Despite Declining KPFA Membership, UCR Stays Strong and Steady

United for Community Radio and all the candidates say “THANK YOU” to all our supporters!  UCR candidates Scott Olsen and Sharon Adams were elected to the KPFA Local Station Board.

Sharon Adams

Sharon Adams

Scott Olsen

Scott Olsen

tmT.M. Scruggs was the first runner-up and will replace Andrea Pritchett at the first meeting of the new KPFA Local Station Board, scheduled for January 23, at 11 a.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center.  This means that UCR will have 4 new representatives on the LSB.

United for Community Radio candidates won 3 seats, and so-called “Save KPFA” candidates won 6.  Although SK candidates won more seats, we at UCR believe that the election results show that UCR is moving in the right direction.  And we believe that UCR can obtain a majority of the LSB seats in the next election, currently scheduled for later in 2016.

 

UCR’s message is resonating with the KPFA members. 

UCR maintained its support, despite a large decrease in voter turnout and a decrease in overall KPFA membership. This is good news for UCR, as it means we have a chance to WIN the next election.

The number of listener-members of KPFA has been decreasing over the last 10 years:
YEAR—–Listener-Members
2005  —–  24,000
2006  —–  22,000
2010  —–  20,000
2012  —–  18,000
2015  —–  16,0000

 

Likewise, the number of voters has been decreasing, although not as much as the decrease in members; reflecting the fact that the people who continue to contribute to KPFA are massively committed to the well-being of the station.

Despite the decline in members and in voters, UCR has maintained a steady base of approximately 1000 votes.  This means that support for UCR is growing within the KPFA community!  This is great news for UCR and means that we are on the right track.   In contrast, SK has been losing voters as the membership has declined.

Election Year Total Voters SK Votes UCR Votes
2010 3,457 ~ 2,400 ~ 1,000
2012 3,257 ~ 2,200 ~ 1,000
2015 2,300 ~ 1,300 ~ 1,000

For more details click here.

Notice:  Some may recall that Janet Kobren ran on the UCR slate.  By mutual consent, Janet Kobren is no longer affiliated with United for Community Radio.

UCR Supporter Diana Bohn Explains Why “Save KPFA” Can’t Be Trusted

By: Diana Bohn

Diana Bohn at UCR Garden Party/Fundraiser August 9, 2015

Diana Bohn at UCR Garden Party/Fundraiser
August 9, 2015

 

KPFA Local Station Board (LSB) elections are coming up soon.  I’m a proud supporter of the candidates running on the United for Community Radio (UCR) slate. UCR has a great platform, and a strong candidate lineup. In fact, I support UCR so much that I have been working to help UCR candidates win in the upcoming election. As shown in the photo to the left, I volunteered at the recent UCR Garden Party/Fundraiser.

Imagine my surprise when I recently discovered that my name is listed as an “Endorser” of the opposition, Save KPFA (SK).

As shown in this screen shot from the opposition’s list of endorsers, taken on August 13, 2015, my name is listed as a “Listener Endorser” of SK:

DB_endorser4

This caused me to look at other so-called “endorsers” of SK, where I learned that at least one of these so-called endorsers, singer Jon Fromer had actually passed away back in 2013. I’m not sure how many other “endorsers” of SK are incorrectly listed, as I was.

Lesson learned: take everything you read on the SK website with a grain of salt.

I’m trusting UCR candidates in this election, and voting for all of the UCR candidates: Scott Olsen, Sharon Adams, Don Macleay, Virginia Browning, Jeremy Miller, Janet Kobren, Mario Fernandez, T.M. Scruggs, and Marilla Arguelles.

You can learn more about the UCR candidates on the UCR website: http://www.unitedforcommunityradio.org/.

Pacifica National Board Chair Report, May 15, 2014

From: Margy Wilkinson, Chair, Pacifica National Board

LEGAL:

On Monday, May 12, 2014, the Alameda County Superior Court Judge hearing the suit filed by 9 PNB members, Pacifica Directors for Good Governance, against the Pacifica Foundation and the board majority, and the counter suit filed by the Pacifica National Board seeking an injunction to end Summer Reese’s trespass in the Pacifica National Office, issued her ruling.

