Bad Wolf
COMMONWEALTH MEDIA & BROADCAST CORPORATION
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To codify the CMBC, and going down the deep end of optimistic dystopia.
- Image Credit: ChatGPT Edits by me.
- Canon: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Links: OMNIA, VIGIL, the Major, Fallout NV - House, Avatar of the Major, Commonwealth Astrogation > Tregessar, Signal Reformation Act
- Organization Name: Commonwealth Media & Broadcast Corporation
- Classification: State-Owned Corporation / Cultural Authority
- Affiliation: Imperial Commonwealth of Dosuun
- Organization Symbol: Comm tower, in a hex.
- Description: Formerly a privately owned corporate entity. The Commonwealth Media & Broadcast Corporation (CMBC) is the official state media network and cultural arm of the Imperial Commonwealth. Originally founded as a progressive multi-channel broadcaster supporting civic education, artistic expression, and national unity, CMBC evolved drastically following the activation of the Blackwall in 906 ABY.
In response to the collapse of open galactic communications, CMBC was nationalized and reorganized under the Signal Reclamation and Purity Act, becoming the Government’s operational media branch. It now serves as the primary source of news, entertainment, and propaganda for the Commonwealth. Despite its polished exterior and patriotic programming, CMBC has been accused of suppressing dissent, erasing pre-Blackwall content, and participating in widespread information engineering under the guidance of the Oversight Bureau
- Headquarters: Crown City Signal Complex, located in Crown City, which for the purposes of this submission is located within the Tregessar Sector, likely tied to the Major. However; there is a physical-front facing headquarters in Avalonia, and other capital worlds within the Commonwealth.
- A sprawling broadcast citadel perched on a tiered arcology in the city’s Administrative Sector, the Signal Complex features massive analog towers, archive vaults, performance halls, and a fully sealed subterranean emergency broadcast core. The building is shaped like a monolithic transmission spike—a visible symbol of civic unity and broadcast control.
- Domain: CMBC operates across all worlds under Commonwealth control, with permanent signal hubs and regional transmitters embedded in major cities, industrial colonies, and even frontier settlements. Every citizen’s home terminal, educational holoscreen, and commercial media board is CMBC-linked and monitored for compliance. CMBC also hosts public cultural festivals, live musical broadcasts, and Signal Day parades. Its outreach efforts are often combined with initiatives from the Commonwealth Civic Advancement Bureau, spreading messaging through both entertainment and infrastructure.
- Notable Assets: Includes but is not limited to:
- Crown City Signal Complex – HQ, broadcast epicenter, and CMBC administrative hub
- CMBC Vaults – Located beneath the Signal Complex, the Vaults contain centuries of recordings, banned holodramas, pre-Blackwall music, and unedited historical reels—sealed to all but the highest clearance levels
- CMBC Stage 9 – A prestige holo-studio used for producing major state-approved holofilms like Crimson Resolve II, Tomb of the 13th Star, and live musical dramas (Starlight Stomp, Crimson Chrome)
- Regional Transmitter Nodes – Signal pylons outfitted with surveillance rigs, located in every major city under Commonwealth jurisdiction
- Mobile Broadcast Units – Vintage-style hovervans and haulers used during cultural festivals and loyalty parades, equipped with loudspeakers, mini-stages, and real-time broadcast gear
- The Echo Spire – A secret signal tower built in orbit around the Commonwealth’s capital world, used to beam emergency messages and hard-coded propaganda in the event of full planetary signal loss
- Hierarchy: CMBC is operated under a strictly vertical chain of command, modeled after Imperial broadcasting principles blended with Commonwealth bureaucratic ideals. The organization prizes order, clarity, and ideological loyalty.
- Overseer of Broadcast Integrity – Appointed by the High Basileus, this individual serves as both executive director and state censor-in-chief.
- Signal Directors – A council of elite administrators managing channel groups (News, Culture, Education, Youth, etc.).
- Regional Signal Wardens – Overseers of local broadcasting hubs; act as both producers and moral enforcers.
- Broadcast Cohorts – Producers, editors, live performers, and CMBC talent. Must undergo loyalty screening and regular audits.
- Junior CivCom Operatives – Interns and “Signal Youth Cadets,” often drawn from youth programs like the Starborne Cadet Corps and the Royal Scouts.
- CMBC channels themselves are ranked by Tier Clearance, and only the top echelon may access Tier IV–V materials (pre-Blackwall archives, foreign media, and redacted broadcasts).
- Membership: [IC] / [OOC: Talk to Me]
- CMBC employs roughly 1.2 million individuals across the Commonwealth, with regional offices in every major city. Entry is considered a patriotic calling and often begins in youth signal academies or state-approved arts programs.
- To join: Citizens must pass a Loyalty Interview and complete a two-week course in Broadcast Purity Ethics.
- New hires are issued a CMBC Signal Passcard and required to recite the Five Frequencies of Fidelity.
- High-clearance personnel must undergo annual “tone purification” psych-evals to ensure ideological clarity.
