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10/19/2016 08:30 AMWalter Mann has loved the communications field since he joined the AV Club in junior high. He carried that interest through high school and he began working in radio during his senior year of high school. Walter went on to study communications at Southern Connecticut State University.
He worked in radio for more than 10 years before taking a job at WTNH from 1995 to 2002. In 1985, while still working in radio, he saw an ad in a local paper that NHTV, the local access cable TV station that had begun in 1984, needed volunteers.
“I saw the potential for a great future for NHTV,” says Walter. “This was a great way to be involved with something from the ground floor. My goal was learning as much as I could and immersing myself in technology and the behind-the-scenes stuff, including being involved in something that grew into what it is today, being part of helping something grow that was hyper-local.”
As a lifelong North Haven resident, Walter saw the need for town-specific news. When NHTV started, there was no social media and the Internet was not what it is today. One of Walter’s goals was to provide North Haven residents with information about local elections and news affecting their town, including debate, election, and town meeting coverage.
“I wanted us to be a community resource,” says Walter. “We wanted to provide interviews with candidates, analysis, reports, and anchors in the studio. Government is important and we wanted to not only provide results, but analysis and help people understand things they wouldn’t necessarily know. It all comes back to community service and what we can do to help the community.”
Reaching those goals was not an easy task as NHTV didn’t have a home for many years. In the beginning, the small amount of equipment that the cable company provided was stored in board members’ homes. The late Jack O’Bier, who was North Haven’s fire chief at the time, gave NHTV a small space at headquarters to store equipment.
“Thanks to Jack O’Bier, we were able to begin broadcasting for the first time on our own 24/7 channel. He was always very supportive of our mission,” says Walter. “What really moved us forward was when we were able, with additional funding from the cable company, to rent two rooms above the old Knights of Columbus building on Broadway. That’s when things really took off.”
At that point, NHTV began to film programs in the studio. NHTV continued to grow, eventually moving to its current building at 127 Washington Avenue in a building managed by The Candid Group and owned by the Longobardi family.
“They have been tremendous to us and great supporters of us,” says Walter. “Without them, I don’t know where we would be today. We have a tremendous space that’s handicapped accessible and centrally located.”
In 2002, ownership at WTNH—where Walter was now the general manager of what is now MyTV9—changed. The timing worked out for Walter as he left WTNH to begin working full-time at NHTV. At the same time, NHTV also saw an increase in funding thanks to a grant.
The State of Connecticut requires the cable company to fund public access stations per number of subscribers, which gives NHTV between $50,000 and $60,000 annually. NHTV also hosts fundraisers, including a chowder booth at the North Haven Fair and a fresh fruit fundraiser that is underway now. The Town of North Haven also supports the station with $40,000 a year.
“The town and First Selectman Michael Freda have been tremendously awesome and believe in what we do,” says Walter, who has also helped to secure approximately $400,000 in grants over the years. “NHTV is a great venue for him and town government to get their message to town residents. The grants have allowed us to build out with HD TV equipment.”
When Walter began his full-time position, NHTV was able to start its internship program, which is open to middle school, high school, and college students. Many of the students spend many years after their internship volunteering at NHTV and some have been hired at the station as well.
“This gives these students a place to have the ability for hands-on experience running broadcast equipment and learning the techniques,” says Walter. “A lot of our former interns have gone on to work in the industry—we have three in Hollywood now, a bunch at ESPN. For our former interns to move on to these behemoths in the industry is so gratifying and a big sense of pride for me.”
In 2005, Channel 8 donated a remote TV production truck to NHTV, which has added another facet of experience for the internship program. Walter uses the truck to cover parades, large town meeting, and North Haven High School football games, which has proven very popular.
Walter has not only worked with students in North Haven, but he became the manager of BCTV in Branford in 2005 and the manager of Totoket TV in North Branford three years ago. Each of the stations has a few part-time employees with a focus on providing hyper-local coverage to its residents.
“Election season is always a busy time of year for us with all of the debates and coverage,” says Walter. “This is most important time of year in terms of what we can do to be a resource for the community. There’s great interest in the presidential election, but people also want to know what’s going on locally and our hyper-local entity gives people a chance to stay tuned into what’s going on locally.”
In addition to election and government coverage, NHTV also offers the opportunity for residents to produce their own TV shows. There are about 15 regularly produced shows on a variety of topics from sports to new age to health and beyond.
“We are always trying to be better and better for the communities we serve,” says Walter. “We are also looking for more involvement, for people to share their passion or belief, or for students to participate in our free internship program. A lot of the interns we get are so awesome I wish they’d never leave.”
For information and programming schedules, visit nhtv.com.