Wisconsin Community Media honors Richardson with a 2023 Friend of Access Award

Wisconsin Community Media is honoring Mayor Aaron Richardson with a Friend of Access Award this year for his work in securing stable funding for Fitchburg FACTv, the city’s media center, as well as highlighting its value to the community with a 2021 Mayoral Award.  Mayor Richardson will be recognized at the Best of the Midwest Media Fest Banquet and Show on Thursday evening May 4, 2023 at the Park Hotel in Madison.

Mayor Aaron Richardson has been involved in local government for many years, first serving on the Parks and Recreation Committee, then serving on the City Council for two years, and then being elected Mayor in 2019 and serving a four-year term before stepping down this year.  His educational background is in business and marketing, and he is employed by the Oregon School District as a technology specialist, which makes him well-placed to understand the challenges facing communities today as they grapple with reaching residents who consume media in so many different ways.  In 2021, Mayor Richardson selected FACTv to receive one of the annual Mayoral Awards to recognize the vital role the media center played in helping the city maintain government transparency during the pandemic. 

“The city is fortunate to have a great group staffing FACTv,” said Richardson.  “Of course, we value their coverage of city meetings, but it goes way beyond that.  They have gone above and beyond to share responsibility with the city administrator’s office for communications throughout the city, including social media.  They get the word out in many ways.  And the way FACTv stepped up during Covid helped people recognize their value.  It made it easy for me to make the case that funding for this area needed to be secured.”

Earlier this year, Mayor Richardson successfully advocated for unlinking the budget of FACTv from the income the city receives from video service provider (VSP) fees. Cable subscribership has been declining more rapidly in Fitchburg than most other communities.  About one-third of Fitchburg’s residents subscribe today.  “We are one of the fastest growing cities in the state and we have a lot of younger people here raising families,” Richardson said.  “They’re technically savvy and are more likely to use Hulu or Netflix to get their entertainment.  Cable television is very expensive, and many of them no longer see the value of paying for 300 channels when they only watch ten.  They’re comfortable getting information in other ways.” 

The fragmented audience poses a challenge for a city trying to keep people informed.  “Reaching people is very difficult when people consume media in different ways and lead very busy lives.  They’re running to dance recitals and sporting events.  They’re just not paying attention unless it affects them directly.  There is no magic bullet for dealing with this.  We just use as many avenues as possible to reach people.  FACTv is involved in all of it – Cable TV, streaming, social media, and emailed newsletters.”  Richardson said meetings over Zoom are here to stay.  “In the post-Covid world, having access to government meetings easily is very important.  It’s hard for people to get to meetings.  People are busy.  Some businesses that need to appear before the Plan Commission may not be in the area.  With Zoom, they can interact with the Commission without driving two hours to be here.”  City officials have also been doing in-person events and going to neighborhoods.  “Prior to the annexation of part of the Town of Madison, FACTv was involved in helping us organize a lot of local events to make sure people were aware of what was happening and how it would affect them.” 

The bottom line?  “Our city council and our residents want open, transparent government.  FACTv plays a key role in making that happen. And I knew we really had to resolve the funding situation, which was becoming more and more challenging.  It was easy for me to advocate for it and make the case for sustainable funding because FACTv is a key part of all of the communication the city does.  As I talked with council members about FACTv as a valuable resource for this community, they agreed.  They knew we needed to do something about it.”

 Tickets for the Fest Banquet and Show are available at https://wisconsincommunitymedia.com/annual-conference