Written
by Jeff Blankfort in 2000 at the height of the attempted theft of the
Pacifica network, it is reprinted here because it helps us to understand
issues we are facing today.
The present
democratic structure was created to prevent any such attempts in the
future to take control of the network away from the community.
As we see here the stations had their mission overridden, there was
an attempt to make them more commercially viable, & to be run in
the corporate manner from the top down.
Programmers
were fired, a gag rule instituted, security guards hired, massive monies
squandered, the sale of KPFA and WBAI secretly proposed. At KPFA the
station was occupied and vandalized by security guards and the GM of
the Texas station replaced programming with recordings from the archives.
As a
result of protests and lawsuits by various sectors of the community
the network was restored to community control, with listeners as the
prime funders & interested parties given a prominent role in governance
through their elected representatives to the Local Station Boards. They
chose to include the staff in governance by specifying 25% of the representatives
to be elected by staff.
Unfortunately
patterns of power had/were developed at the stations, for example at
KPFA, certain of the staff used to governing unilaterally, resisted
& are resisting sharing decision making with the LSB. A power elite
supports the programming models instituted in the Healthy Stations project,
wants to move programming to the right, and is trying to eliminate or
disempower such democratic institutions as the LSB, the Program Council,
the Unpaid Staff Organization.
A Pacifica Chronology - Jeff Blankfort
The present conflict [in 2000] between
KPFA and the Pacifica Foundation did not begin with the firing of station
general manager Nicole Sawaya on March 31 or Larry Bensky on April 7.
It did not begin with a controversial vote by the Pacifica National
Board in February that stripped the local advisory board of any representation
on the national board. And it did not begin with the election of Mary
Frances Berry to the chair of the board or the hiring of Lynn Chadwick
as executive director. For the beginning you have to go back, at least,
to September '92 and follow the thread of events.
Chronology of Abuses By The Pacifica Management &
Board of Directors.
1991-1992 "Strategy for National Programming" a plan to create
a NPR - like National Program Service funded with donations from corporate
foundations like Pew, Ford and MacArthur is drafted by Pacifica Management.
Feb. 1993 - Pacifica Board approves "Strategy for National Programming."
KPFA Manager Pat Scott, embroiled in battles with staff at KPFA, is
sent by Pacifica Executive Director David Salniker to lobby Congress,
which is threatening to de-fund Pacifica.
1994 - Pat Scott is made acting Pacifica Executive Director and begins
dictating program formats to stations. She participates on CPB "task
force" with Lynn Chadwick, Executive Director of the National Federation
of Community Broadcasters, that recommends new funding guidelines tying
stations to Arbitron ratings and higher fundraising goals. Purges begin
at WPFW (Washington, D.C.).
1995
Jan. 1995 - Pat Scott fires KPFK (L.A.) management and seizes control
of
books. Contract negotiations there are suspended. Gag rules are enforced
against any staff member trying to inform the public regarding the firings.
Purges of programmers begin at KPFK. Feb. 10 - KPFK producer Al Huebner
is removed for criticizing firing of KPFK managers. His engineer, Neal
Connor is threatened with removal for not cutting Al's mic
Feb. 1995 - Pacifica Program Directors are told by hired consultants
to mainstream the programming.
March -April 1995 - A union-busting organization, American Consulting
Group, is hired by Pacifica to draft new contracts stripping workers
of all say in the organization, eliminating the right to strike, and
unpaid staff from the stations' unions.
June 1995 - Pacifica Board closes all future finance committee meetings
to
the public in violation of federal communications law. Board minutes
and
board meetings are now "confidential."
July 1995 - Pacifica Board Executive Committee issues a "my way
or the highway memo" announcing "vast changes" and advising
Local Advisory Board members who disagree with the new direction of
Pacifica to resign.
August 1995 - Massive purge of KPFA programmers by KPFA general manager
Marci Lockwood under direction of Scott.
Sept. 1995 - Observers, including Take Back KPFA representative barred
from National Board meeting in Houston.
Nov. 1995 - Brian McConnville, investigator from Inspector General's
office of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), learns of closed
board meetings and begins investigation of Pacifica's violation of open
meeting rules. He is fired 17 days later before he can release a critical
report after Pacifica's lawyer goes over his head to quash the investigation.
Deputy IG Director Mike Donavan, who looks into the Pacifica Board's
actions is also fired on eve of making a critical report.
1996
Feb. 1996 - KPFK producer Ron Wilkins and his guests are removed from
the air mid-broadcast and banned from KPFK for attempting to discuss
treatment of African American programmers at KPFK. Bob Marston, who
was in the building repairing equipment at the time is also banned because
he was talking with Wilkins and the others after they were cut off the
air.
Feb. 26, 1996 - "Gag rule" issued by Mark Schubb at KPFK saying
that staff will be fired if they let callers criticize Pacifica policy
on-air
.
May 1996 - Hiring of American Consulting Group is revealed. Pacifica
Management lies repeatedly as criticism mounts. Management files a "clarification
of unit" with the National Labor Relations Board to have unpaid
staff at WBAI removed from the union.