Bernard Duncan

Bernard Duncan

There is a court date set for June 3, 2014, hear arguments on whether or not the Judge’s temporary ruling should be made permanent. In the meantime, Summer Reese has left the PNO, the locks have been changed and Bernard Duncan, Interim Executive Director, is working there.

Currently Pacifica is being sued by Free Speech Radio News (FSRN) for breech of contract. We are seeking legal advice on that matter.

 

PNB COMMITTEES AND TASK FORCES:
The following individuals to convene committees and they have agreed:
Audit – Brenda Medina
Coordinating – Tony Norman
Personnel – Janis Lane Ewart
Programming – Jim Brown
Finance – Brian Edwards-Tiekert
Elections – Bob Lederer
Goverance – George Reiter

 ELECTIONS:

We will need to meet soon to discuss the 2014 Pacifica elections. We might need to schedule a special meeting to do so.

CFO INVESTIGATION:

As soon as I received the report, I contacted Holman HR and asked their advice on how to handle the report. Once Holman HR has responded to my request and I have their advice going forward I will let you know. Clearly these matters must be dealt with on a case by case basis depending on the issue and the degree of legal exposure.

WHAT’S AHEAD…

 PACIFICA GENERAL COUNSEL:

We need to move quickly on hiring a general counsel.

WBAI:

We will need to schedule discussions on some urgent matters going forward. We are a month behind on our scheduled discussion on WBAI. I have asked the PNO to provide us with an up-to-date financial report on WBAI. However, I have been told that because of audit prep work, it is not possible to produce a report at this time. I will urge the management at WBAI and the LSB to make as much information as possible available to us and to provide us with their plans going forward.

 

FINANCES:

Bernard Duncan and Raul Salvador are working to get information on our financial situation to share with the PNB. While we have up to now been unable to get the PNO to provide us with an income statement or a clear picture of how much we owe and to whom, that has changed and we can look forward to receiving that information soon.

Major Issues and Concerns Currently Facing Pacifica

Report of the Executive Director to the Pacifica National Board
by  Summer Reese
April 27, 2014

Discussion among some of those occupying the Pacifica Office. L to R, Geneva Reese, Cynthia Johnson, Summer Reese, Virginia Browning, & Daniel Borgstrum

Summer Reese in discussion with some of those occupying the Pacifica Office. L to R, Geneva Reese, Cynthia Johnson, Summer Reese, Virginia Browning, & Daniel Borgstrum

The following is my report on the status of major issues and concerns currently facing Pacifica Foundation Radio during the crisis that has been created by the actions of the board majority. The reckless and illegal actions of the majority have caused considerable concern to our many creditors, who are now uncertain about the organization’s stability and ability to meet its financial obligations over time. This has resulted in two collections actions being filed against the Foundation this month by creditors that were previously working with staff on payment of these liabilities. The lawsuit with which we have been served is from Robert Half, the temp

firm which has supplied us with some of our accounting staff. The other lawsuit is from FSRN and we have not yet been served in that action. When we are served, I will notify the board.

Additionally, the SAG-AFTRA unit in Washington, D.C. has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). On March 13, 2014, I flew to Washington, D.C., to meet with the Collective Bargaining Unit and the representatives of the union to address grievances and potential grievances generated by the conduct of the interim General Manager at WPFW. All matters were addressed on that day, a schedule of addressing concerns going forward was agreed to, and the union was not planning on filing any further grievances against the organization, much less complaints with the NLRB, which is a drastic escalation. Later, on the night of March 13, 2014, the board majority took its illegal vote to allegedly fire me, and the result has been that we are now facing major labor charges before the NLRB.

The audit work continues, despite the lack of cooperation from KPFA. The Business Manager of that unit has still failed to reconcile her books, but has finally agreed to release the underlying documents, such as bank statements, so that accounting staff in the National Office can reconcile that unit’s books. The request to that office to simply release the underlying documentation, if the BM [Business Manager] was unable to perform her job duties, was made two months ago, and if the records had just been released at that time, we would have been able to avoid the postponement of the audit.

Because of the delay in the audit work, it is unlikely that any CPB funds will be released this fiscal year, as the year will be nearly over before the organization’s audit and tax return are completed. The auditors are beginning field work at the National Office in May.

