Note: This is a comment on ellie's "Media" post by vpozzebon that I felt should be seen by all - Chad

Let’s go beyond canned music, loud car commercials, and national ad campaigns. Let’s talk about the real reason losing independent media is a community concern.

Independent media is the voice of a community. It can tell the locals’ story, providing an opportunity that many small businesses and nonprofit organizations can’t get from a media corporation. Without an outlet to tell our stories, to let our community have a voice, we lose the opportunity to strengthen our community.

Our local businesses choose to advertise on local stations and in local papers and magazines because they know they have an opportunity to reach their community. These are the media outlets that often give business planning with regard to marketing, provide product preparation with well-planned advertising, and marketing campaigns. These local media outlets tailor-make products that serve the needs of local businesses, often negotiating deals so that businesses can understand the value of radio and print ads in a way that makes it affordable. Package deals are created to help businesses prosper, not to fill their own pockets.

The Alliance advertises and works with our local independent media to educate the public on the importance of keeping our money local. Prices are negotiated, sponsorships are created, relationships are formed, businesses are supported. That is the power of local independent media – the power to give the community a voice, a community that includes our independent businesses and nonprofit organizations.

What happens when the Alliance can no longer communicate our message? Billboards are owned by corporations, radio stations are consolidating, newspapers are disappearing. Independent media is the voice of the Alliance and if we lose independent media, we lose a voice for our local businesses.

We are grateful of the sources that exist in our community for independent media but if we lose our "social capital" – a measure of a community's social and civic organizations and the degree to which the community participates. Santa Fe has a very high social capital but without our local businesses and local media we are at risk of losing our social capital.

If our businesses cannot advertise on local stations the reality is that our money is no longer staying in our community. It is not recycled back to our local businesses, the tax base or given to our nonprofits. Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing, folks. A company can claim community involvement and that it is locally owned, but the reality is that most of these companies are owned by major out-of-state share holders and don’t really know the community. Changing a station’s format doesn’t make them any more committed to community. Ask to speak to the owner of these companies and ask the hard questions before you decide where your advertising dollars go. Independent media is your voice – your opportunity to communicate your message.

Vicki Pozzebon, Executive Director
Santa Fe Allliance
www.santafealliance.com