W-b Twp. Man Named To District Justice Post 
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Hendrzak. The Senate Must Confirm The Appointment.

Adele Yorio, 91, Of West Pittston, Formerly

By CHRISTINA DUBITSKY cdubitsky@leader.net
 Wednesday, January 24, 2001 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 7A 





WILKES-BARRE - Scott Cannon believes residents should be more informed when
it comes to local politics. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That's why Cannon, a videographer and owner of Video Innovations, plans to
videotape Luzerne County commissioners and Wilkes-Barre City Council meetings
for broadcast on Service Electric Cable TV's public, education and government
access station. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; ``I've been pushing to get this done for a while,'' said Cannon, who
teaches television production and 3-D animation at Luzerne County Community
College. ``It's public information and it would help to make citizens more
informed.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cannon plans to record his first county commissioners meeting on Feb. 7 for
broadcast on Feb. 8 on Service Electric's channel 78. No time has been set,
and no date has been set to begin showing City Council meetings. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The cable company said Cannon need only sign paperwork for the tape to be
aired in an available time slot at no charge. The tapes will run unedited. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cannon says he will record meetings using digital equipment - a job for
which he normally charges up to $500. He said he will tape the meetings as a
public service. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Service Electric General Manager Ron DeBalko said Cannon would receive no
compensation for his efforts. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cannon worked to gain the approval of county commissioners and City Council
to tape meetings, although the Sunshine Act stipulates anyone can record
public meetings without permission. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Taping must only be suspended during an executive session or if the taping
disrupts the meeting, said Jason Kirsch, spokesman for the state Department of
Economic and Community Development. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Chairman Commissioner Tom Makowski has given his consent to tape meetings,
Cannon said. Jim Torbik, spokesman for the majority commissioners, said
commissioners welcome the process. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Mayor Tom McGroarty and City Administrator/Clerk Bill Brace gave the
impression that they did not want city meetings recorded because officials can
be argumentative, Cannon said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Brace said he didn't recall if he spoke to Cannon, adding that neither he
nor other council members would prevent anyone from videotaping as long as it
did not interfere with proceedings. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 McGroarty will meet with Cannon to broadcast state of the city addresses,
said Shannon McNulty, city spokeswoman. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cannon said he'd like to start a program similar to the effort used to
televise public meetings in Scranton for nearly two years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Scranton Tomorrow, a non-profit group, and the Scranton Public Library
formed a partnership to run a public access station. It has broadcast City
Council, Lackawanna County commissioners, Zoning Board and other meetings said
Library Director Jack Finnerty. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Scranton Tomorrow purchased the equipment that is located in City Council
chambers. The station is run mostly by volunteers, Finnerty said. About three
meetings are recorded each week, some of which are aired live. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``It's an incredible benefit,'' Finnerty said. ``It's impossible to go
anywhere in the city of Scranton without really hearing people talking about
what's going on in local government.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Finnerty believes thousands of viewers watch the meetings. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Christina Dubitsky, a Times Leader staff writer, can be reached at
829-7236. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER STAFF PHOTO/MADALYN RUGGIERO &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Videographer Scott Cannon stands in front of editing equipment in his Video
Innovations studio. Cannon plans to videotape Luzerne County Commissioners and
Wilkes-Barre City Council meetings for broadcast on Service Electric's public,
education and government access station. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

W-b City Council, County Commissioners Meetings Head For Small Screen