Taxpayers Scammed by Hawaii’s Olelo Television -Open Letter to Gov. Linda Lingle

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I just got off the phone with our Hawaii monopoly cable company. For the $240,000 (or more) Olelo spent on promotions in 2004, Oceanic would have provided 12,000 (that’s right 12 thousand), 30-second Public Service Announcement spots.

The deal is for nonprofit corporations who pay for a package. However many times that package pays for a PSA to air, Oceanic matches each air time with an equivalent airing for free (2 for 1).

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The company also provides totally free airing of nonprofit PSAs, which would secure approximately 25 airings a week, in mostly least favored time slots.

If Olelo administrators can’t create the PSAs for free with their three staff use only Avid Systems and their full-time paid staff program producers, perhaps they could have their newly trained clients do them for their required class projects for certification? Why do you suppose not one PSA has ever been created or provided to Oceanic for even a one-day trial run ($80) after 15 years?

I’m sure Oceanic’s three appointed Olelo board directors of nine couldn’t make such a suggestion or vote on this use of the promotion budget as they fear it could be perceived as a conflict of interest, or self dealing transaction. Must be why no Oceanic appointees ever thought of it in the 15 years their three directors have been on Olelo’s board, especially Oceanic Vice President Marilyn Yoza.

That of course means that only your DCCA director’s majority appointed directors can or could have proposed it. Of course we already know that those directors prefer laundering funds to be used for tax purposes and promoting programs created for their favored nonprofit corporations and politicians over promoting Olelo services that should be provided on a “first-come, nondiscriminatory basis” to facilitate countervailing voices. I’m sure they feel the funds are better spent with Olomana Marketing, who can then share Olelo’s no-bid generosity with its clients.

See https://olomanamarketing.com/clients.php

If Olelo does a poor job at its true mission, Oceanic doesn’t have to provide it with additional channels, which Oceanic is currently fighting DCCA to not have to do.

See Oceanic’s “Motions for Reconsideration” on DCCA Cable Television Division’s Decisions and orders at https://www.hawaii.gov/dcca/areas/catv/decisions_orders/reconsideration/ and https://www.hawaii.gov/dcca/areas/catv/decisions_orders/

A poor job also helps protect government officials from criticism.

With Olelo’s quarter-million-dollar lawsuit to avoid giving out voter lists to clients for campaigns of their choice for their single elected director, the public will continue to be stymied on all attempts to make the slightest of difference in the board’s makeup, therefor direction, for at least another 5 years the courts will stall the appeal.

This and the state’s stealth ability to fire PEG administrators guarantees Hawaii’s status quo fractured soapbox is here to stay, as is, until the franchise fees dry up. This will likely happen before the appeal is finished.

Fret not, I still believe that this can all change in a heartbeat, so I will still not give up. Sorry to those who hope I’d finally see the light and quit.

As I see it, and Robert McChesney on PBS’s ”’now”’, if the government likes what the media is doing, the media isn’t doing its job. It is evident that you, Gov. Lingle, and the other elected and appointed officials on Oahu love what Olelo is doing. Need I say more?

Please stop these funds, earmarked for the empowerment of all the people, from continuing to be used to the favor of those already in power. Educating individuals to share truth versus more propaganda is not a difficult choice for any level playing field and “sunshine” respecting person to make.

”’Jeff Garland is the vice president of Community Television Producers Association of Hawaii and Owner of Hawaii Public Access Media. He can be reached via email at”’ mailto:digitaleye@hi.net

”’HawaiiReporter.com reports the real news, and prints all editorials submitted, even if they do not represent the viewpoint of the editors, as long as they are written clearly. Send editorials to”’ mailto:Malia@HawaiiReporter.com

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