KPFA's Budgetary Challenges and Election Propoganda

That $375,000.00 now sits in the control of the San Francisco Foundation instead of a KPFA/Pacifica bank account. The previous check was to be deposited in a KPFA/Pacifica account. After it became stale it was replaced with a check made out to the San Francisco Foundation to administer. Someday we may find out what the nature of their nefarious plan was??? No one leaves a check for $375,000.00 sitting around with out some plan! Especially when you are short of money.

Perhaps the CL/ phoney SAVE KPFA folks would like to explain their unprofessional conduct demonstrated here. What were you folks planning to do with the $375,000.00???

THE PACIFICA FINANCIAL CRISIS!
WHO IS RESPONSIBLE?
By Richard Phelps 
Thursday May 14, 2009

Recently WBAI management did not pay their rent for four months and received a Three Day Notice to pay or be subject to eviction. This was not promptly communicated to the financial or executive management of Pacifica. WBAI has been losing hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for several years and currently owes Pacifica over $1,000,000.00 in back central services contributions.  Each station contributes 20% of its listener-generated revenue to run the Foundation. When one station isn’t making its contribution the results are that the Foundation is short on money or the other stations have to pay more. This several year problem at WBAI and the current economic downturn has caused serious financial problems for Pacifica. The current Pacifica National Board (PNB), elected in January, gives hope for the survival of Pacifica.
 
Why didn’t Pacifica correct this problem early on? There was collusion among some PNB members from various stations to allow WBAI  to do what they wanted to do with no oversight or accountability to the Bylaws or the listener/subscribers. The major players in this collusion were from KPFA, WBAI and WPFW, with a vote or two from KPFK and KPFT and the affiliate Reps on the PNB.
 
The Local Station Board (LSB) majorities at KPFA and WBAI generally elected three PNB members that supported this collusion and WPFW, until recently, often sent four. There are 22 members of the PNB, four from each station and two Affiliate Representatives. An LSB majority can elect three of the four PNB members for their station. With ten votes from KPFA, WBAI and WPFW it only takes three votes from the ten from the other two stations and affiliate reps to have a majority to control the PNB and continue this collusion. Until this last January the Colluders had the majority for several years.
 
Who are the Colluders and why did they do this? Local tyrannical majorities wanted to run their stations without regard to the Bylaws and with no oversight from the Foundation. At KPFA the “KPFAForward” (2004) and “Concerned Listener” (CL) (2006 & 2007) slates represented the same management/staff faction and generally endorsed majorities that sent three PNB members who consistently voted to protect and continue the collusion. This group included William Walker, Sarv Randhawa, Rosalinda Palacios, Mary Berg, Sherry Gendelman, Bonnie Simmons and Andrea Turner. They consistently vote/voted with the Justice & Unity majority from WBAI and the WPFW majority. They generally sit together at the PNB meetings and are regularly seen privately caucusing together at lunch and before and after meetings sometimes, with GM Lemlem Rijio when in Berkeley.
 
Prior to this year’s PNB, Bob Lederer was the Justice & Unity leader on the PNB.  I have attended many PNB meetings and listened to most of the others on line. During those meetings if KPFA Colluder PNB members were not sure how to vote they often passed if Bob Lederer hadn’t voted or passed. When he voted they would follow. If you don’t believe me go to the archives of the meetings and listen. Rosalinda Palacios (2006) was especially consistent with following Lederer’s votes.

Whenever there was a move to correct the problems at WBAI the KPFA Colluders always voted with the others to protect the LSB majority at WBAI. Patty Heffley, the minority PNB Rep from WBAI, made a motion to have the PNB order the WBAI LSB to do a performance review of the general manager (GM) and the program director. The Bylaws require these to be done annually. At WBAI they had never been done, despite complaints from the LSB minority. The PNB Colluder majority refused to order the WBAI LSB to follow the Bylaws. Many others complained about WBAI being out of control and losing money and the Colluder PNB majority did NOTHING as the red ink continued to flow.
 
At KPFA the CL slate and the Rijio/Lilley management work together to make sure they maintain a majority on the LSB to elect three PNB members from their group. One of their methods was to have no election information on the air when the ballots went out and at the same time the CL sent a slate mailer. After the first time this happened I wrote a motion on the PNB Election Committee requiring election information to be on the air during the election. It passed out of the election committee by a 10-2 vote.  The Colluder majority on the PNB voted it down. When they finally ran some candidate information they ran 22 candidate statements in a row, always with Sherry Gendelman first! At the April 2009 PNB meeting in Berkeley the new non-Colluder PNB majority passed a  motion requiring broad election coverage on the air.
 
