Ryan Moccia, left, and Justin Masse of BrockTV are aiming for more investigative journalism about what happens at Brock this year.

Students will vote in a referendum again this year on continuing to fund BrockTV, and those at the head of the organization are focusing on making sure students get their money’s worth.

The organization is increasing its emphasis on news this year, streaming local news and segments in five categories on its newly redesigned website at brocktv.ca, said Ryan Moccia, producer/editor of the student-led network.

One of the criticisms of BrockTV in the past was that it didn’t have enough news coverage, said Moccia, a fourth-year Film Studies student.

“We want to be everywhere,” he said.

BrockTV has nearly 20 paid staff and more than 50 volunteers. Since a 2009 referendum, it has been funded by a per-student levy with a budget of about $210,000. The rate costs full-time students between $9 and $15 depending on their course load. The date hasn’t been set for this year’s referendum, although it’s expected to be in February at the same time as the Brock University Students’ Union executive election.

Viewer demand has prompted the team to focus more on on-campus news and investigative journalism, said Justin Masse, IT and marketing manager.

The team is also focusing on better marketing the network. That includes the new site, which has mobile version and embedding on Facebook.

So far, response has been good, Moccia said.

“We’ve received a lot of feedback from students in the past few months and are working to make the experience even better,” he said. “There are many more plans which we hope to implement to improve the student experience at Brock.”