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Sandra Miley
Ithaca, New York
Cable Company: Time Warner

Five years ago when I retired, the habit of beginning each day with a good cup of coffee and the Washington Journal began. And when insomnia occasionally struck, rather than picking up a book, I started to count on C-SPAN book discussions to engage me. Then there were those intriquing meetings of groups I had never heard of. In short, I soon became a "C-SPAN junkie".

But as has been noted, to every action there is a reaction. And mine to all I was hearing, generally for the first time, was to shoot off an e-mail letter to the Ithaca Journal Opinion Page Editor, Joe Schwartz.

Ithaca, being the home of Cornell, is said to be a place where there are more chiefs than Indians, so Joe has never suffered a dearth of letters. But mine got printed regularly, sometimes even in violation of the thirty-day rule. It was great when people I hardly knew would stop me and say they enjoyed my letter and hoped I would continue to write.

But imagine my surprise---and delight--when one day I found a message on my answering machine from Joe, saying that he particularly liked my letter linking the Sunday closing of our beautiful library with the necessity to fund Iraq reconstruction---and would I like to come down and have my picture taken so it could be featured not just as a letter but as a "commentary." In a town where professors and experts in many fields are the usual commentators this was a huge compliment. Now Joe and I are discussing another commentary for early next year about Instant Runoff Voting, a particular passion of mine, and one that of course has been discussed on C-SPAN.

My son, upon hearing the news, said he knew all along that I wasn't going to limit myself to just opining at family get-togethers, and that somehow I would get involved in writing.

It just took C-SPAN to act as the catalyst. I have sometimes apologized to Joe for sending too many letters. You don't have to print it, I've told him. I just needed the "catharsis" of writing it.

The link between maintaining liberty and the need to be constantly vigilant is well-known. C-SPAN, for me, as for so many Americans, has become that link. In an era where corporate ownership of the major media has decreed that viewers have a short attention span and are really more interested in scandal and entertainment, C-SPAN has become a crucial part of our civic discourse.

In a time when town meetings are rare, C-SPAN has become the virtual town meeting.

So, thank you C-SPAN not only for the information but the stimulation to become part of our national conversation.


ONLINE PRESS KIT >>

Contest Winners
Read the essays of the 25 contest winners.

Press Releases
Sep. 28, 2005 -- Winners Named in C-SPAN Viewer Essay Contest Marking 25 Years of Viewer Calls

Sep. 14, 2005 -- C-SPAN Marks 25 Years Of Viewer Calls-Ins With LIVE, 25-Hour Call-In Program On Oct. 7

Aug. 17, 2005 -- C-SPAN Marks 25 Years Of Viewer Calls-Ins With LIVE, 25-Hour Call-In Program On Oct. 7

News Articles
The Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY) - Oct. 10, 2005
Talkers Magazine - Cover Story Oct. 2005
Jewish World Review - Columnist David Brooks, Nov. 1999

History of Call-Ins on Radio and Television
A timeline of call-in programs

Evolution of Call-Ins on C-SPAN
A timeline of call-in programs at C-SPAN

More about C-SPAN's 25 Years of Viewer Call-Ins
Background information on C-SPAN call-in programs

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