City in talks with video company

The city of Columbia Falls is currently in talks with a Florida-based video production company about making a 5-7 minute piece to promote the city and attract new businesses and residents.

According to city manager Susan Nicosia, the short videos would be shown as part of the Today In America magazine-style television programs narrated by former NFL quarterback Terry Bradshaw. The short videos, which would cost the city $19,800 to produce, would be broadcast on the Discovery Channel, the Fox network and other channels.

Nicosia told the Columbia Falls City Council on July 16 that she and other city officials had already spoken with a Today in America producer and had a second conference call lined up with the producer for 7:30 a.m. the next day. She touted the city’s low crime rate, high-tech industries.

“We have a high-quality medical center just down the highway — closer than in many big cities,” she said.

The F.H. Stoltze Land & Lumber Co. “biomass” boiler and Western Building Center’s SmartLam project could be highlighted in the video, Nicosia said, noting that both companies had expressed interest in the project. The growing gun industry in the LaSalle area also could be highlighted, mayor Don Barnhart added.

The council watched a sample video about Fayetteville, Ark., on the Today In America Web site. The high-quality production highlighted the city’s amenities, high-tech businesses and quality of life, and noted that Forbes Magazine ranked Fayetteville one of the best places in the U.S. for businesses and careers.

Fayetteville is home to the “flagship campus” of the University of Arkansas, the Arkansas Air Museum, the Botanical Gardens of the Ozarks, and the Arkansas Research and Technology Park. A spokesperson at the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce said the city has received lots of positive feedback from around the U.S. as a result of the Today In America segment.

City councilor Dave Petersen, a strong supporter of the media idea, said the city could use a promotional video on the city’s Web site or at trade shows and could keep all the unused video footage for other projects.

“We have a better story than Fayetteville,” he noted. “The pieces of the story are all here, and they have the talent to put it all together.”

Cities and towns across the U.S. report having talks with Today In America, including Selah, Wash., Chino Hills, Calif., Potsdam, N.Y., Fort Madison, Iowa, Pekin, Ill., and the Township of Jackson, N.J. Progress on a media deal in Jackson, however, hit a bump after the Asbury Park Press reported that the video company’s president and founder, Paul Douglas Scott, had run afoul of the law five years ago.

Scott signed an assurance of voluntary compliance document with the Florida Attorney General’s Office on May 1, 2007, naming Scott, a former partner named Walter Burton, and two of their video production companies, Platinum Television Group Inc. and New Line Media Solutions Inc., as respondents.

The respondents were alleged to have made misrepresentations about sponsorships by national companies such as Microsoft and Home Depot; of falsely implying that clients would receive multiple national airings of their videos; and of falsely representing the participation of “advisory boards” with members such as MIT and Harvard Business School.

The respondents agreed to comply with Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and to 15 stipulated points. They agreed to not make false representations about the size and success of their companies or state they have received praise and acclaim when they have not; to no longer have salespersons misrepresent themselves as “creative directors”; to no longer claim affiliations with national news, cable or broadcast networks; and to specifically disclose to clients the exact number of national or regional airings.

The respondents also agreed to pay $115,936 in restitution to 15 clients and to establish a $75,000 restitution fund in case more clients filed complaints. They also agreed to pay the Florida Attorney General’s Office $100,000 for legal costs and investigative fees and $100,000 for costs associated with ongoing and future enforcement initiatives.