Small-screen activism

In a trifecta of organizing, production and distribution, the Sierra Club, Brave New Films and Link TV are teaming up on a seven-part television series to highlight how “pollution, corporate greed and short-sighted government policies affect all of us.” Each show will highlight the impact of major environmental issues in local communities, along with corresponding activism. Topics range from the continuing economic and environmental damage wreaked on the Prince William Sound region by the 1988 Exxon oil spill to the devastating toll of air pollution-related health problems on working families in Los Angeles.

The show, which debuted January 12, will air every second Thursday of the month until July at 8:30 p.m. EST and PST on Link TV (DIRECTV channel 375 and Dish Network channel 9410). The Sierra Club and Brave New Films—which recently produced the direct-to-DVD documentary, Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price—are offering alternative modes of distribution. Viewers can download the shows to their computers and video iPods and the DVDs are available at no cost for house parties.

For more information on the series and to download the first episode, “9/11 Forgotten Heroes,” visit www.sierraclub.org/tv/.

Really rapid response

Nonprofits and news junkies now have access to a powerful research and spin-monitoring tool. MediaChannel, a “media issues supersite,” is partnering with MediaVision, a video search engine, to offer real-time monitoring of cable and network broadcasts to activists at a discounted rate. MediaVision delivers digital video clips to users based on a simple search query or an automated feed keyed to a topic specified by the user.

While “clipping services” have been combing media for customers such as PR firms and political campaigns for decades, MediaVision specializes in “getting it to individuals really fast,” says Gregg Reed, the company’s chief operating officer. Because the search is based on closed-captioning of the broadcasts, which are available 5-10 seconds after airing, it’s possible to receive an alert and respond to an on-air assertion while a show is still in progress. Customers can store clips and share them in the context of research, but can’t repost them or distribute them to the public. Check out a demo at www.mediachannel.org.