About Us

Managed by Members of the Community

Access Bellingham-Mendon is managed by a volunteer seven member Board of Directors with four officers chosen by and from the membership annually. Any resident of Bellingham or Mendon is eligible to become a member. Primary funding for ABMI comes from a contract with the commercial cable provider for the area, Comcast. ABMI receives four percent of Comcast's gross annual revenue in Bellingham and Mendon. The funding is used to purchase equipment, supplies, and to cover operating expenses. ABMI also employs a professional staff of three to support and assist volunteer producers.

Local Access Television by and for the Community

Local access television is television by and for the community, an electronic extension of the first amendment. It provides the opportunity for residents to entertain, inform, and educate others in the community. In Bellingham and Mendon, the organization ensuring this service is called ABMI (Access Bellingham-Mendon, Inc.)

Offering Five Channels of Access for Area Residents

ABMI offers five channels of access for residents of Bellingham and Mendon, MA. The Public Channel covering both towns is Comcast Channel 8. Each town then has two additional channels, dedicated specifically to the concerns of that particular town. These channels are Channel 11, which deals with municipal government and library matters, and Channel 98, which focuses its programming on local education.

Supporting the Latest in Equipment

ABMI supports the latest in digital editing equipment. All of the hardware and software needed to edit any project and facilitate its broadcast on Channel 8. We provide training for members of all experience levels, beginners to more advanced members, on all of our equipment. Members are encouraged to take part in a training course on video editing.

Our brand new control room is state-of-the-art as of 2021. We use new digital HD cameras in the studio and HD monitors/screens in the control room. Our 'Broadcast Pix' switcher is the new industry standard utilized at most access centers. The system provides all of the technical tools needed to produce a first class production. Members may take advantage of training on how to run the system from our Production Coordinator and learn how to direct your own show or volunteer for others.

Providing You with Training and Resources

We provide training in all phases of video production. If you would like to learn how to operate cameras, direct, or edit - we can teach you! Members have the ability to help out as crew members on someone else's show or start one of their own. We'll be there every step of the way to ensure your production is a success.

A Mobile Production Center for the Benefit of the Community

ABMI has a mobile production van that is used for remote shoots. Each year, we cover events throughout Bellingham and Mendon. Shoots include town meetings, parades, and the Concerts on the Grass series. Covered sporting events include football, hockey, soccer, and others. Some events are shot and broadcast live from the location while others are recorded for replay at a later time.

History Within Our Walls

We have accumulated a vast archive of past programming. We have stored productions from as far back as 1985. Older programs are in their original tape format. Newer programming is stored electronically on our playback servers. If you would like a copy of a past program, simply call our offices and we will make you one.