Contact:
Tania Panczyk-Collins
202-654-4222
tpanczyk@apts.org

WASHINGTON—February 06, 2007—The Association of Public Television Stations (APTS) will present Ed Mastrean and Rod Bates with APTS National Advocacy Award for their exceptional efforts in furthering Public Television’s legislative goals.

Mastrean, director of community relations at Kentucky Educational Television (KET), and Bates, general manager of Nebraska Educational Telecommunications (NET), will be presented with the Advocacy Award on February 13 during APTS Capitol Hill Day in Washington, D.C. The Advocacy Award recognizes an individual or station that exemplifies effective advocacy on behalf of Public Television’s legislative priorities. Although APTS exists to represent local stations in Washington, DC, advocacy is a collective responsibility—and local advocates have great influence on lawmakers.

A Model Advocate

Mastrean, for example, was instrumental in arranging a live demonstration last year of the Digital Emergency Alert System (DEAS) to U.S. Rep. Harold “Hal” Rogers (R-KY), then chair and current ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security. DEAS was created by APTS and the Department of Homeland Security to improve and disseminate public alerts and warnings during times of national crisis through the use of local Public Television’s digital television broadcasts. DEAS equipment deployment to Public Television stations is expected to be completed by the end of 2007.

“Ed is a model of what a station government relations professional should be,” said APTS President and CEO John Lawson said. “He is in constant contact with Members of Congress, building relationships that are crucial to public broadcasters’ interests.”

Mastrean credited APTS for “making our entire advocacy campaigns worthy of notice to an audience which knows how to ask the tough questions.” He also attributed any advocacy success to KET staff for making “public broadcasting such an easy sell.”

Mastrean is also very active in his home state. He is past chairman of the Kentucky Broadcasters Association; a board member of the Kentucky Council on Economic Education; Kentucky Music Museum and Hall of Fame; Kentucky Press Association Associates; Lexington Area Sports Authority; Clark Regional Medical Center; Kentucky School Public Relations Association; and serves as board president of the Winchester Retirement Place.

A Key Player

Bates, who is also director of university television and general manager of KUON-TV, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, has been a critical voice in ensuring Public Television stations’ concerns are heard on Capitol Hill. Bates was essential to getting a key legislator to vote in favor of the Specter-Harkin amendment to the budget resolution to provide an additional $7 billion above the President’s budget request for a broad range of programs and services administered by the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. Public Television funding would benefit from this amendment either through increase funding, or at the very least, the prospect of avoiding funding cuts.

“Rod Bates has been a leader in every facet of public broadcasting from sitting on the PBS board to his involvement with our education efforts,” Lawson said. He added: “He manages a model state network”

Bates said: “I think we all have a responsibility to establish relationships and open lines of communications with our Members of Congress to work toward the support of public broadcasting.”

Bates is secretary, treasurer for Nebraskans for Public Television Inc. and Public Radio Nebraska Foundation Inc. He serves on the board of directors for PBS, National Educational Telecommunications Association and Native American Public Telecommunications. He had served on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Education Advisory Council.