By CANDACE MIERS

Staff Writer

Lights, camera, arguable action.

Tech TV has been airing throughout campus housing for five years. The growing years have brought wilting ratings.

"I didn't know Tech had a television station," Nathan Bowen, a junior architecture major, said.

In an effort to increase and inform viewers, Tech TV has created new programs and extended its viewing area.

For those students who live off-campus, Tech TV plays in Tolliver Hall.

"We are now trying to target the whole campus so everyone can get to know us," Jennifer Porter, organizer and producer of the Tech TV crew and a graduate student in industrial/organizational psychology, said.

"Tech TV is reaching out by putting the students in front of the camera," Porter said.

On Tech TV's quest to revamp the station and try to keep the students from skipping Channel 4, programs such as "Cribs" were created.

"Cribs" is where the crew goes to dorm rooms and University Park apartments and films rooms," Chase Guy, a Tech TV crewmember and a sophomore biology major, said.

"No one minds their rooms being filmed, but when I say that they have to be on camera, they usually change their minds [about being on "Cribs"]."

In addition to "Cribs," Tech TV has "Tech TV News" and "My Pimped Ride," a college version to MTV's "Pimp My Ride" but instead of fixing up vehicles, the crew films pre-existing pimped vehicles due to lack of funds.

Some other features for Tech TV are a dating show called "Could It Be" where two Tech students are set up on a blind date.

Also, "My Short Film" where students make their own short films for Tech TV to air.

New programs in production include a cooking show titled "Cooking with Pork Chop" and a makeover show titled "Tech TV's Total Makeover," sponsored by The Strand, located at 113 N Vienna St., and Lewis', located at 108 Park Ave.

Kyle Sweeney, Tech TV crewman and a senior professional aviation major, said working on the Tech TV crew was good learning experience.

"We want everybody to have as much fun watching our station as we have making it," Sweeney said.

The Tech TV crew films, edits and airs all its own programs.

"If nothing else is good here, at least we have expensive computers," Guy said.

Apple computers are used in production.

Extensive graphic art is used to make slides as commercials.

The slides between Tech TV programs and movies are pictures of students as well as free advertising.

Porter said, "A good way for people to watch our program is to give them free advertising."