The Colluder majority was consistently against transparency. The Bylaws and  California law allow Directors, PNB members, the “absolute right” to inspect all documents and facilities at any reasonable time. For years the Colluders fought to stop or hinder Directors’ Inspections. When inspections were finally allowed due to potential lawsuits it was discovered that $65,000 worth of equipment had been sent to a WBAI  former GM’s father’s house and was not accounted for. As recently as 2008 a Director was ordered out of WBAI in the middle of a lawful inspection without any justification.  Who gave the order? Dan Siegel, interim Executive Director, hired by the Colluder majority.
 
So when you hear Brian Edwards-Tiekert, Sherry Gendelman, Bonnie Simmons, Conn or Matthew Hallinan, Warren Mar or any of the CL allies complain about KPFA money going to shore up WBAI, they and their allies are responsible for this crisis for trading fiscal responsibility for their power to ignore the Bylaws, transparency and accountability.
 
To save Pacifica we must vote out the CL Colluders in the next election so they will not be able to send three Colluders to the PNB to ignore the Bylaws and progressive principles in favor of uncontrolled tyranny of the local majorities. KPFA is a Commons that belongs to all of us, and it must be protected and preserved above the CL/Rijio group’s desire for unrestrained and unaccountable power. 
 
Richard Phelps, former Chair, KPFA LSB  


 

KPFA: TEN YEARS AFTER THE 1999 HIJACK ATTEMPT  

After mass listener support rescued KPFA and Pacifica from a self appointed Pacifica National Board (PNB) that was planning to sell KPFA or one of the other stations and take the “community” out of the network, new democratic Bylaws were written and adopted. You can read the Bylaws at: http://pacifica.org/governance/PacificaBylaws-new.html .   Pacifica’s Bylaws state a commitment for peace and social justice, Article One, Section 3. It seems inconceivable that peace and social justice can even be approached with out a democratic process with transparency and accountability. As Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see in the world.”
 
As Pacifica embarked on its new democratic path it became clear is that everyone that fought the Hijackers didn’t do so for the same reason! Most listener activists and some staff supported the new democratic process and welcomed the involvement and input of the listener/subscribers who are the regular audience and the financial supporters of the station and Pacifica.
 
At KPFA some staff and their supporters sought to defeat the Hijackers so that they could control KPFA and make the decisions about who/what gets air time and who gets the paid jobs. This latter group has used the power of the stations progressive reputation and the power of the microphone to maintain control and frustrate the new Bylaws in many ways. The staff group I am referring to was identified by an e-mail from Brian Edwards-Tiekert to the other “insiders” that became public in 2005. You can read the e-mail at http://peoplesradio.net/Dismantle.htm . The author acknowledged its authenticity. Their group now claims that it never met to discuss “dismantling the Local Station Board (LSB)”, aka the democratic process, or “how do we make our enemies own the problems that are to come”. This group has been supported by their electoral counter part, first called KPFAForward (2004) and now Concerned Listeners (CL).
 
In the 5+ years under this leadership group KPFA subscribers have gone from 28,000 in 2003 to 20,000 now! That is a 28% decrease while they increased the paid staff by 50%. Bringing us a $300,000 deficit this year. At the same time they refused to do anything about the financial problems hurting Pacifica. Their conduct actually precipitated a major financial crisis at Pacifica. http://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2009-05-14/article/32873?headline=The-Pacifica-Financial-Crisis-Who-is-Responsible-. [same article as above]
   
Let’s see what these folks have done toward “dismantling the LSB”.  In 2003 the KPFA Program Council, made up of paid and unpaid staff and listeners, voted to move Democracy Now! (DN!) to Prime time, 7-8am and move the morning show to 8-10am. There was/is significant listener demand/support for this time change. It is common practice and common sense to put your most popular/dynamic program in prime time. In May 2004 the LSB voted to move DN! to prime time as per the Program Council’s prior vote.  This has never been implemented. WHY?
 
In 2007 GM Lemlem Rijio, quietly ended the Program Council. The LSB’s CL majority ignored the previous Resolution codifying the Program Council and did nothing to save the Program Council.
 
