Surprising developments at the PNB meeting in Berkeley

PNB meeting audienceKPFA listeners and staff filled the July 20-23 meeting of the Pacifica National Board (PNB) in Berkeley past capacity, spilling into the hallway during public portions of the meeting. Listeners came from all over the broadcast area — Santa Rosa, Petaluma, San Jose, Oakland, and even Fresno and Los Angeles.

Dozens spoke up eloquently during public comment, opposing more cuts at KPFA, criticizing Pacifica’s current leadership, and challenging Pacifica Treasurer Tracy Rosenberg on her unproven budget claims.

“We need quality programming in order to keep listeners and subscribers,” long-time listener Ellen Jennings told the board. “I don’t believe KPFA can survive without quality programming such as UpFront, Letters & Politics, Against the Grain and the KPFA News team.”

6-10AM weekday fundraising averagesKPFA staff passed out this flyer explaining how further cuts to KPFA would hurt the entire network. One of several unpaid programmers who spoke, Glenn Reeder, said that austerity measures like the layoffs Pacifica was proposing “don’t improve institutions in the red — investing in people does.” Many of those present had already read the recent independent audits of Pacifica, showing a healthy KPFA, but massive financial problems in the mismanaged Pacifica National Office and at WBAI, the network’s New York station.

Listener Kate Gowen said that the conflict around the station had “laid bare two very different visions of what KPFA should be, and how the role of the National Board is to be defined.” Programmer Sasha Lilley told the board it would not solve Pacifica’s financial woes by cutting paid staff, because that would result in a loss of income and listenership, as happened the last time.

For many on the national board, it was the first time they’d seen KPFA’s listeners or staff face-to-face. And what a difference it made! Here are some major developments from the weekend’s meeting.

Victory: layoffs less likely at KPFA

Pacifica management had been trying to impose $1 million of cuts on its stations, and had been pressuring KPFA to reduce staffing by $300,000 – which could cost the station 7 to 8 positions, enough to take several programs off the air. Sasha Lilley at PNBPacifica management was insisting on the cuts even though KPFA is on track to have a six-figure budget surplus this year.

On the first day of its four-day meeting, the PNB took up a resolution by KPFA staff rep Laura Prives that called on Pacifica’s executives to disclose how much they wanted each station manager to cut, and to explain the rationale for demanding those cuts. Incredibly, Tracy Rosenberg and her board allies voted against this straightforward, sensible resolution, and as a 10 to 10 tie, it failed. The next morning, a lengthy resolution from Rosenberg that gave a free hand to Pacifica to cut wherever it wanted, also failed by a 10 to 10 vote

But then, things changed. During public discussions, it became clear that Pacifica’s executives — Arlene Engelhardt, the executive director, and LaVarn Williams, the CFO — couldn’t explain why they decided the stations should take $1 million in cuts. They had done no analysis on how layoffs might hurt fundraising efforts, and couldn’t articulate any plan for financial recovery. Public testimony from KPFA’s listeners and staff against further cuts was compelling and seemed to sway some board members.

On Monday, the PNB overwhelmingly passed a resolution by KPFA representative Dan Siegel calling on station managers to assess their individual financial situations, and submit financial plans for timely payments of all their bills. This is an important step forward for local control.

Siegel says the resolution commits Pacifica to a budget process that relies on “station management to monitor and control their budgets. This is just the first step. Somehow the National Office allowed $2 million in unpaid bills, including about $1.5 million to Democracy Now!, to accumulate,” said Siegel. “We have to figure out a way to pay off these bills without undermining the functioning of our stations. The third priority is to finally deal with WBAI’s $800,000 in annual rent, which has weighed down the entire network for years. I am pushing for a quick solution that involves moving to a cheaper location in New Jersey, Queens or Brooklyn, and use of a different broadcast tower,” Siegel added.

So long, Arlene Engelhardt?

Mitch Jeserich at PNBSaveKPFA readers will remember Arlene Engelhardt: she’s the heavy-handed Pacifica manager who killed the Morning Show — at the time, KPFA’s most popular program and the station’s biggest fundraiser — and then refused pledges of over $60,000 from KPFA listeners who wanted to help. LaVarn Williams is the network’s CFO.

