Small screen, big plans

Elia Powers

Nielsen ratings aren’t designed to monitor municipal access channels,

so Dane Bora relies on less scientific data to gauge what his viewers

are watching.

Bora -- the video production coordinator for Costa Mesa

Television, CM-TV Channel 24 -- said one indicator is how often

residents race into the Costa Mesa City Council chambers during a

meeting, motivated by something they saw on the live telecast.

“It happens quite often,” Bora said. “I think a lot more people

are watching the meetings than we know.”

Council meetings and calendar announcements are the staple of any

city-run television channel -- Bora said that will never change.

But he is looking to go beyond nuts-and-bolts coverage with

programming that gives viewers a holistic view of Costa Mesa.

“I want to exceed expectations of what a city channel should look

like,” Bora said. “It’s not just talking heads, one-camera interviews

and low-tech graphics. We want to take it to the network level.”

Last month, Bora received some positive news on that front. In its

2005-06 budget, the City Council allocated $290,000 to the station, a

more than 10% boost over the previous year’s total.

Much of the programming is paid for by a fee charged to cable

subscribers. The budget increase allows the station to begin

streaming the channel’s content on the Internet and to hire another

full-time staff member.

Bora, 38, is used to being the only full-time employee on staff.

For 15 years, he has taken on most of the station’s responsibilities.

He is aided by a handful of part-time employees who primarily

film, edit and log tape.

Orange Coast College student Lee de Arakal has been a regular

contributor this summer.

“I wanted to get into production, and there’s nowhere else you can

go for more hands-on experience,” said de Arakal, son of Byron de

Arakal, chairman of the Costa Mesa Parks and Recreation Commission.

Brad Long is one of Bora’s most utilized part-time employees,

called video production aids. He works 30 hours a week and hosts

“Discovering Costa Mesa,” a magazine-style program that features a

variety of city residents and institutions.

“We take a little more time than most stations,” Long, 42, said.

“It’s important that we do it right.”

Bora is the host of two regular shows, called “Community Report”

and “City Talk.” Most days he is inside his Costa Mesa City Hall

basement office. It’s a windowless room filled with memorabilia,

flat-screen televisions, computers, videotapes and editing bays.

On City Council meeting days, Bora works more than 15 hours,

calling the shots for the live evening telecast. It’s nothing too

creative or challenging, he admits.

But it has produced one of Bora’s most stressful moments.

Less than a minute before a broadcast about a month ago, he lost

the signal to the chambers. Bora sent a co-worker upstairs to stall

council members while he frantically tried to fix the problem.

“Here’s the most important thing we do, and we have no picture on

the screen,” Bora said. “I kept saying, ‘Are we live yet? Are we live

yet?’” he said. “In 15 years, that’s only happened once.”

At 6:32 p.m., the signal returned and the meeting began.

In most cases, Bora and Long like to keep things light hearted.

For one recent segment, they filmed each other riding a bicycle and

inline skates while traversing Costa Mesa streets and paths.

Bora said the most popular shows are taped sportscasts of

city-organized flag football and youth basketball games. Most

Saturdays, a camera crew visits city sports venues to shoot sporting

events. During the week, Bora adds color commentary.

A recent show on Costa Mesa history earned the station a Star

Award, given to top California and Nevada local access channels.

“It’s always something different,” Bora said. “That’s what’s nice

about working here.”