In 2007 GM Rijio took away the official status of the Unpaid Staff Organization (UPSO). UPSO existed to represent the unpaid staff at KPFA, more than 200 people. These are the people who do the majority of the work that goes on the air.
 
The CL slate literature for the 2006 and 2007 LSB elections was silent on the important issues of the Program Council, UPSO and the DN! move to prime time
 
In 2009 the CL LSB majority voted to meet only once every other month, instead of every month as all the other stations do and KPFA had done for 5 years. They ignored the backlog of work to be done and how it delayed the selection of LSB members to important PNB committees.
 
Over a year ago they took the link to the LSB page off the front page of the KPFA web site. They don’t announce the LSB meetings on the front page of the web site and often don’t announce them on the air as required by the Bylaws.
 
How has the CL maintained its slim majority on the LSB? Here are some of the dirty tricks they have used to dominate the elections. In 2006 and 2007 GM Rijio refused to allow any election information to be broadcast when the ballots were sent out. Rijio’s justification was that there was a fund drive in progress despite election information being broadcast during fund drives at other Pacifica stations. In 2006 and 2007 CL spent thousands of dollars and sent out a slate mailer to arrive with the ballots during the election information black out, imposed by their ally GM Rijio. To top that off, in 2007 when they finally did run some candidate carts, they ran all 22 at once, with CL candidate Sherry Gendelman’s first. 
 
After the 2007 KPFA election there was only one news story on KPFA about the election. Interviewed were Sherry Gendelman, Matthew Lasar, a CL endorser, and Dan Siegel and Larry Bensky both CL allies and supporters and both guilty of using station or Foundation resources to support CL or attack their opponents in violation of election ethics.  No listener activist candidates were interviewed. Why is there a FOX in our newsroom?
 
In the upcoming election there will be ample airtime for the election since the new PNB majority has resolved that it will be so. Bonnie Simmons, a CL/Rijio group member, recently made a motion to rescind the Resolution to require ample airtime for the election. Does an open inclusive election scare them?
 
“Our leadership elite may still want to believe in democratic principles-they certainly profess that they do-but in practice they have shown themselves all too willing to violate those principles in order to gain or retain power”, Cornel West from his book Democracy Matters, page 28. If democracy matters to you, it is time for a new majority on the KPFA LSB.
 
 
Richard Phelps, former Chair, KPFA LSB, 35 year listener/subscriber, former AM & FM radio announcer. 

http://peoplesradio.net/'09_2issues.htm

If that's simply a seniority list of paid staff, Tracy, there's a few people missing. An obvious omission is Dennis Bernstein.

I have no doubt that the faux '' Save KPFA'' CL posse are distorting any discusssion that was held about budget cuts . That's what they do ! But i really don't think this falls under the rubic of ''confidentailly ' , which is greatly overused anyway by the PNB .
If there's any issue where Listeners both deserve and need to know what's going on it's this .
There's also the question of why possible local cuts at KPFA should even be discussed at the PNB ?

Meet the new boss, same as the Lynn Chadwick boss.
Do as I say, not as I do. Smear whoever gets in the way.
Wanzala swinging the ax as he's getting termed out?
You'll get the governance you ask for, that's for sure.
Bye Bye, KPFA.

According to the seniority list that KPFA produced from human resources records, Dennis Bernstein has been an employee at KPFA since February of 1992. He is in 9th place of about 38 current union members for accrued seniority.

So not much there to be incredulous about.

from Mitchell Cohen, chair of sister station Local Station Board WBAI in New York City, revised September 17, 2010:

Two years ago the National Finance Committee
directed that WBAI slash payroll expenses by 30 percent.
While I and others at WBAI opposed that directive
by the NFC (******vociferously demanded by KPFA's
*******Brian Edwards-Tiekert****** [emphasis added] and KPFT's Mike Martin, the
key figures on the NFC and approved by the PNB), a
majority of the LSB from all factions unfortunately
supported that wrongheaded “solution” for WBAI.
...
So if wholesale cuts in staff costs do not address
the systemic problem, what's the answer?
Pacifica needs to EXPAND its membership base...

Allright then Rosenberg. What about Miguel Molina? He’s got way less seniority than many on your hit list. Why no calls for him to be laid off?

It's pretty obvious that KPFA has to make more staffing cuts. That is going to hurt -- not only will we lose some of our favorite programmers but internally there will be less people to do the work. The programming is not going to be as tight-- for awhile. Maybe there will be more music because it is somewhat easier to do. Maybe there will be more experiments and learning-while-doing programs with more inconsistency and more excitement.

