When AT&T unveiled its U-Verse television programming service, the company waxed about the new technology that allows subscribers to access 320 channels. Recently, however, the company has come under fire for limiting access to public-access programming. The Illinois chapter of the National Association of Telecommunications Officers (NATOA) and CAN TV (Community Access Television) have joined a nationwide coalition to file a petition with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). On its Web site, NATOA says that customers of “AT&T … can’t switch between commercial and PEG channels, set a DVR to record a PEG program, or depend on getting timely local emergency alerts. AT&T’s system deprives PEG channels of basic capabilities such as closed captioning.”
Category: Film, Art, Television, and Media
Nikki Patin is a Chicago-born performance artist and activist, who has appeared on HBO’s Def Jam. Her work combines burlesque, spoken word and music to address the themes of body image, race and class. Patin will be touring New Zealand and Australia from the end of February through April, and is hosting a series of fundraisers in town to pay for the upcoming trip. She will be signing copies of her book “The Phat Grrrl Diaries” at these events. Windy City Times spoke to Patin.
