The Wheel for August 15, 2019
The Wheel
Mitch Fox – President & CEO of the Nevada Broadcasters Association
Born in San Francisco and a graduate of U.C.L.A., Mitch Fox began his broadcasting career at KABC-TV in Los Angeles, where he worked as a student intern and later, in a paid position, as an apprentice cameraman. His first on-air position was with KTNV-TV Channel 13 in Las Vegas.
Mr. Fox was director of communications for the City of North Las Vegas and managed all external and internal communications including special events, media and public relations, internet and social media communications, the graphic art department and all video production, as well as advising the City Council and staff on public policy issues.
During his tenure, Mr. Fox brought City Council meetings to cable TV, supervised the redesign of the city’s web site, doubled the City’s social media traffic, created a City Podcast, launched an e-newsletter for Council members, created videos for the City’s YouTube channel and strengthened relations between the City of North Las Vegas and the media.
Mr. Fox was Nevada State Director for Porter Group, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm. Mr. Fox managed client relations, developed advocacy strategies and regularly engaged with state lawmakers and members of Congress.
Mr. Fox is currently President and CEO of the Nevada Broadcasters Association, a trade organization that advocates on behalf of Nevada’s radio and television stations.
Mr. Fox was a board member of the Southern Nevada American Red Cross and serves on the Board of Directors of the Silver State Schools Credit Union and the Advisory Board of Nevada’s Western Governors University
Message From The President
Dear Rotarians,
Today we are going to hear from Mitch Fox, President of the Nevada Broadcasters Association, an advocacy group for the Broadcasters of Nevada and servant of the public. The Nevada Broadcasters Associations serves in many capacities. As I read through their website, I was especially interested in the area of Emergency Planning. While we all are familiar with the Amber Alerts and the Emergency Broadcast System, the Nevada Broadcasters Association has developed an amazing emergency system called the First Responder Alert Program.
In the wake of the natural disasters that have occurred around our country and those which have occurred locally, this service is so welcomed. Essentially, “the program is to provide broadcast station and cable company engineers and technical staff with access to facilities during an emergency or disaster when travel may be limited by law enforcement or public safety concerns.”
When limitations of first responders occur, persons may become trapped or otherwise detained by a natural or man-made disaster. Loved ones who are desperate to determine their status, have the ability to turn to local broadcasts for timely information which be the difference in a positive or negative outcome. First Responders will also depend on these communications to deliver information to each other more quickly and the general public through broadcast resources. “The Broadcaster First Responder has the training and qualifications to safely transit troubled areas to their facilities in a time of need. The legislation also guarantees radio and TV stations access to the fuel and supplies they need to remain on the air and serve their communities in a time of need.”
Individuals will be trained to be “Broadcast First Responders” and will have credentials to present to public safety officials when requested. The Nevada Broadcasters Association administers the program and Vegas PBS provides the training. Yes, our own Tom Axtell, and Tom also serves on the Board of Directors. To apply, you must work for a Radio or TV station in Nevada to become certified. I have looked at the list of members and it covers the State very extensively.
In addition to service of our local needs, the FCC also has a Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) to allow communications companies to report their status and needs for operations in times of crisis. The FCC is proactive in reaching out to local communities to assist broadcast entities with staying on the air during a disaster. Stations must pre-register for this program and report status daily.
Like us, the Nevada Broadcasters Association also has a Foundation which gives scholarships to Nevada residents attending a Nevada school and majoring in the broadcast field. In viewing the list of Scholars, this list is getting longer and longer as interest in the field of Broadcasting continues to grow. Clicking on the website job board, hopefully these graduates will find their dream jobs in no time.
The next time a natural or man-made disaster hits our community, we are all comforted knowing that communication has a high level of priority so first responders and the public can get information quickly and minimize as much negative impact as possible.
Jackie Thornhill
President
Las Vegas Rotary Club
Member Highlights
Scribe – August 8, 2019
Las Vegas Rotary Club Meeting: August 8th, 2019
- President Jackie called the meeting to order;
- Arleen Sirois gave the invocation, Present Elect Richard Jost served as song leader and Judith Pinkerton was the Sergeant-At-Arms;
- We had one visiting Rotarian and six Guests of Rotarians were introduced;
- President Jackie Thornhill reminded Rotarians intending to attend the International Convention held in Hawaii in June register early and to book their hotels soon;
- President Jackie Thornhill reminded that the people of action campaign is ongoing and to send President Jackie photos;
- President Jackie Thornhill reminds that your monthly/quarterly contributions to the Las Vegas Rotary Foundation helps fund programs such as Santa Clothes, Wetzel Awards, RYLA, Canned food Drive;
- President Jackie Thornhill reminds that the 30th annual District 5300 Peace Conference is on November 16th at the Treasure Island Hotel;
- President Jackie Thornhill reminds of the new pilot program for the new Rotary International project “Together We Read” will begin November 1st;
- Jamie Goldsmith officially kicked off the canned food drive with a donation of $520 collected at the Star Trek Las Vegas Convention this past weekend;
- Jimmelle Siarot points out that the canned food drive collection cans are now on the tables and to donate any spare change and that 100% of the proceeds go towards the Salvation Army;
- Past President Jim Kohl reminds us that the Project 150 “Drop Your Drawers” clothing drive is still going on and to please donate new socks, underwear, bras and women’s sanitary items;
- Jamie Goldsmith reminds us of the SOAR ceremony on Monday, September 16th at 8:00 am at the Las Vegas City Hall;
- Melanie Muldowney is still looking for two host families for Open World happening October 11th to October 19th.
- Kim Nyoni reminded the club of this next week’s “Wine to Water” event held at Jerry Engel’s home;
- David Squier reminds that this quarter’s Highway Cleanup is September 7th at 8:00 am;
- Past President Jim Tucker announces that there are two spots for ads available in the Wheel;
- The weekly drawing began at $2,430 plus this week’s donations. The ticket winner was Louise, the sister and guest of Arleen Sirois who pulled the winning Joker. Past President Randy Donald won the Lawry Bucks
- President Jackie Thornhill introduced today’s speaker Sarah Robinson President of ShelterBox Disaster Relief;