It probably won't be pretty. It could be fun. It's likely to be a mix of both.

How much energy will we use fighting, rather than building (skills, listener base, administrative policies)?

That is up to each of us.

Neither Tracy Rosenberg nor Joe Wanzala are responsible for the budget deficit. Now they, with the interim manager, the other KPFA National Board representative and the Pacifica Exec. Director, are responsible for doing something about it. (The national board has to be involved in lay offs if the local board is not willing or able to make the hard choices that are necessary. KPFA owes Pacifica $300,000. That directly brings the National Board into local problems.)

We could lose this network and this station. I am interested in what people can propose as plans for the next year, not in attacking anyone. If the KPFA's union members do not like the current proposals (I haven't seen them, so have no opinion on them), make another proposal. Let's get some ideas on the table.

But, remember, the option to ignore the financial problem is no longer possible.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Pacifica National Board Members Demand Purge of Dissenting KPFA Staff
List Includes Staff of the Morning Show, Against the Grain, and the News Department

(BERKELEY, CA – September 29, 2010) Three members of KPFA's Local Station Board who sit on the Pacifica National Board--Tracy Rosenberg, Joe Wanzala, and Shahram Aghamir--have drawn up a list of their staff enemies who they are demanding be laid off, according to a misdirected email. The three are affiliated with the Independents for Community Radio slate at KPFA that has a majority on the KPFA board. Their targets appear to be their political opponents on the board and in the station.

The purge list includes the staff of some of the most successful programs at KPFA—both in terms of popularity and fundraising—including Aimee Allison, Brian Edwards-Tiekert, and Laura Prives of the Morning Show; Sasha Lilley of Against the Grain; News Anchor John Hamilton, the only two reporters Christopher Martinez and Max Pringle and News Engineer Rose Ketabchi. All of these staff members have signed statements in opposition to the actions of the Independents for Community Radio board majority.

Rosenberg, Wanzala, and Aghamir are also proposing that the Morning Show, which raises three times what it costs, be cut to one hour and that the Evening News, which is one of the few remaining sources of local and regional news, be cut to half an hour.

Such a purge would decimate KPFA’s ability to fundraise, eviscerating some of the largest income-generating programs at a time of financial crisis. The move by the three national board members contravenes the Pacifica bylaws and disregards KPFA’s local autonomy, by taking the power over the station’s budget out of the hands of the KPFA Local Station Board and decisions on layoffs out of the hands of the station's General Manager. The proposed purge would also violate KPFA’s contract with Communications Workers of America Local 9415, which represents the paid staff of KPFA.

The members of the Pacifica National Board are demanding KPFA make deep cuts to it staffing, claiming that the station owes Pacifica $300,000 and must pay that money back. However, during the crisis of 1999, KPFA lent Pacifica almost $1.5 million dollars, which it has still has not repaid. Pacifica is also holding $150,000 of KPFA's money as collateral for a line of credit. And KPFA has been paying a disproportionate share of listener income to Pacifica, compared to the four other stations in the Pacifica network.

KPFA staff are asking listeners and subscribers to email the Pacifica National Board to demand that these cuts not take place and that Pacifica honor KPFA’s union contract. Emails can be sent to the Pacifica National Board through a contact form on the website kpfaworker.org.

http://www.kpfaworker.org

ONCE ALLTHE ZIONIST LICE IS GONE PEOPLE LIKE ME MAY FEEL MORE INCLINED TO RESUME SUPPORT AND DONATION TO KPFA. PS . NORA BARROW FRIEDMAN GOT ANOTHER HUGE PIECE IN EL JEZARRA . GOOD TO SEE PEOPLE WHO APPRECIATE HER TALENT . THE WIND OF KARMA IS BLOWING LOL.

I have just come from the last candidate on-air forum for the KPFA 94.1 FM Local Station Board election. I have wanted to respect that the Concerned Listeners/ Save KPFA slate members are sincere in their concerns for Pacifica /KPFA's survival.
I am now more than disappointed to realize that people I've respected are so fearful and will go to such lengths of propaganda & attack simply to win an election. Tracy Rosenberg's plea to "act like adults" is well taken. Also Adrienne Lauby's article is clear and hopeful too. Thanks so much. Cynthia Johnson.

