I've been thinking about the whole KOCE affair, and it seems to me that those who argue that the college has an absolute duty to sell the station to the highest bidder may be missing a key point.
What's being sold here isn't - or at least shouldn't be - just a license. What's being sold is an ongoing business/community service in which the college (along with KOCE viewers and underwriters) has invested many years and many millions of public dollars. Just because the college has decided it can no longer afford to operate KOCE doesn't mean it doesn't have an interest in assuring that the programming that KOCE provides continues to be available under new ownership.
In effect, what the college really seems to want to do is not to sell KOCE outright as much as to outsource the operation of the station. And in that context, it seems to me entirely understandable that the college should want to avoid selling the station to a buyer that would not continue the programming in which it's made a considerable investment. I wouldn't pretend to be a lawyer, and perhaps there are some legal constraints of which I'm unaware, but I'd think that what the college really should have done was to continue to hold the KOCE license while reaching a deal with the foundation to take over operation of the station. Perhaps that will be the next step in all of this?<P ID="signature">______________
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What's being sold here isn't - or at least shouldn't be - just a license. What's being sold is an ongoing business/community service in which the college (along with KOCE viewers and underwriters) has invested many years and many millions of public dollars. Just because the college has decided it can no longer afford to operate KOCE doesn't mean it doesn't have an interest in assuring that the programming that KOCE provides continues to be available under new ownership.
In effect, what the college really seems to want to do is not to sell KOCE outright as much as to outsource the operation of the station. And in that context, it seems to me entirely understandable that the college should want to avoid selling the station to a buyer that would not continue the programming in which it's made a considerable investment. I wouldn't pretend to be a lawyer, and perhaps there are some legal constraints of which I'm unaware, but I'd think that what the college really should have done was to continue to hold the KOCE license while reaching a deal with the foundation to take over operation of the station. Perhaps that will be the next step in all of this?<P ID="signature">______________
Tower Site Calendar 2005 NOW AVAILABLE! - <a target="_blank" href=http://www.fybush.com/nerw.html#calendar>www.fybush.com</a></P>