Join us at CCX Media in Brooklyn Park for the 42nd Annual MACTA Conference & Trade Show on Tuesday, July 29th!
The conference will include informative general and breakout sessions and the Trade Show will showcase PEG technology.
There will be a lot to see and learn at the 42nd Annual MACTA Conference and Trade Show.

Download the agenda, CCX floor plan, CCX parking map.

Agenda

8:00 - 8:45 REGISTRATION, CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST, VISIT WITH VENDORS
8:45 - 9:00 WELCOME - Eric Strouse, MACTA President
9:00 - 10:15 GENERAL SESSION - ADA Requirements and You!
- Speakers:
  - Michael Bradley - Bradley Werner, LLC - Mike is a Partner at the Bradley Werner law firm. He has spent nearly his entire 30+ year career advocating for community media organizations and local governments on communications issues, including the development of legislative proposals to help preserve franchising authority and community media funding. Mike has advocated in federal and state courts, the PUC, the Office of Broadband Development, the legislature, and the FCC in support of community media and local governments. He has also helped his community media and local government clients with complying with the ADA.
  - Dana Healy - Tightrope Media Systems - Dana Healy is the COO of Tightrope Media Systems and a 20-year veteran of PEG media. Together with the Tightrope team, she supports the growth and evolution of the Cablecast and MediaScribe product lines, helping government agencies modernize communication through accessible and compliant video solutions. She also hosts the Government Video Podcast.
  - Lynn Wehrman - WeCo - Lynn is the Founder/President of WeCo, began her career working in digital accessibility as one of the first government digital accessibility specialists in 2008. With an education in communications, and professional background in federal program coordination, she led an early effort in government digital accessibility for the Minnesota Department of Transportation. Digital Accessibility by WeCo came to life after she witnessed firsthand the power of people living with disabilities working as subject matter experts, in her government role.
10:15 - 10:45 VISIT WITH VENDORS AND CCX STATION TOURS
10:45 - 12:00 CONCURRENT WORKSHOPS
- Content/Technical: Producing Video for Social Media (How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Vertical Video)
  - Moderator
    - Dan Carpenter - City of Edina - Dan is the Community TV Administrator for Southwest Television, programing both a public and education access channel while occasionally teaching video production classes at BCAT Studio in Bloomington. He also creates a wide range of video content for the City of Edina. Before moving to Minnesota from Alaska in 2017, he worked as a Photojournalist for seven years, and a Multimedia Journalist for five years for NBC and CBS affiliates. His freelance work has been featured on NBC Nightly News, the Today Show, and PBS Frontline.
  - Speakers:
    - Scott Denfeld - City of Edina - Scott has served in the City of Edina's Communications Department as Video Production Manager for 18 years. During that time, he has overseen the transition from long-form television content to shorter social media-ready videos to even shorter social media reels. Even though the content has gotten shorter over the years, the importance of clear, engaging and useful communications has always been important to Scott and his very talented staff of video producers. Continuing to make an impact on those who live in, work in and visit Edina remains the primary focus of everything Scott and his team produce.
    - Emily Taplin - City of Bloomington - Emily is an award-winning communications professional with more than a decade of experience in public relations and multimedia storytelling, and community engagement. She currently serves as the Media and Video Production Coordinator for the City of Bloomington, where she produces the weekly cable program Bloomington Today, manages video requests, creates Instagram content, and pitches story ideas to local media. Emily's path began in broadcast journalism. She earned a degree in mass communications and worked as a news anchor and reporter at an ABC affiliate in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, before producing national content for PBS at Twin Cities Public Television. Emily believes every individual has a unique story to tell--and considers it an honor and privilege to help share those stories.
- Policy/Legal: Legislative Recap & Legal Strategy: What We Fought For - And What Comes Next
  - Speakers:
    - Michael Bradley - Bradley Werner, LLC - Mike is a Partner at the Bradley Werner law firm. He has spent nearly his entire 30+ year career advocating for community media organizations and local governments on communications issues, including the development of legislative proposals to help preserve franchising authority and community media funding. Mike has advocated in federal and state courts, the PUC, the Office of Broadband Development, the legislature, and the FCC in support of community media and local governments. He has also helped his community media and local government clients with complying with the ADA.
    - Elizabeth Emerson - Goff Public - Elizabeth is a principal and senior vice president of Goff Public, a highly respected public relations and public affairs agency in St. Paul. Elizabeth is a sought-after strategist who helps clients achieve meaningful results in even the most tumultuous political environments. Elizabeth's background as a campaign operative, legislative staffer and political consultant provides the foundation for her approach to problem-solving for clients, using creative strategies to fit clients' needs. She leads Goff Public's public affairs team, in and outside of the Capitol, working with clients to build authentic advocacy, direct lobbying and coalition efforts that produce tangible public policy outcomes. Known for her authentic approach and willingness to tackle challenging projects head-on, Elizabeth uses her deep understanding of political processes to achieve client results.
12:00 - 1:00 LUNCH, MACTA ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RECOGNITION
1:00 - 1:30 VISIT WITH VENDORS AND CCX MEDIA TOURS
1:30 - 2:45 CONCURRENT WORKSHOPS
- Content/Technical: Lights, Clouds, Action! Outdoor Lighting Tips & Tricks, plus Truck Tours
  - Speakers:
    - Adam Jukkola, CCX News Multimedia Journalist - Adam is happy to have joined the CCX Media News team. He has lived in Minnesota since October of 2016. Adam was born in Memphis, Tennessee, but raised in the tiny town of Newell, South Dakota where he got to learn firsthand about his Finnish heritage by living on the original Jukkola family homestead. Adam has been working in television news in various roles since October of 1999. He began his career as a studio production assistant at the NBC affiliate in Rapid City, South Dakota. He then moved to Sioux Falls to help launch a PAX affiliate news station while learning to both shoot news, and direct live television events all around the state of South Dakota. Adam continued his news photography career with a move to Colorado Springs where he worked at the CBS, NBC and Fox affiliates over the span of nine years before he took a job at WLOS in Asheville, North Carolina. He spent five years working for KARE 11. Adam has covered many major events over his 20+ year news career including 9/11, mass shootings, tornado outbreaks, hurricanes, protests, riots, and both the NFC and AFC Championship games. He's also quite proud that he has gotten to fly in a Blackhawk helicopter, a C-130 military transport, and a "Huey" helicopter that had been refurbished after being shot down in Vietnam. Adam was also a skilled satellite operator for both WLOS and KARE 11. Adam can be found spending time biking Minnesota's many trails, downhill skiing, enjoying a craft beer at one of our many fantastic local breweries, playing board games with his wife, and working out in his yard or woodworking shop.
    - Ben Kroll, CCX News Chief Photographer - Ben is the Chief Photographer of the CCX News Department and has been telling stories in the northwest metro for over 20 years as a news photojournalist, with the past 5 years as Chief Photographer. He also worked at KSAX News in Alexandria, MN from 2000-2003 as a news photojournalist, and freelanced at KARE 11 from 2003-2008, working for the multi-Emmy award winning 'Whatever Show.' At the end of the work day, Ben makes the trek back home to the east metro where he lives with his wife and two kids. In his free time, Ben enjoys landscape photography, couch coaching the Minnesota Wild, and cooking on his Blackstone.
- Policy/Legal: Building Your Station's Value: Relationships, Reputation & Reaching the Public
  - Speakers:
    - Elizabeth Emerson - Goff Public
    - Kara Trygstad - City of Northfield
    - Shannon Slatton Schwartz - CCX Media
2:45 - 4:00 GENERAL SESSION
- Smart Solutions: Tackling PEG Challenges with Strategy & Collaboration
4:00 - 4:15 CLOSING REMARKS