Pacifica National Board Members Demand Purge of Dissenting KPFA Staff

Three members of KPFA’s Local Station Board who sit on the Pacifica National Board–Tracy Rosenberg, Joe Wanzala, and Shahram Aghamir–have drawn up a list of their staff enemies who they are demanding be laid off, according to a misdirected email. The three are affiliated with a slate that has a majority on the KPFA board. Their targets appear to be their political opponents on the board and within the station.

[[----- just how are they targeting opponents on the board who do not also work within the station?]]

The purge list includes the staff of some of the most successful programs at KPFA—both in terms of popularity and fund raising—including Aimee Allison, Brian Edwards-Tiekert, and Laura Prives of the Morning Show; Sasha Lilley of Against the Grain; News Anchor John Hamilton, the only two paid reporters Christopher Martinez and Max Pringle, and News Engineer Rose Ketabchi. All of these staff members have signed statements in opposition to the actions of the board majority.

[[----- could it be that these staff members also have tenure which falls below that required for continued employment under the union contract, and the conditions of plausible projected revenue for fiscal 2011?]]

Rosenberg, Wanzala, and Aghamir are also proposing that the Morning Show, which fund raises three times what it costs, be cut to one hour and that the Evening News, which is one of the few remaining sources of local and regional news, be cut to half an hour.
Such a purge would decimate KPFA’s ability to fund raise, eviscerating some of the largest income-generating programs at a time of financial crisis.

[[---- what if the audiences are large primarily by virtue of time slot? ]]

The move by the three national board members contravenes the Pacifica Foundation’s bylaws and flouts KPFA’s local autonomy, by taking the power over the station’s budget out of the hands of the KPFA Local Station Board

[[----- the LSB has the power to approve budgets and to report to the PNB on how closely the station is functioning according to budget, but not the power to make a budget.]]

and decisions on layoffs out of the hands of the station’s General Manager.

[[----- it is well known that the recent interim and permanent GMs failed to execute 2008 - 2009 staff cuts as directed, choosing instead to spend through nearly a million dollars of unrestricted reserves. what else can the ED and board do in this case?]]

The proposed purge would also violate KPFA’s contract with Communications Workers of America Local 9415, which represents the paid staff of KPFA.

[[----- my impression just the opposite, that cuts per the contract would be taken in order of least seniority.]]

Members of the Pacifica National Board are demanding KPFA make deep cuts to its staffing, claiming that the station owes Pacifica $300,000 and must pay that money back. However, during the crisis of 1999, KPFA lent Pacifica almost $1.5 million, which Pacifica has still not repaid.

[[----- ``Concerned Listeners'' should have gone after that back when there was just an iota greater chance than today of getting anything. or better, acted at the national level to stop the drainage through the national office down the WBAI drain.]]

Pacifica is also holding $150,000 of KPFA’s money as collateral for a line of credit. And KPFA has been paying a disproportionate share of listener income to Pacifica, compared to the four other stations in the Pacifica network.

[[----- really? i heard it was a flat 19.8% that KPFA hasn't paid since april 2010. i also heard that KPFA borrowed from KPFT to cover september 2010 payroll.]]

KPFA staff are asking listeners and subscribers to email the Pacifica National Board to demand that these staff and programming cuts not take place and to insist that Pacifica honor KPFA’s union contract.

[[----- dear boards: i insist that pacifica honor KPFA's union contract, and optimize any necessary cuts for the least aggregate disadvantage to the foundation and its members.]]
--

brian s

The Sept 29 on-air forum brought out the truth from the horrifying "SaveKPFA" gang, namely from Mel Bernstein and Donald Goldmacher. One listener was so shocked she demanded a clarification and they stepped right into the proverbial dog waste. They stated that people who are anti-imperialist (implying they are not!) should object to the small Corporation for Public Broadcasting funding KPFA receives as it is a government program. One of the ICR candidates correctly pointed out that the FCC license is a government program, with restrictions, such as not allowing 7 "dirty" words (none of them are racist terms, by the way). There is more.

KPFA is legally a non-profit entity, as defined by the US Tax Code, which means listener contributions are tax-deductible. All tax deductions are made up by those of us who pay the taxes, thus effectively giving KPFA a government tax-funded subsidy. WHEN IT COMES TO SOCIAL SERVICES, CULTURE AND ALL OTHER HUMAN NEEDS, WE ARE THE GOVERNMENT AND THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE FOUGHT FOR, A GOVERNMENT THAT SERVES THE NEEDS AND INTERESTS OF THE PEOPLE WITH OUR TAX DOLLARS.

