I may as well say up front that I’m a fan of Carl Malamud’s “be the government” philosophy.
So when I wanted to check up on the details of a Worcester City Council meeting from months past, I thought: “We should archive them online.”
The Government Channel already cablecasts the meetings, so a year ago I asked the City’s law department if these cablecasts are public domain. No answer yet.
Three weeks ago, I ordered a DVD of the most recent City Council meeting from the Government Channel. I’ve been told that the ordinary turnaround time is “a couple days,” but no DVD yet.
Civic leaders like Councilors Toomey and Smith have been asking the City to make the meetings available online, but they’ve had no more luck than I have.
I’m tired of waiting. Next week I’m going to tape the meeting with my own camera, and post it at the Internet Archive. This is far from ideal, but at least it’s a step. My dream would be for Indymedia to setup a computer to automatically record and post the meetings; this would take less than $400, along with the aid of someone more skilled with Linux than I am.
Anyone want to help? Let me know.