Earlier this year the City Council approved the awarding of art project funds to KOCT and five (5) other non-profit organizations. The Oceanside Arts Commission, consisting of 11 volunteers, had reviewed many grant applications before passing on their recommendations to the Council.

The mission of the Arts Commission is to foster the development of the performing, visual and cultural arts. The goal of KOCT’s successful grant application was to produce three programs about other successful grantees and share with our north county community our rich art culture and heritage. KOCT is thankful for the support of the Arts Commission and the City Council. KOCT will provide matching funds for this project to our City Council.

In the coming months you’ll see the KOCT camera crew at the following events:

·         The Boys & Girls Club of Oceanside’s Art of the Masters program

·         The First Friday Art Walk (May 1^st)

·         Oceanside Theatre Company’s Radio Program Series

KOCT’s objective is to share with a greater audience these short television and web programs that capture the creativity, excitement and content of our vibrant Oceanside arts community. We live in a busy, fast-paced environment and not everyone can get away from family, business and other obligations to participate and enjoy the arts. KOCT hopes to share and preserve these ‘art moments’ with a larger community and for a period of time longer than the event itself!  Donald Stump with North County Lifeline wrote in a supportive letter on behalf of KOCT: “…these programs highlight the many positive projects that take place in Oceanside and KOCT’s coverage helps to insure a larger audience for our non-profits, artists and musicians.”



KOCT camera crew at North County Lifeline mural creation for a previous "Arts & Culture" production.

Jennifer Lacy, the Board Chair of the Oceanside Charitable Foundation wrote: "We are fortunate to have such a responsive television station in Oceanside....their commitment to promoting Arts and Culture has been evident by their innovation and willingness to work with the community".

KOCT has covered the Arts in Oceanside since its inception. Here the late poet, writer and ‘artist’ Robert Nanninga & KOCT Executive Director Tom Reeser create a promo for a KOCT program about the very first ‘Days of Art’ in the late 1980’s.



One of the services KOCT has provided for Carlsbad, Oceanside and Vista residents since 1997 is coverage of the Tri-City Medical Center’s Board of Directors meetings.  Tri-City is one of a handful of community hospitals in San Diego County and local homeowners fund and care about this important medical center.  In fact the reason we began covering these meetings is that in the mid-90’s there was talk about privatizing the hospital. Community members and the Board of Directors themselves felt the community needed to be informed if such a decision was going to be made and coverage of their meetings was the first step in keeping the public informed about the workings of their hospital.  

Pictured in today’s blog are some of the talented young people who provide this television service. KOCT rolls its sophisticated Mobile Studio to the hospital and set ups a four-camera shoot on the 4^th Thursday of every month and documents the meetings in a style we call ‘live on tape’.  It requires 7 crew members to cover these meetings and every meeting is shown 4 times on KOCT as well as shown on the government channels in the City of Vista and Carlsbad. KOCT also makes each meeting available as Video On Demand (VOD) too.

The Affordable Care Act has brought to the publics attention the cost and importance of health care and KOCT is proud that we’ve been bringing the public’s attention to our local health care facility for seventeen years.  A shout out and thanks to the KOCT talented crew who carry the tripods, cameras and cables down a flight of stairs once a month to keep our community informed!