Come Sunday January 1-2012 Maia Chung Television (MCTV) will officially launch as a media content provider for national, regional and global partners that are broadcast houses. Or simply put; entities that show programmes made in Jamaica, about Jamaica and our issues, for audiences which demand those kinds of programmes.
Maia Chung, the power behind the effort says “we will be disseminating content via national, regional and international outlets, as well as the through the web, therefore people will have MCTV content through free to air, cable access and web access.
We will be partnering with all entities that want what we produce or that independents provide which falls under our umbrella”.
MCTV will take content from Jamaicans around the world for its brand.
Additionally , “not only have we set up for island wide and Caribbean wide impact, but we hope to get to the Diaspora extensively...to give them more varied and better views of who Jamaicans are and can be, than what pertains now”.
She adds, “and everything under the brand MCTV will be different, in a good way - from that which is heretofore being aired as local media content output”.
At 12:30 p.m. January 1 2012 the Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica (PBCJ) will broadcast MCTV’s first feature -the documentary Autism Splash. PBCJ is a FLOW channel that is broadcast on band 113.
The programme was chosen as the first content for the channel due to Chung’s links with Autism advocacy in Jamaica. The next production by MCTV is slated to be a look at the life and development up to his imprisonment of Adidjah Palmer a.k.a. Vybz Kartel, that piece is in pre-production and is titled “Whither the Vybz?”
MCTV will specialize in the production of documentary type feature productions.
Topics will entail heath, entertainment, politics, youth and education among other key issues; as well as relying heavily on content from independent producers – to build the brand.
Chung says however, “these have to be of a standard that can be broadcast at the global level, in the same way we what we produce is”.
MCTV is made up of veteran and award winning journalists editors, camera people and technical persons from Jamaican print radio and television backgrounds.
I am looking to highlight women producers via this mechanism, who have an especially difficult time in the business locally.
Chung explains that too few Jamaican women own or control television content emanating from this nation, and are typically relegated to bit players or the fluffy facade; but not the power players.
She adds – “even powerful women in media do not necessarily sign off on the actual programming that is broadcast and so MCTV will seek to address that. The male dominance of our programming while not wrong; does not truly reflect the entirety of the Jamaican society. Many stories are being ignored that I know would attract revenue and spark development if women were more among the decision makers and ownership of the media content development of the nation”.
According to Ms. Chung, “having played many roles in media and being able do well in the male dominated/friendly field, I decided two years ago that this must change. MCTV was born”.
Chung explains that, “the way it works is that our content will be disseminated through existing free to air and cable providers, which cover the entire Caribbean region, and several states in the United States initially. Once they review the content and find it worthy they will make the decision how to use and when or if any at all”.
To date MCTV has received very positive feedback from regional, national, free to air and cable channels about content it has submitted which will be aired by these organizations.
The programmes will fall under the motto or tag line of MCTV : Positive Jamaican Programmes to Promote Jamaica's Progress.
She explains, “ I also do not want to continue the trend of lack lustre subpar programmes that deal with the underbelly of Jamaica, mainly - perpetuating the image of third world back water... which continue to be issued globally even into 2012. We will cover all topics in a non-traditional fashion and where applicable just the topic’s unusual nature will sell the programme”.
MCTV can be contacted via maiachungtelevision@gmail.com