Here is more on the tax-funded CPB and PBS:
From:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporation_for_Public_Broadcasting
Funding of and by CPB
"CPB's annual budget is composed almost entirely of an annual appropriation from Congress plus interest on those funds.[3] For fiscal year 2009, its appropriation was $400 million. A maximum of five percent of this budget goes toward the corporation's administrative costs, with six percent reserved for funds to support the public broadcasting system generally (as opposed to specific stations). CPB also distributed a separate appropriation for conversion to digital television, which was mandated to occur by June 12, 2009."

"Public broadcasting stations are funded by a combination of private donations from members, foundations and corporations (60.4% of 2006 total revenues of all stations), state and local taxes (22.2% of 2006 total revenues), local and national underwriting, and federal funds, principally through CPB (17.3% of 2006 total revenues).[4]"

"About 90% of the 2005 budget was distributed to public broadcasters across the country, including both local and national organizations. Stations which receive CPB funds must meet certain requirements,[5] such as to maintain or provide:"

"1.Open meetings
2.Open financial records
3.Community advisory board
4.Equal employment opportunity
5.Donor list and political activities"

As to the layoffs that are proposed, as Aaron Aarons correctly pointed out, they will be done in order of seniority, unlike the firing of Nora Barrows-Friedman, an anti-Zionist specialist, from Flashpoints, followed by the paying for a new program, Letters from Washington, by a flunky of the "SaveKPFA" gang.

Other gems of foot-in-mouth disease from the "SaveKPFA" gang included the statement from Mel Bernstein that the news must be "objective" which of course it never can be, because as Aaron stated, simply selecting what to put on a news program is done subjectively, as well as the organizing of the story itself. Donald Goldmacher denounced "identity politics" programs and attempted to falsely counter them with demanding more economic news. All of the other candidates correctly pointed out that we have to be part of all the ethnic communities in the area, and that the economic news is part of the programming they wish to produce and KPFA needs.

The arrogance of contempt for the democratic process that were the on-air forums and the complete lack of new ideas from the medical doctor-psychiatrist Donald Goldmacher (he lied by omission as to his background; he claims to make films, which is his hobby) and the very nasty lawyer Mel Bernstein (his vicious false name-calling the last time he was at an on-air forum is unforgettable and unforgivable) mandates that everyone vote for ANYONE EXCEPT the "SaveKPFA" gang. If you have not voted, please do so today and walk your ballot to the station before midnight. WE NEED 10% of the 20,000 listener-subscribers to vote to make the election valid and it is always a struggle to attain that goal. LET'S HAVE 20,000 BALLOTS CAST THIS TIME!

Ms. Rosenberg's comments are utterly disingenuous. By laying off the Morning Show staff and most of the KPFA Evening News staff, KPFA will have gutted the heart of its on-air fund-raising personnel. These people form the heart of KPFA's ability to survive in a changing media world. The result will be a diminishing subscription base, and of course, further cuts. This all lies at the root of Ms. Rosenberg's philosophy, which is to de-professionalize KPFA and return it to its volunteer roots by starving the station of its income. Does it sound familiar? It should. This is pure Grover Norquist territory (with not a little hint of Stalinist purge thrown in for good measure).

I have known Tracy for 11 years since the popular and staff uprising of 1999. I've never known her to be anything other than truthful and working in the best interest of KPFA and Pacifica.

The saveKPFA slate just seems to be out of ideas as to what to do structurally to return KPFA to solvency, except to blame Pacifica for taking too much $$. If it's true KPFA is paying what the other stations are percentage wise then there would seem to be other issues, such as incompetent management at the station not cutting expenses in time to keep from running through its million dollar rainy day fund.

Mitch Jeserich has been on air the past 2 days presenting the possible cuts as meaningless or merely politically motivated, not that KPFA is verging on bankruptcy and must cut somewhere. This is obviously disingenuous and one-sided. If programmers are serious, then have a debate on the air about the financial situation and present at least 2 if not more sides and let the listeners have a more thorough airing of the dire situation. Propagandizing the possible cuts does nothing to help people understand WHY cuts are necessary. It just sounds like more wagon circling by KPFA staff.

And this time there will be no arrests, no 10,000 person marches because it's not about a hijacking from above, but it's more about poor planning from within!!!

