Michigan Government Television (MGTV) is a public affairs Government-access television (GATV) cable TV channel begun by state cable

Cable television

Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...

 providers and available on cable television in Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

. Modeled on C-SPAN

C-SPAN

C-SPAN , an acronym for Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network, is an American cable television network that offers coverage of federal government proceedings and other public affairs programming via its three television channels , one radio station and a group of websites that provide streaming...

, the programming covers events and proceedings within the state government, including sessions of the Michigan House of Representatives and the Michigan Senate

Michigan Senate

The Michigan Senate is the upper house of the Michigan Legislature. The Senate consists of 38 members, who are elected from constituencies having approximately 212,400 to 263,500 residents....

. When MGTV launched on July 15, 1996, programming included House and Senate committees, commission meetings from within the executive branch and state board of education, press conferences, speeches by policy makers, and events made available by the state’s universities.

In October 1996, MGTV made Michigan only the second state to air oral arguments from the state's Supreme Court

Michigan Supreme Court

The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is known as Michigan's "court of last resort" and consists of seven justices who are elected to eight-year terms. Candidates are nominated by political parties and are elected on a nonpartisan ballot...

. Live coverage of the House of Representatives and Senate began in October 1997.

Due to limited funding, MGTV only airs 4 hours a day (10:00 am to 2:00 pm) on weekdays, and during special events like The Michigan Governor's State of the State Address. Because of the limited schedule, MGTV usually shares time with Public-access television

Public-access television

Public-access television is a form of non-commercial mass media where ordinary people can create content television programming which is cablecast through cable TV specialty channels...

, Leased access

Leased access

Leased access is airtime that the Federal Communications Commission mandates must be provided by cable operators for use by independent cable programmers and producers who are not owned by the operators...

 or infomercial

Infomercial

Infomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...

channels.