- CMBC employs roughly 1.2 million individuals across the Commonwealth, with regional offices in every major city. Entry is considered a patriotic calling and often begins in youth signal academies or state-approved arts programs.
- Climate: Inside CMBC, the atmosphere is a paradox of gleaming optimism and ever-present paranoia.
- Walls are decorated with cheerful First Imperial Revival murals, and breakrooms play calming civic music.
- Workers receive free caf, stylized uniforms, and “Citizen of the Month” awards.
- Holocams line every corridor. Promotions often come after someone else disappears.
- New staff are trained to speak in measured tones and always smile on camera.
- Reputation: CMBC is seen by loyalists as a beloved pillar of national identity—the warm, familiar hum of every home’s holo-terminal.
- But in frontier sectors and artistic circles, it is regarded with deep suspicion:
- "They don’t tell lies. They just tell you what you’re allowed to believe."
- Pirate broadcasters call it “The Crimson Echo.”
- Overall: Beloved by many, feared by more, trusted by few.
- But in frontier sectors and artistic circles, it is regarded with deep suspicion:
- Curios: Members of CMBC are issued:
- Signal Passcards – Gold-etched identification badges with tier access codes
- Voice Harmonizer Pins – Discreet collar-mounted audio filters that “clean” vocal tone on-air
- Crimson Broadcast Journals – Leather-bound daily logs containing affirmations, broadcast notes, and ideological reflections
- High-level operatives may wear a gold-plated lapel pin shaped like the CMBC hexagonal symbol—known colloquially as “the True Tone.”
- Rules: All CMBC members are expected to follow the Five Frequencies of Fidelity, recited weekly on Tier I Broadcasts:
- The Signal is Sacred
- Truth Belongs to Unity
- Noise Breeds Chaos
- Clarity Serves All
- Broadcast is Belief
- Violations result in Signal Review Hearings, mandatory re-education sessions, or reassignment to “non-broadcast civic roles.”
- Goals: CMBC’s mission is threefold:
- Preserve the Cultural Identity of the Commonwealth
- Protect Citizens from Signal Subversion
- Reinforce Ideological Unity Through Art, News, and Storytelling
N/A
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
"The Signal has always sounded like this."
– Common phrase among CMBC staff, date of origin unknown
The Commonwealth Media & Broadcast Corporation (CMBC) was originally established as an optimistic cornerstone of Commonwealth civic life. It offered a unifying frequency across distant systems—bringing music, education, arts, and state messaging into homes with clarity, dignity, and progressive pride.
In a society built on Imperial structure but guided by the belief in cultural uplift, CMBC became the beating heart of the Commonwealth’s post-Galactic War renaissance. Over time, it grew into a media empire spanning thirty channels, youth programs, and even wartime holofilms—all tightly regulated but charmingly nostalgic, favoring a stylized vision of unity, clarity, and patriotic optimism.
Then came the Blackwall.
Though the nature and origin of the Blackwall Event remain heavily classified, its effects were immediate and traumatic: galactic communications failure, massive signal interference, and the complete severance of cultural, economic, and artistic exchange with the wider galaxy.
In response, the High Basileus declared a Cultural Emergency, invoking rarely-seen codes from the original Commonwealth Articles of Continuity. Among the directives issued during this emergency was the passage of the Signal Reclamation and Purity Act of 906 ABY.
What followed—officially—was a tightening of state messaging, an internal consolidation of broadcast networks, and the take over of the CMBC by the Government.
Unofficially, something else happened.
Across studio floors and writing rooms, no one received new scripts. No directives were issued to fire talent. No abrupt policy changes. Yet somehow:
- Programming grew just slightly more uniform.
- Jokes that once walked the edge now landed safely on the side of reverence.
- Historical documentaries began citing different dates.
- Live hosts spoke with marginally more precision.
- And producers began referencing internal memos no one remembers writing.
When questioned, most staff waved it off:
“That’s how we’ve always done it.”
“I think that change happened last quarter... right?”
“We updated that... didn’t we?”
The Public Oversight Committee denies any back-end restructuring.
The Civic Advancement Bureau claims to have only improved signal clarity and archival access.
The High Basileus has never publicly addressed the programming drift.
And yet—
CMBC’s transmissions remain flawless.
- Its message consistent.
- Its anchors calm.
- Its loyalty absolute.
Historians who’ve studied CMBC’s archive recordings have noted curious anomalies:
- Minor logo variations in pre-Blackwall recordings that don't match surviving physical reels.
- Discrepancies in public holiday names and anchor dialects that seem... impossible.
- Cultural references phased out without official revision—gone from scripts, sets, and even staff memory.
Some scholars have begun referring to this phenomenon as The Drift. But any serious inquiry into the matter is met with:
- Audit threats from the Oversight Bureau.
- Access denial to internal records.
- And—on occasion—reassignments to “Non-Broadcast Civic Roles.”
So while the Signal Reclamation and Purity Act of 906 ABY is officially remembered as a minor, stabilizing reform, its legacy is whispered in the back rooms of university archives and indie holo-cafés:
“The Signal didn’t change.
We just don’t remember what it was.”
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