Rather than recognizing the obvious budgetary facts resulting from previous boards’ inaction, all Richard Wolinsky can offer is an unfounded, politically driven (it's awkward for him since the deficits were allowed to accrue under the so-called “SaveKPFA”/CL majority’s watch), and just plain ludicrous attempt to paint Tracy Rosenberg as a secret Grover Norquist / Stalin figure. Priceless. No doubt he’s also someone who thinks all “conspiracy theorists” are “nut cases.”

The paid staff at KPFA all belong to the CWA.
If the station needs to make cuts because of shortfall in the projected revenue, any procedure for layoffs are specified in the union contract between CWA and KPFA.
The layoffs are mainly based on seniority, so staff with lower seniority are going to be cut before staff with higher seniority.
It is probably the case that the level of budget cuts that is being discussed includes some of the staff that are being mentioned.
All this talk of 'purging the staff' and board members with 'hit list' seems to be just political posturing.

The brutalisation of nadra foster in what is suppose to be an oasis of non violence (kpfa building itself) was not worth a minute of news for the concerned listener .But the sacking of useless lame boring themselves, to try to save the station from financial disaster, has been the object of non stop whinning on prime time air during an already difficult fund rising time which really dont need this kind of selfish egocentric polemic. If they were really concerned they should wait the end of this fall fund rising and not use the air time for their own little self interest. This are the same people who been in charge for years and tanked kpfa almost beyond repairs. They changed names and now asked us to trust them again to 'SAVE KPFA'. They need to accept the democratic process and this after being terminated if they refuse to leave just call 911 on them. LOL LOL LOL

CL-programmers appropriate KPFA’s airwaves to broadcast disinformation and promote their faction. This on the final 2 days of the election. So, what happened then? Did anybody get airtime to refute the CL propaganda?

I am sick and tired to hear Ticker claiming he is the best thing ever happen to kpfa . Sure the morning show has the ability to rise a significant amont of contribution since it occupied two hours of the best prime time in betwen a really good program (democracy now) and this with a decent budget. kpfa has been there more 50 years before anyone heard of super hero arrogant ticker and kpfa will be here and may be better after ticker is gone. Ticker has been the treasur during the years wich lead to the sad financial situation we have today.He should may be take some responsability as a real grown up for the 1/3 of a million check FORGOTTEN(? ) IN A DRAWER. I like Phelps have doubt thats this check was really forgotten and wonder what was really the hiden motive.In any sane human organisation some accountability will be asked for the lost of a such amount of money mainly in this difficult times but it seems the concern listeners are above this futility.

I am surprised to hear book show producer Richard Wolinsky compare Tracy Rosenberg to Grover Norquist with a hint of Stalinism. During the 1999 conflict, it seemed to me that the people who suppressed free speech at the station to try to control it from above in a very authoritarian manner were acting a little like Stalinists. They had their 5-year plans, they claimed to know better than the people what was good for us. If anyone in this conflict is carrying on that tradition it seems to me to be the Save KPFA/CL folks, because they oppose democratic governance of the station and network. They claim they will be more effective in influencing the political landscape of the country if ordinary people don't interfere with their "professional" management of the station. They seem to see the democratic process as an encumbrance. I think the Bolsheviks made a similar mistake, and there was much better reason for revolutionaries in Tsarist Russia to think they had to dispense with free speech and democratic process to be effective than there is reason for such a management style at Pacifica. No one can be counted on to govern in the interests of people to whom they are not accountable. It really makes me sad that many producers of shows I like on KPFA seem to have so little respect for the listeners.

For "Sarah" --- I'd be happy to discuss my feelings on this matter further with you by e-mail. I think you're a serious listener to KPFA, and it sounds like, to my program as well. You can write me at bookwaves [at] hotmail.com

Maybe you think, Richard, that you can get away with statements of doubtful veracity if you only tell them to one person?

BTW, I'll be 70 in a few months and my memory isn't great. So please remind me (and everybody else) of what you did to oppose the purges of Bill Mandel, Mama O'Shea and all those other unpaid volunteer programmers in 1995?

