OPINION - ONE FOCUS, ONE FRONT by Kellia Ramares
It appears to me that some people believe that focusing on dumping the Pacifica National Board means we are not working on diversity or democracy. I think it is the most important step we can take for both diversity and democracy.
The Pacifica National Board is an undemocratic institution what has engaged in conduct contributing to the departure of women and minorities from KPFA and the Network, e.g. Verna Avery Brown. Moreover the National Board's hold on the purse strings, including money raised in excess of fundraising goals, hampers efforts to fund shows such as Hard Knock Radio, to fill much needed managerial positions with diverse hires, and to fund travel by reporters to conferences and events that would provide alternative news sources more attentive to the needs of a diverse, non-ainstream audience.
People who care more about music and cultural programming than news should nonetheless see Pacifica's News censorship as grounds for the Board's removal. Journalists are witnesses to discrimination and repression (and sometimes also the victims of it). Once the news is controlled, it is easier to go after the artists, as there will be no witnesses in the media to report it. If the Board can censor stories it does not like on the Evening News, Democracy Now! CounterSpin or PNN, the precedent is set for the Board to censor stories it doesn't like in hip hop and other politically influenced music.
Spending time developing sophisticated electoral plans for the LAB, or trying to redo KPFA's programming schedule is untimely so long as legal and financial power over the network is in the hands of the Berry Cabal. If the entire Board could be replaced with the proposed FAIR slate, that slate could, in one ot two board meetings do the following:
1) Fire Lynn Chadwick and Gene Edwards and Mark Bevis at the national level.
2) Fire Mark Schubb, Garland Ganter, Bessie Wash at the local levels.
3) Rehire Nicole Sawaya, Larry Bensky, Dan Coughlin and Verna Avery Brown immediately.
4) Direct the LAB's of Houston, Washington and LA to search for replacement general managers, putting forth not less than two nor more than four candidates. The National Board could direct the LAB's to go back to the drawing board to find more candidates if none seemed suitable, but it could not hire a general manager not nominated by an LAB.
5) Give KPFA and any other station that needs it, the immediate go ahead to permanently fill all its other vacancies.
6) Restore responsibility for the KU satellite to Berkeley. I agree with Matthew Lasar that the satellite system will be wiped out by the Internet revolution. But as long as we are using it, it should be maintained by the people who know and care about it... the engineers in Berkeley.
7) Restore the Pacifica National Office to Berkeley.
8) Repeal the governance change of February 1999, and restore the input of the local boards to the National Board. The CPB will have to be satisfied with a bylaw that provides that no one may simultaneously serve on the National Board and on a local board. If that's not good enough, they can keep their money, we'll get along without it, especially after we trim some of the fat from the Pacifica National Office.
9) Adopt a bylaw explicitly abolishing the gag rule and explicitly establishing the editorial independence of Pacifica news directors, reporters and public affairs programmers. The conduct of all programmers will be guided by the Pacifica Mission Statement, professional ethics and any applicable governmental laws without any add-ons by Pacifica Management.
10) Adopt a bylaw barring anyone who is holding Federal elected or appointed office, or who has held Federal elected or appointed office within the last ten years from sitting on the board. That will keep the Mary Frances Berry's of the world off the board. The Pacifica Network frequently criticizes government. To have government officials sitting on the Pacifica National Board is a clear conflict of interest for both the network and the government official. We've seen what that leads to. It must not be allowed to happen again.
11) Adopt a bylaw requiring the Pacifica National Board to hire a Professional Registered Parliamentarian to be present at Pacifica National meetings to bring the rule of law rather than the force of personality to the conduct of the meetings.
12 Adopt a bylaw requiring all board meetings to be open unless they are required by law to be closed.
13) Open the books.
14) Adopt a bylaw specifying that any monies raised in excess of a fund-raising goal belongs 100% to the station that raised it.
15) Adopt a "No Sale" bylaw.
16) Adopt a bylaw requiring that minutes and transcripts of the National meetings be posted on the website and otherwise published within thirty days of the close of the meeting.
After that, have elections, change programming, whatever. You will find that those latter changes should actually be easier to make with this board gone.
As long as the Berry Cabal is in power, we are in danger of more censorship, of more union busting (a la WBAI), of the installation of a pro-Berry general manager at KPFA, of another lock out, of further use of listener funds for non-radio purposes, and of more attrition that weakens the ability of KPFA to produce top quality programs, and which further diminishes diversity. We must continue to bring pressure to bear on the board to resign en masse.
We are approaching the first anniversary of the governance change. We have the ability to garner world wide news coverage. We can put fifteen thousand people in the street. Tell me, at this late date, why is the Berry Cabal still in power? Answer: Too many different agendas came out of the woodwork last year and our forces are scattered. A smart army avoids waging a two-front war. How many fronts are we fighting on?
____________________ Kellia Ramares is an unpaid KPFA news staff member.Return to NB4KPFA FOLIO Home Page