KPFT

Why this vote matters

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Dan Siegel“The result of these elections could determine whether Pacifica survives or continues its slide into bankruptcy,” writes Pacifica National Board member and SaveKPFA activist Dan Siegel in Counterpunch.

“Pacifica has always been fractious, back to when KPFA was founded as its first station in 1949,” he continues, going on to describe the network’s current leadership as “inept and politically sectarian.” That leadership, he writes, “has brought the Foundation to its knees. It has spent down all its reserves, incurring cumulative deficits of $5.7 million in the last four fiscal years, according to its 2012 audit report.” | READ Siegel’s article and this overview of Pacifica’s audit

9/13/12: Last day to join KPFA to vote in fall elections

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Changing the dynamic at Pacifica Radio is up for a vote in this fall’s election for Local Station Board members at KPFA and the other four Pacifica stations. In order to participate in these upcoming elections, you need to be a member of your local Pacifica station as of Thursday, September 13. The minimum membership contribution is $25 between Sept 13, 2011 and Sept 13, 2012.

At KPFA, if you haven’t made a donation between those dates, you can do so  by paying online with a credit or debit card at https://secure.kpfa.org/support. A pledge by itself is insufficient; you must actually have paid your pledge by close of business September 13 to be eligible to vote. So please don’t delay!

If you aren’t in the Bay Area, you can support Pacifica stations that you listen to in other areas. If you are a New York City listener, become a member of Pacifica’s WBAI. In Los Angeles, it’s Pacifica’s KPFK. In Washington, DC, jazz and public affairs fans alike pledge to Pacifica’s WPFW. And in Houston, Pacifica’s outlet is KPFT.

Lively picket at Pacifica’s National Office demands firing of anti-union lawyers

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KPFA’s paid and unpaid staff turned out for a picket on a sunny afternoon last week in front of Pacifica’s national office to show their outrage with the network’s hiring of Jackson Lewis, the nation’s premiere union-busting lawyers.

Labor journalist Steve Early addressed the crowd, describing how Jackson Lewis operates to undermine unions and predicting that both the political and financial costs to KPFA could be devastating. Unpaid staffer Tina Bachemin brought a statement of solidarity, noting that Pacifica is part of the “bitter struggle that’s going on now across America to smash unionism and wage war against workers.” Listeners, many of them union members, also showed up in force, angry that their donations are going to anti-union consultants.| SEE PHOTOS here, and LISTEN TO KPFA News report

Meanwhile, KPFA itself is struggling, as every fund drive in the past year has come in below target. And last week, a lightning strike knocked Pacifica station KPFT in Houston off the air for two days. Repair to the station’s transmitter will be expensive. You can help with a donation here.