Duke Union Community Television (Cable 13), Duke's student-run television station, grew out of Freewater Films' video programming group, following the purchase of a television camera. Cable 13 was the first student-owned and student-run television station in the country. Cable 13 became an official committee of the Duke University Union in 1976. It broadcasts on the Duke campus cable system. The collection consists of videocassettes and videotapes of events recorded at and around Duke between 1976 and 2009. It includes such figures as William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Nikki Giovanni, Juanita Kreps, Terry Sanford, Ralph Nader, and Elie Wiesel, as well as performances from Dance Black, the Duke Symphony Orchestra, the Duke Wind Symphony, the Firesign Theatre, Jerry Garcia, and Hoof'n'Horn. Other events include men's and women's basketball, women's crew, football, soccer, men's and women's volleyball, and Joe College Weekend, as well as news and talk shows.
The collection consists of videocassettes and half-inch open reel videotapes of events recorded at and around Duke, as well as student-produced content, between 1976 and 2009. Interviewees and notable figures include William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Nikki Giovanni, Juanita Kreps, Joseph Kruzel, Henry Kyemba, Peter Orlovsky, Terry Sanford, Daniel Schorr, Ralph Nader, Elie Wiesel, and Dave Thomas. Performances include Dance Black, the Duke Symphony Orchestra, the Duke Wind Symphony, Hoof'n'Horn, the Firesign Theatre, Jerry Garcia, Lotte Goslar's Pantomime Circus, and Roger McGuinn and Thunderbyrd. Events include men's and women's basketball, women's crew, football, soccer, men's and women's volleyball, and Joe College Weekend. Also included are news, talk shows, panel discussions, and many other shows.
The collection also includes a binder of materials related to the Cable 13 Show Labeling project as well as a sheet for the Cable 13 Programming Director.