Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

Using the Church Webcasting System, YouTube, etc. Including cameras and mixers.
russellhltn
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#21

Post by russellhltn »

aebrown wrote:The key word in my mind is "broadcast"; our stake has never interpreted "broadcast" to mean sending a feed within the building from a camera to an overflow area.
And the definition of "Internet" is something outside of the building. Within the building, it would be the LAN.

It should also be noted that most if not all chapels are equipped with a radio transmitter to assist the hard of hearing. It's low power, so it's range is quite limited. But it does get a little ways outside of the building. So whatever the concern is, it appears to not be a "broadcast".
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gregwanderson
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#22

Post by gregwanderson »

I'm afraid the policy from the Handbook is still open to a lot of interpretation. I'll ignore the Stake Conference exception and, in every other case, it appears that...
A) You cannot take still pictures in the Chapel or record video... ever (whether it's during a meeting or not).
B) You cannot broadcast any meeting which takes place in the chapel (which could include both audio and video broadcasts).

So, is a feed from the chapel to an overflow room considered a "broadcast" or some kind of "closed circuit"? If it's only closed circuit (and if that makes it okay), then what about the three shut-in members who could receive a sacrament meeting "closed circuit" feed to their homes (and nobody else would ever receive it... so is it still considered a broadcast)? The policy might indicate that the people who are recording sacrament meeting (audio only) and giving the recording to shut-ins are within policy but those who are doing an audio-only "broadcast" (or webcast) are not.

In another discussion, I think someone once mentioned using Skype so that a loved one in another country could watch a funeral in a chapel. According to the quote from the handbook, that wouldn't be allowed. (Or would it? It might be "closed circuit".) But what if the funeral were held in the cultural hall instead of the chapel? Would that make everything okay? (Or is there a policy elsewhere in a Handbook that says funerals must be held in the chapel?)
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#23

Post by Gary_Miller »

Bro Brown would that be during stake conference or for ward sacrament meetings as well.
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aebrown
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#24

Post by aebrown »

Gary_Miller wrote:Bro Brown would that be during stake conference or for ward sacrament meetings as well.
Well, we certainly use cameras and send video to overflow rooms for stake conference, but we have done it for other large meetings as well (special firesides, and a funeral for a member of a prominent family, for example). To my knowledge no one has done it for a sacrament meeting yet.
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aebrown
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#25

Post by aebrown »

mrrad wrote:So, is a feed from the chapel to an overflow room considered a "broadcast" or some kind of "closed circuit"?
When our stake uses a camera for stake conference and other large meetings to send video to overflow rooms, it is certainly what I would call "closed circuit"; the audio and video are only within the building's audio/video distribution system. It's on wires within the building. There's no wireless signal for anyone to hack. As I said before, I don't think it's a broadcast at all.
mrrad wrote:If it's only closed circuit (and if that makes it okay), then what about the three shut-in members who could receive a sacrament meeting "closed circuit" feed to their homes (and nobody else would ever receive it... so is it still considered a broadcast)?
I can't imagine what you're talking about. Are you saying that there are wires running to the homes of three shut-in members? I really doubt that. So it sounds like you are doing something that is going over the air or over the Internet to those people. That is in no way a closed circuit, and I think I'd have to call that a broadcast. If anyone else discovered the meeting code, they could receive the transmission.
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#26

Post by gregwanderson »

aebrown wrote: I can't imagine what you're talking about.
We're both trying to use terms that aren't addressed in the handbook. You think using hard wires means something in not a broadcast. I use the term "closed circuit" without regard to whether you're using wires or encryption or some other method to keep it "private." But we're each trying to parse words to dodge what the handbook policy seems to imply, which is, no cameras (except for conference) and no transmissions to any other location either (except for conference).

My point is that it's difficult to know who is following the policy if we find a gray area in our definition of "broadcast". I wonder if foreign language translations of the handbook would actually be more precise on this point.
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#27

Post by michaelfish »

the handbook policy seems to imply, which is, no cameras
When you said "no cameras" I'm sure you meant "no recordings". Or did you actually interpret the handbook to say no cameras?

...personally, if we could not bring cameras into the chapel (smartphones, tablets, iPads, blackberry or anything with a camera built in) the Brethren may wish to add "no video games, no social media, no checking email in the chapel" to the handbook!
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#28

Post by russellhltn »

mrrad wrote:My point is that it's difficult to know who is following the policy if we find a gray area in our definition of "broadcast".
I'm not overly concerned about how other stakes interpret "broadcasting". I'm more interested that everyone is aware of the policy and have discussed the issue with their priesthood leaders. If the leaders need clarification, they can go up the chain to get an answer.