August 29, 1996 - Mark Schubb threatens to ban UE Rep John Fernandes
from KPFK
Nov. 1996 - A Pacifica 5 -Year Strategic Plan is released, after a year
and a half of secret meetings. It is a blueprint for remaking Pacifica
into a top-down corporate hierarchy. More than $60,000 has been spent
on union-busting activities
1997
Feb. 1997 - WBAI workers win at the NLRB. Pacifica appeals the decision,
spending tens of thousands of dollars of the subscribers' money.
March 1997 - Under fire from listeners and the media, Scott hires Former
Justice Dept. spokesperson Burt Glass as Pacifica's first "communications
director". He drafts a "cheat sheet'" full of lies and
evasions for use in answering questions from the subscribers. Pacifica
releases plan to reduce local representation on the National Board by
half, which would give the board the ability to appoint a 2/3 majority.This
is tabled in June when community members hire lawyer.
April -May 1997 - A "softer" CPB Inspector General's report
is released which, nevertheless, cites Pacifica for violating open meeting
laws. Scott and Pacifica Board Chair Jack O'Dell fly to Washington and
meet privately with CPB Board and lawyers. CPB disregards it own IG's
report, and praises the new Pacifica regime.
May 27, 1997 - WBAI Program Director tells the WBAI local board that
Pacifica executive director Pat Scott is pressuring Democracy Now producers
to downplay criticism of Clinton and to remove Mumia Abu Jamal commentaries.
June 1997 - Mary Frances Berry made new Pacifica Board Chair.
July 1997 - KPFA Manager Marci Lockwood resigns. Lynn Chadwick, Executive
Director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, is made
manager of KPFA.
August 1997 - Pacifica writes a gag clause into the contracts for affiliate
stations, many of whom have been running disclaimers about union-busting
at Pacifica
1998
Feb. 1998 - KPFK Management sends memo barring programmers from encouraging
attendance at anti-war demonstrations for Iraq.
April 1998 - Pat Scott resigns and is praised by CPB President Coonrod,
former Deputy Director of the Voice of America, and director of Radio
Marti, propaganda arm of US vs. Cuba. By now, more than 300 people have
been purged from Pacifica stations
.
Oct. 1998 - Lynn Chadwick named Executive Director of Pacifica.
.
Dec. 1998 - Larry Bensky abruptly fired then reinstated after public
outcry. KPFA's new manager Nicole Sawaya supports Bensky and allows
him to defend himself on the air
1999
. . . (snip) (part missing here - a big chunk with all the dramatic
events in Berkeley)
[March 31, 1999 - Nicole Sawaya fired by Pacifica Executive Director
Lynn Chadwick]
[April 7, 1999 - Larry Bensky fired by Lynn Chadwick]
[The battle at KPFA, physical takeover & trashing of the station
by ED etc., protests in Berkeley, for details see 1999 in 34 page chronology
(not as accurate as Blankfort's) at:
http://www.ominous-valve.com/pacific2.html
] . . . . .
August 18, 1999 - An ad runs in the New York Times condemning the actions
of Pacifica's Board and Management. It is signed by dozens of prominent
activists, intellectuals, journalists and other community leaders.
August 20, 1999 - California legislature holds public hearings in Oakland
as to whether Pacifica violated its non-profit status by its recent
actions. KPFA staffers testify, in spite of orders by Chadwick that
they face termination if they do. A week later, the Legislative Audit
Committee subpoenas financial records. Word has leaked out that the
Pacifia Board spent more than half a million dollars (of the subscriber's
funds) on armed guards and PR experts to support their takeover of KPFA
and Pacifica.
August 24, 1999 - Mary Frances Berry makes surprise visit to WBAI for
unpublicized meeting with staff. She displays her rancour towards KPFA
and its community, and asks if WBAI staff would support the sale of
KPFA to create a series of small stations in the South.
August 26, 1999 - National Labor Relations Board oveturns earlier decision;
rules to grant Pacifia management request to eject unpaid staff from
WBAI's union. Tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars
of listener funds have been spent to do this. This action was started
by Pat Scott in 1996 to take away all rights from community producers,
to be able to purge them more easily.
September 1, 1999 - KPFK reporter Robin Urevich banned for writing an
article on censorship by KPFK management.
September 2, 1999 - Legislative Committee votes to subpoena Pacifica
financial records.
September 5, 1999 - Enfoque Latino, a Spanish language public affairs
program that has aired on KPFK for 13 years is cancelled after covering
the Pacifica crisis from a perspective critical of KPFK and Pacifica
Management.
Oct. 26, 1999 -16 Radio stations to boycott Pacifica Network Programming
on October 27: KGNU, KUNM, WJFF, WGOR, KZYX, KKFI, WRPI, KRZA, KSVR,
KMUD, WORT, WERU, KCSB, KBOO, KDUR.
Oct. 1999 - KPFA has most successful fund drive raising over $650,000.
Pacifica Board passes resolutions to not sell any stations or use any
listener contributions to pay for armed guards during KPFA lockout
Nov. 1, 1999 - Pacifica News Director Dan Coughlin is removed after
he airs a report of the one-day boycott of Pacifica Programming by 16
Pacifica Affiliate stations.
Dec. 9, 1999 - Pacifica's WPFW in Washington DC axes FAIR's Counterspin:
media criticism show canceled after three earlier instances of censorship.
