, and shocked by the gross inaccuracies that spread like wildfire via Twitter.   Most were a result of laziness and ignorance, people repeating and retweeting, rather than checking things out.  Some were intentional, leveraging repeating and retweeting to push an agenda. 

Most disturbing were traditional media and ‘experts’ who didn’t do their homework, and spread misinformation via blogs and tweets.

Beyond social media, it’s clear that the definition of ‘media’ has and is changing rapidly.  Because of the nature of this trial, we had a lot of folks claiming to be media who clearly weren’t.  Many were just partisan players on one side of the issue or the other who knew they wouldn’t likely be able to get a seat in the courtroom (due to space limitations) and wanted a seat, or really wanted access to the media themselves.  Those were fairly easy to weed out.  

Harder was dealing with freelancers and those working for web only, or non-traditional but legitimate media outlets. Coming up with a fair and at least relatively objective way to identify who are ‘real media’ is going to become more and more difficult over time.

So what does that mean.  Pretty simple.  Get some help.

Managing media for a major event being covered by national and network level media is not an activity for an amateur or even the average PR person. There are tough calls to make, major egos to manage, and you have to be willing to make a few people more than a little bit angry.  Trying to do it yourself would be a bit like watching monkeys play with guns. 

It’s fun at first, but in the end, somebody’s gonna get hurt.

Technorati Tags: media relations,crisis management,Roeder

So, Where Have I Been?

Sorry for the long absence!   Maybe we should cue the the theme from  “Welcome Back Kotter!” I  have been a busy guy since right after Christmas.  

Along with all of the normal stuff, I have just wrapped up a huge assignment, managing the media relations for the local district courts in a “major murder case” here in Wichita. 

There’s absolutely no need to discuss the merits of the case here, but from a communications management standpoint, it was pretty interesting. 

Local media, and national media from coast to coast covered the trial start to finish.  In Session Television, formerly known as Court TV televised it live.  Networks in and out, with the Haiti earthquake and the State of the Union address impacting who would come to Wichita to cover the trial.

Lots of folks who were clearly not legitimate media who wanted access and media privileges.  Lots of freelancers working for mainstream outlets, web only outlets, or non-traditional outlets.  More than 150 media people from about two Lots of tough calls to be made within a pretty high pressure environment.

The photo above is the media workroom, actually a courtroom taken over by reporters, most of whom couldn’t get a seat in the courtroom itself.   What you can’t see is the seating all around the edges of the room, full of print and radio reporters as well.

All in all, a big job, but a very rewarding assignment.  I am, however, glad to be back at my desk for the first day in more than a month.   In the next few days, I’ll share a few lessons learned, and things already understood that were reinforced.

Now, back to our regular programming.

Technorati Tags: media relations,Court TV,In Session TV,Roeder

A Big Number… and a Big Challenge

Think you know where the information revolution is headed?

Think again.

Trillions from MAYAnMAYA on Vimeo.

HT to Jon Edmiston!

Copyright Confusion and Simple Solutions

 

One of the most confusing topics to be discussed in church has nothing to do with the Trinity, or pre vs. post-millennialism, or even anything that remotely resembles theology.

It’s Copyright.

Years ago, the debate was over whether it was OK to copy music for the choir.  (It’s not.)   In the late 90’s the question of projecting lyrics was the hot button.  Today, it’s webcasting and downloading that cause the confusion.

It’s a confusing topic, but the underlying question is pretty simple, and one worth discussing.  I believe every church should have a policy, whether formal or informal, indicating their organizational intent to honor the spirit and letter of the law when it comes to copyright.

Why?

It is simply the right thing to do.  It honors artists.  It may not seem like a big deal to copy a CD for your worship team, but it is.  I posted a while back about musician and recording artist Dennis Jernigan, who put it this way.

“I hope you understand how hurtful and harmful that is for me and my family. If I can even stammer a reply to these people offering insights into how making unauthorized copies of my CDs affects my ability to provide for my family, the retort is too often, ‘God gave you the music freely. You should be willing to give it away freely.’”

So, if we can all agree that honoring copyright is the right thing to do, how do we go about it?

Fortunately there are some easily accessible, affordable, and easy to use tools that make the process a lot simpler!

Read more on that at Church Tech Matters this morning!

“They Turned Life Into a Musical”

I am a huge fan of the folks at Improv Everywhere.  Keep watching through to the end of the video!

 

In the end, it’s all about creating experience and telling a story.

Why Live Video?

Over the past several years, the use of video in a church setting has exploded. The use of video projection was common in the church by the early part of this decade. Most of that use was limited to outlines of sermons and the occasional movie clip or still illustration. Today, even the smallest of churches haul out a portable projector to project song lyrics and announcements on a screen, or in some cases, on a wall.

In the past few years, congregations in larger churches have suddenly been treated to (or assaulted with) the giant smiling face of the teaching pastor, and videos produced specifically to support that teaching. Other churches jumped to use video to extend the reach of their church, on broadcast or cable television, or on the Internet.

They have installed broadcast quality cameras, state-of-the-art equipment in full video control rooms, and post production suites, investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in technology.

  For the church considering taking video beyond simple lyrics and Powerpoint, or making a leap into the world of live video, it can be a confusing world.

But for most, the first step toward the use of live video in a worship context has nothing to do with technology. It starts with a conversation, and a question: “Why do we want to use live video?”

Read more at ChurchTechMatters.com