Join us for the Twins Game on July 28th!

Come out to Target Field and cheer on the Minnesota Twins as they take on the Boston Red Sox on Monday July 28th.

Seats have been reserved for conference attendees to be seated together, but inventory is limited so don't wait to purchase your seat.

Click here to register.

Attendee Rates

Attendee registration is available thru July 21, 2025

$125 - Member Individual In-Person Registration
$225 - Non-Member Individual In-Person Registration
$300 - 3-Person Bundle
- $100 - Additional Bundle Attendees

Sponsor Rates

Sponsor registration is available thru July 21, 2025

Title Sponsor - contact the MACTA office

Exclusive sponsorship
Lunch, beverages and snacks for three (3) representatives
Exhibit Table with electrical connection
Full page insert in conference handouts (sponsor supplies)
Printed signage at conference
Sponsor acknowledgement on name tags
Recognition on conference website with logo and weblink
Recognition in June 2025 - May 2026 eBrief newsletters
Named as lunch sponsor
Introduction and up to one minute pitch during lunch
Optional - $75 - additional table with electrical connection

Premier Sponsor - $500

Lunch, beverages and snack for two (2) representatives
Full page insert in conference handouts (sponsor supplies)
Printed signage at conference
Sponsor acknowledgement on name tags
Recognition on conference website with logo and weblink
Recognition in June 2025 - May 2026 eBrief newsletters
Optional - $75 - per table with electrical connection

Sustaining Sponsor - $225

Lunch, beverages and snacks for one (1) representative
Recognition on conference website with logo and weblink
Recognition in June 2025 - May 2026 eBrief newsletters
Optional - $75 - per table with electrical connection

2025 Conference and Trade Show