By all appearances, Hastings Community TV is a modest operation, tucked away on the third floor of Hastings High School. But scratch the surface, and you’ll find a lean crew cranking out award-winning programming, heartfelt PSAs, live sports coverage, and a goofy-but-loved show that once featured a grown man getting a spray tan.
Yes, really.
“If you haven’t heard of it, I feature Hastings businesses, and I become an employee for a day,” said Mike Bremer, Executive Director of HCTV, referring to his long-running show Take a Hike, Mike before sharing a video. “This was a double header episode where I did yoga by the river, and then I went and got a spray tan.”
Bremer was featured speaker at the Hastings Rotary Club’s meeting Oct. 16.
With more than 75 episodes and a theme song once sung by actor-comedian Flula Borg, the series is part comedy, part community booster, and very much part of HCTV’s local charm.
Founded in 1983, HCTV is a PEG station—Public, Education, and Government. It's independently operated as a nonprofit and relies heavily on funding from Comcast cable subscriptions through a standard franchise agreement. That funding model worked for decades. But now, with more households cutting cable and switching to streaming, revenue is slipping fast.
“Our funding is at an all-time low, and our future is in jeopardy,” Bremer said.
In response, Bremer and his team are hustling harder than ever. They’ve partnered with the Hastings School District to reduce rent in exchange for producing promotional videos, like a polished 40-second clip now playing on the school district’s homepage.
“The school district was thrilled with how this turned out,” said Bremer.
HCTV’s reach goes well beyond school events. The team produces over 75 live high school, youth and Hastings Hawks games a year, complete with multi-camera setups, replays, and on-screen graphics.
“It kind of feels like ESPN,” said Bremer. They also cover city council meetings, community events, and host in-studio interviews with local leaders.
And when the stakes are higher, HCTV delivers. A recent PSA on the fentanyl crisis, created with the Devin J. Norring Foundation and featuring students affected by the epidemic, drew tears during filming and later drew the attention of Congresswoman Angie Craig.
“It was like a funeral in there,” Bremer said. “There were tears in people’s eyes.” The video has since been shared nationally.
To combat declining revenue, HCTV is leaning into a sponsorship model.
Meanwhile, Bremer is lobbying for systemic change. As an officer with MACTA (Minnesota Association of Community Telecommunications Administrators), he’s advocating for legislation that would modernize funding, shifting part of the fee burden to broadband companies who also use public infrastructure.
“If this law changes, we would be safe for the next 15 to 20 years,” he said.
Despite the challenges, HCTV continues to serve as a launchpad for future broadcasters. The high school’s broadcast journalism class, now called The Bridge, is booming. Last year, it had 40 students, the largest class ever. Several alums have gone on to prominent media careers, including Katie Steiner of WCCO and filmmaker Michael Kampa.
Bremer, who started as a volunteer intern himself, summed up the mission simply: “We are artists. We are entertainers. We are storytellers. We are teachers.”
And at a time when local media is thinning out, Hastings Community TV keeps showing up with cameras rolling.