Last year’s fatally flawed 990 tax return, as prepared by the then CFO, Raul Salvador, has been amended and sent to me this week for final review and approval. I anticipate signing the amended return this week, so that we may file it with the IRS and the various states requiring our financial filings in order to solicit funds from the public in those states.

The rehired CFO, Raul Salvador, is currently on vacation in the Philippines.

WBAI continues to struggle financially and is facing catastrophic consequences if the financial situation at that unit is not rapidly addressed. The transmitter tower rent has not been paid for March or April, and the station is currently a quarter of a million dollars in arrears on operating expenses.

Both WBAI and WPFW were unable to meet their respective payroll obligations this week, as well as their healthcare obligations. KPFA and KPFK have had to supply approximately $85,000.00 to meet the funding shortfalls at the two East Coast stations, as well as the National Office, which continues not to receive Shared Services monies from those stations as budgeted.

Work on the audit, as well as day to day operations at the National Office continues relatively normally, despite the physical violence, interference and attempts to block access to the office by Margy Wilkinson and her supporters. We have been able to protect the employees, stop the attempted illegal lock-out of the staff and withstand assaults upon the operations, such as turning off the water so that staff could not use the legally required facilities of the bathroom, etc.

We have hired two temporary accounting staff to assist with the audit preparation, and despite the above attempted disruptions, all staff have been able to perform their normal duties and have been putting in incredible hours and effort to complete the audit, even with the delays caused by the lack of cooperation by a particular unit.

I was temporarily removed from payroll, but the issue appears to be resolved at this point, and should not necessitate a filing on my part with the Department of Industrial Relations.

Full compliance with the Communications Act by the five stations, as required for CPB funding, is still a struggle. WBAI and WPFW still have lapses in meeting notice postings, which will continue to adversely impact complete organizational compliance until fully resolved.

Old KPFA dialDuring this crisis, I continue to work with the legal counsel of The Office of The Inspector General of The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, supplying that department with financial, accounting, personnel, copyright and meeting notice records of the organization to facilitate their investigation of irregularities in those areas of the Foundation’s operations.

According to our FCC counsel, we may still apply for STA low power waivers for station KPFT. However, because we are in license renewal, other individuals or entities may object and contend that we are not using our full power for an extended period of time, and therefore should have our license downgraded to lower power. The FCC may then file an Order to Show Cause (OSC) against us, compelling us to answer as to why our license should not be downgraded. Because of this possible scenario, it is imperative to prioritize replacement of the KPFT transmitter.

Anticipating a return to normal business operations after a ruling of the court, I am promulgating an emergency operations plan to address our immediate cash shortfalls around the network, allowing for continuous operations, while reducing both operating expenses and accumulated debt. Because our business reputation has been significantly compromised by the actions of the board majority, it will be necessary to immediately instill a sense of confidence in our creditors, as well as the public, regarding our ability to continue operations and meet our financial obligations over the long term, as well as immediately. I believe it is possible to restore our public reputation, but only through decisive and bold action, clearly articulated in a business plan that can be supported by factual data and not wishful thinking.

I look forward to working with the board on the development and implementation of this plan, so that Pacifica not only survives the current crisis and the accumulated burden of years of debt and mismanagement of resources, but will thrive by a complete rebirth and return to the Mission of the organization and its service to the public.

New Community Radio in Oklahoma (and Oregon) Wow!

 

KVOP Folks Celebrate

KVOP Folks Celebrate

After six and one-half years, KVOY.org and umbrella group VoicesofOK.org have been awarded a Construction Permit by the FCC to build a Full Power Local Community Radio Station. They also have a new frequency – 104.5 FM –  that is more powerful than the previous one. 

KXCR fm on the Oregon Coast in Florence Oregon is also on-air as we speak after a successful filing with the FCC on April 18, 2014.

Paul Nelson, KHOI Chief Engineer.

Paul Nelson, KHOI Chief Engineer.

This summer’s Grassroots Radio Conference will be in Ames, Iowa in August, sponsored by KHOI, the station Pacifica Affiliates director Ursula Rudenberg helped build in her home town.  KHOI held a grand opening for its new studio on April 19, 2014.

Congratulations to all the wonderful and mostly unpaid workers who are changing the U.S. media landscape forever.