The Concerned Listeners a.k.a SLAVE KPFA mob have shown that they want to turn Pacifica into a Mainstream Liberal mouthpiece( another NPR) where true radicals need not apply. However, if they care so much about equality, why is there 80% unpaid staff, leaving 20 percent of the SLAVE KPFA TO DETERMINE THE OUT COME FOR THOSE 80% UNPAID STAFF MEANING VOLUNTEERS. ON THE LSB THERE IS ONE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE UNPAID STAFF HOW DOES THIS MAKE SENSE, AND THE SLAVE KPFA MAKES IT SO UNPAID STAFF ONLY HAS ONE VOTE THAT COULD OR COULD NOT INFLUENCE THE REST OF THE LSB. AT THE SAME TIME THEY VOTE WITH LSB MEMBERS, AND MOST OF THE TIME THEY ARE OUTNUMBERED. ALSO WHEN THE LAST MANAGER COLLEAGUE OF SLAVE KPFAS, IGNORED THE PROCESS OF UPSO. THEREFORE, MAKING UNPAID STAFF(VOLUNTEERS) EASIER TO TARGET FOR REMOVAL, AND FOR MOVING PEOPLE AROUND WITHOUT A LONG TERM PROCESS THAT HAD BEEN IN PLACE EVEN WITHOUT A MANAGER. NOW WE SEE THIS MINORITY SLAVE KPFA AS A THREAT TO THE WHOLE STATION WITH THE CORPORATE VIEW OF SLAVING KPFA, AND KICKING THE COMMUNITY OUT IN COMMUNITY RADIO. ASK THESE SLAVE KPFA HOW THEY FEEL ABOUT USING POLICE BRUTALITY, AND SACRIFICING VOLUNTEERS, COMMUNITY FOR THEIR PAYCHECKS. SLAVE KPFA WILL MAKE LISTENERS TRY TO PUT OUT MORE MONEY DURING FUND DRIVE, WHILE TRYING TO GET UNDERWRITING. FOLLOW THE MONEY OF THE SLAVE KPFA CAMPAIGN, AND HOW IS IT THAT THEY HAVE SO MUCH RESOURCES, TIME TO WRITE SELF PROMOTION ARTICLES, AND TRY TO FEEL GOOD ABOUT THEMSELVES BY SELLING THE STATION OUT. SOME PEOPLE CALL IT MIDDLE CLASS, OTHERS CALL IT RICH AND YOU GOT TIME, AND MOST OF THE SLAVE KPFA CAMPAIGNERS ARE PAID STAFF?

Thank you Tracy, I have great respect for you and am grateful to your dedication and perseverance.

As a practitioner of Marshal Rosenberg's Non-Violent Communication technique (http://www.cnvc.org) I am always surprised that folks in the peace and social justice movement do not avail themselves more to the magnificent and effective tools that are available. When Marshal has success in Rwanda between people whose challenge is, 'How do I live with my neighbor who murdered my daughter in the fighting?' I can not imagine the egos are so huge it would not work in KPFA as well.

When the conversation is reduced down to the level of what people need instead of attachment to the strategy you think will meet your need, then collective success will happen - and it is possible for us all to 'win'.

It is certainly a challenge for me not to see those who abuse people through power and wealth in de-humanizing terms, but I want a real shift in our paradigm, so this requires me to cease my own hatred and fears. If you are unfamiliar with Non-Violent Communication and share my sensibility, I encourage you to check it out.

This is a great support in 'acting like adults'.

with compassion and best wishes,
Joshua

375 000 dollars check, it is too big to be forgotten and ticker is a financer expert who is aware thats checks got experaton date! So , almost certainly it was not forgotten but willingly let to die.Why?????? .One answer could be thats may be the best way to cut very popular show, some in charge with a zionist agenda dont like (flashpoints for exemple) is to starve financially the station. flashpoint lost 60 %of its budget and this has too an impact on its habillity to fund rise. I bet the zionists will use this excuse to further try to dismantel it. If someone has a better explanation for the FORGOTTEN CHECK????? PLEASE CAN U POST IT>

The other point is, 375000 bucks is large amount of money which can generate substancial interests. Any honest treasur will rush the check to the bank the same day it was issue. What was ticker plan??? Not only the 375 000 dollars were lost but also a signifiant amount of interests .Ticker did not you know that?

I think the name is "Brian Edwards-Tiekert"

These two articles show Brian Edwards-Tiekert in action. In the first he filibusters an LSB meeting. In the second he inaccurately reports a financial matter to the Berkeley Daily Planet

http://danielborgstrom.blogspot.com/2010/09/parliamentary-addiction.html

http://danielborgstrom.blogspot.com/2009/09/raid.html