One thing that I find odd is that there is no apparent restriction on other rooms. On the surface it would seem that any unit could hold a public broadcast of Gospel Essentials or any other Sunday School, Priesthood, or Relief Society meeting. I don't believe that is the intent. I believe that only the Brethren and the heads of the General Auxiliaries are to preach to the public at large.

Assuming that others accept that, then the question is how does that shape the interpretation of
"broadcasting" from the chapel when it is clearly more restrictive than for other meetings?

Also, why would the Handbook spell out an explicit exception for Stake Conference if a simple building-to-building webcast is not considered "broadcasting"?
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gekelley
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#29

Post by gekelley »

I too thoroughly read the Handbook instruction on the subject and initally indicated to my Bishop that is would not be inline with the way I understood the instruction. My Bishop went to the Stake Presidency and they discussed and reviewed the Handbook together and he was given permission to proceed, and instructions to make sure that the actual Sacrament ordinance was not shared, and that we start the webcast after the conclusion of the Sacrament ordinance. Below is a simple out line of what I had been doing when our ward met in the Stake Center -

1. Before the meeting began, go to library and use our Webcast Meeting Communicator (wired into our VDA cabinet) to create a unique ID for that Sunday Sacrament (the ID was emailed to the shut-ins the day before through the HP Group Leader or RS President, which was created by me and provided to them).

2. on our Video Selector, I would choose DVD, and have a DVD that I created with Picture only that stated "Broadcast will begin at the conclusion of the Sacrament". On several different times I would create a new DVD that also would inlcude the announcements for that particular Sunday (had to work with the Bulletin Specialist to get this in advance). The Bulletin also lists all the Ward Leaders and their telephone numbers. This was also added to the DVD, so when the shut-ins would go to the web address link provided to them by the HP Group Leader or the RS President, they could see these items as well as they waited for the remainder of the Sacrament meeting.

3. Set up my Video Camera in the back of the overflow (actually opend the rear curtain just inches and had my video camera on a tripod. No videotape in the camera - never recording the meeting. Connected only the video-out, to the video-in located on the side of the Chapel through a long RCA cord. This feeds the video into the house wiring system and back to the library into our VDA box ans video selector.

4. When the Sacrament ordinance was close to completion (AP lining up to return to the Sacrament table) I would walk back to the library where I could listen to the events over the house speakers and wait until I heard the conducting Bishopric member dismiss the AP to seated with their families. At this point I would change the video selector to "Camera" input and the feed from my Video Camera would go into the Webcast Meeting Communicator, and out to the unique meeting ID and into the homes of the shut-ins through the internet.


Our Stake has been doing this for our Stake Conferences for several years now and only having 1 session of conference and broadcasting to 2 additional remote ward buildings. At each Stake Conference, the Bishops in each of the wards are aware of the needs of their members and we provide each Bishop that requests a weblink for their shut-ins to enjoy conference (we have a memeber of the Seventy in our Stake and he has requested the link several times for his wife to be able to watch as she was not able to attend due to health reasons).

I would most certainly check with your Priesthood leaders (Bishops and Stake Presidents) and discuss and review with them and get their approval before proceeding to share the Sacrament meeting.

I hope this helps answers some questions, and if you have questions, just send me a PM and I will try and help.

Thanks
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gregwanderson
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Re: Webcasting sacrament meeting to shut-ins

#30

Post by gregwanderson »

Don't misunderstand. If I were a shut-in member of your ward I would love this service you offer. It would even be fun to be the guy who does it. However, from where I'm sitting and the way I read the handbook, a Sacrament Meeting video webcast is not allowed no matter who likes it (including Seventies, Stake Presidents or anyone else lower on the authority list than those who authorized the handbook).

I suppose it would be easier to interpret the handbook (which should be clear enough as to not need interpretation anyway) if I knew what principle is being reinforced by the policy. What is the policy supposed to be preventing or encouraging? What is so wrong with a video recording that isn't also wrong with an audio-only recording? Is it all about how disruptive it is to see a camera in the room during a meeting? Why is the chapel the only room falling under certain restrictions? If we knew the operative principle(s) then there would be fewer questions about the do-and-don't list. As it stands, we can speculate about the principles and then we think we've discovered gray areas.
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