The phrases 'keeping it in the family' and 'giving something back to the community' are themes running throughout everything that is done at Onion TV today.

For the cable channel 75 is run by the Caines family, including the team of three brothers, namely operations manager Travis, public relations guru Dwayne and legal eagle Wayne. The channel was started with the help of their parents Michael and Shurnett and uncle Rollin Nathan.

And it is all about representing and promoting the wide diversity of Bermuda's community, as Travis explained.

"The business idea came from just sitting round a table and thinking of a way we could do this," he said.

"In other words, we wanted it to be a true representation of every community on the Island and to act as a platform for the athletes, artists and musicians that really do not have that platform presently.

"I think, because of the nature of the product and the quality of the product, we will revolutionise TV, but it will be familiar faces doing it.

"Pretty much everyone wants to be heard and the beauty of this whole project is, right now we are finding a lot of young Bermudians are coming on board and its is great to see the amount of people that are willing to make a contribution to it."

Onion TV, which is a subsidiary of Bermuda Style Management, was started two years ago when Travis put together a business plan and applied for a license to run a TVstation.

"The challenge was putting everything we had in the plan into action and a station is only as strong as its content," he said.

"So we are building a library so we can have a good series of productions on TV and the great thing about it is that the island will see us grow over time."

Also working behind the scenes is Carmen Burgess, who helps out with the overall operation of the project, and Brenton Richardson, the founder of entertainment website BermyNet, who has played an instrumental part in not only developing the business, but also extending the links between Internet and TV and serving as a host on the channel itself.

But it is really Travis's brainchild and he is the main driving force behind the whole business empire from his studio based inPembroke.

"I see to the operation of the business - I do editing, camera work, doing everything in the field and am involved in getting contents, whatever is needed I will do it - it is just a wonderful experience," he said.

"Alex Dill is my partner on the production side of the business, North Atlantic Films is his company and the production work he does is excellent.

"But, in order to reach our goal we have to encourage local young talent because we need a representation of each community on the Island and that is what we are trying to build our team around."

In fact the channel will be focusing on every possible background, whether it be racial, ethnic, cultural or otherwise, from black and white Bermudians to Portuguese Bermudians, West Indian Bermudians and European Bermudians and even ex-pats.

It will also be looking at artists including actors and musicians and low profile sports such as motocross and lacrosse, said Travis, who has four years camera work experience behind him.

"The idea was, we wanted to do something we have a natural skill towards and we have a love of the arts, of acting, of music and cultural together with an interest in technology and this was a natural progression of what we love," he said.

"Typically, in a week, excluding Government's CITV channel, you will probably have eight hours of local programming, and that includes the news, so that is not very many broadcasters on TV.

"What we want to do is give people an opportunity get more coverage of the local community.

"We are partnering with individuals that are already active out there and we are currently beating the path to see what we can do that is new and innovative and I think, for us, what we can benefit from is to discover individuals who are looking to reach a market of Bermudians through traditional and non-traditional means.

"We have a rotation of productions on the channel that you can see a number of times and that way it is to the benefit of the company sponsoring that particular product that is looking to market to a target audience at different times throughout the day and your dollar goes a longer way based on that heavy rotation.

"We believe we have a quality product and that is why we are confident that the end result will justify the cause."

Aside from the people who run the channel, a substantial amount of capital was invested in the equipment and infrastructure needed to operate the station, such as cameras, microphones, sound equipment and computers and the like, all of which will serve Onion TV well in its plans for future expansion, said Travis.

"Our goals is to start small and develop over the years, getting trade in and developing over time with sound, production, good camera work and computers," he said.

"Onion TV will be built on vibrant ideas, motivated individuals and people who are committed to the overall development of Bermuda.

"We have already had a robust response from the community and right now we are in the process of educating people as to what we are and what we are looking for.

"In the next few months you will see a steady flow of complete shows and also a visible presence of sponsors and our long term goal is to be a viable operation in the telecommunications and broadcasting community inbermuda and to set up regional links in North America, including the US and Canada, and the Caribbean to share and trade information and resources.

"It is all down to my parents, who because of their vision and belief in their sons actually took and used resources in their means to make sure this project was a success and because of their commitment to their sons' dreams and also to Bermuda that has enabled us to do the things we have done.

Anyone interested in getting involved in, sponsoring a production on or just finding out more about Onion TV can either email the company at info@otv.bm or 3caines@northrock.bm