"Star Trek" was a pioneer in many fields. It was the first to present ways of presenting good science fiction to a weekly television market. It provided the first interracial kiss and diverse command crew. And it was the first to be saved by a fan campaign when NBC threatened to cancel it after the second season.

Over the years, other series have met mixed success in trying to save programs that either were threatened to be cancelled, or that took a different route that fans feared would result in cancellation. Most notable in those efforts were bottles of Tabasco sauce sent from "Roswell" fans as well as glitter sent from "Earth: Final Conflict" viewers.

But MJ Rogers doesn't want to wait for a threat of cancellation from UPN to keep "Enterprise" on the air. In fact, she is starting her campaign now.

"I was online chatting with several friends about ('Enterprise') when someone observed that they hadn't heard if it had been renewed for Season 3," Rogers recently told Airlock Alpha's Michael Hinman. "The consensus was that we'd heard it was up for renewal this year, but we were afraid that if its ratings stayed down, it might not see a fourth season. It was commented that whoever the Nielsen families are, they certainly didn't include us."

Those concerns prompted Rogers and others to start a new campaign that they hope will save the fifth Star Trek series before it's even threatened. Soon after their discussion, Rogers joined with another fan named Kyrdwyn to organize the "Enterprise Project." The project, Rogers said, is meant to enhance the positive qualities of the UPN series while hopefully drawing back old fans, and even finding new ones.

"People are bothered by the very bad rap 'Enterprise' is taking," Rogers said. "Any visit to some of the public message boards s rife with insults and demands that the show should be taken off the air, and people who are foolish enough to admit that they like the show are punished for it by massive attacks from other people on the lists. And the low ratings for the show are reported regularly as a sign of the show's weakness, igoring that many of the most solid Trek fans in the country can't even get the show when it's first broadcast, and are accessing it through taped copies and downloads."

But Rogers said it goes beyond just standard misperception of the support for "Enterprise."

"We wanted to counteract all of the annoying blatant negativity about 'Enterprise' by putting out there that yes, plenty of people do watch the show, and we actually do like it. I was a big (original series) fan as a kid, and I hadn't really even been able to get back into Trek until 'Enterprise.' I know many other people who feel the same way, but our voices never get heard. Instead, all the public statements from the Trek fan community tend toward major negatives about the show, and we know it's rough to put out your best effort when it's looking as if everyone hates you."

Rogers and others have opened a Web site for the "Enterprise Project" located at www.geocities.com/enterpriseproject. The site asks fans to send letters to sponsors of "Enterprise" praising the show, as well as producers and television networks in both the United States and the United Kingdom ("Enterprise" airs on Channel Four in the UK).

Word about the campaign has been spreading pretty fast on the Internet as well, Rogers said.

"I sent a letter about the problem to several people, and everyone wanted to organize," Rogers said. "Kyrdwyn volunteered to put a Web page together, and I set up a Yahoo! group. Members have been great about sending news about us to other lists, telling friends, and even telling Trek fanclubs. It's great if people decide they want to look at the site and join our Yahoo! group, which plans ideas for outreach, but (it's) even more important that people write to Paramount and UPN and contact sponsors, in our opinion, to let them know that the ratings don't mean there's no audience."

UPN has yet to officially announce the renewal of "Enterprise," but is expected to give it a full third-season order in June.

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