After a long, closed-door session, PNB chair Summer Reese read this statement: “At its meeting on July 22, the Pacifica National Board decided to open searches for the positions of Foundation Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer. The contractual terms of the incumbents, Executive Director Arlene Engelhardt and Chief Financial Officer LaVarn Williams, conclude on November 30, 2012. The Board invited Ms. Engelhardt and Ms. Williams to apply for new terms in their positions.”

margy with crowdKPFA’s local board chair Margy Wilkinson commented after the meeting: “We’ll need to talk about what this means, but I’d like to think that a majority of the PNB recognize that Pacifica is in terrible shape and these two executives cannot provide the leadership to begin to solve the problem. We’ll have to keep talking but I’m feeling better about Pacifica than I have in a long time.”

This good news is due to the hard work, persistence and support of the thousands of you who have signed petitions, sent emails, joined protests, and attended meetings. Thank you!

Support KPFA’s fund drive

kpfa logoRight now, the most important thing you can do to fight cuts to the programs you care about is to donate to KPFA’s Summer Mini-Fund Drive currently underway so the station stays in the black.

PLEASE NOTE: this fund drive is the last chance you have to become a KPFA member or renew your membership in time to vote in the upcoming general elections. SaveKPFA will be fielding a set of candidates, and we’ll need your vote. But you can’t vote if you haven’t donated, so please pledge at least $25 now!

This weekend: Come to PNB meeting to demand no more cuts!

It’s been three years since the Pacifica National Board met in Berkeley — and the first time the board has had to face our community since Pacifica killed the Morning Show, claiming financial necessity. The board is coming here this weekend.

At this moment, Pacifica is trying to impose $300,000 in new cuts on KPFA. KPFA’s manager estimates this would entail cutting 7 to 8 positions. He hasn’t specified which, but it would be enough to eliminate Letters & Politics, Against The Grain, UpFront and Hard Knock Radio — nearly every daily program produced at our radio station.

These cuts are completely unnecessary. KPFA’s financial statements show that, as of June, KPFA’s bottom line is slightly better than budget, and the station is on track to run a six-figure surplus by September 30, the end of the fiscal year. (See this Pacifica audit story for a fuller picture of the network’s finances.)

The 22 members of the Pacifica National Board need to hear from KPFA listeners, when they meet July 20-23 at Berkeley’s Durant Hotel, 2600 Durant Avenue (@Bowditch in Berkeley | MAP). Pacifica hasn’t posted an agenda yet, and sadly, it looks like the board may spend most of its time in “executive session,” behind closed doors. Some of these board members refused to even read KPFA listener emails earlier this year.

SO PLEASE JOIN US AT THE BOARD MEETING SATURDAY AFTERNOON, 7/21 — that’s when we expect the board to have open sessions and take public comment. Come then and you’ll meet up with KPFA staffers like Letters and Politics host Mitch Jeserich, Against the Grain co-host Sasha Lilley, KPFA News anchor John Hamilton, and many other SaveKPFA supporters who will be at the meeting.

There is also an OPEN RECEPTION for the board at the station Friday night, 7/20 from 7-10pm. (Address: KPFA, 1929 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Berkeley) Please attend if you can – you’ll be able to talk directly with PNB members there!

We endorse YES on the KPFA recall!

Thanks to a grassroots campaign to return local control to KPFA, Pacifica treasurer Tracy Rosenberg is facing a recall endorsed by a long list of community activists,  listeners and staff. Ballots must be RECEIVED by AUG. 3 at: KPFA Recall Election, P.O. Box 11708, Berkeley, CA 94712 | Ballot info | BREAKING NEWS: Goodbye Arlene Engelhardt? Great news from the Pacifica National Board meeting in Berkeley | KPFA’s budget surplus and Pacifica’s audit: learn more

We urge you to VOTE YES on the recall!
(this is a partial list, see full list here)

ACT UP EAST BAY
AILEEN ALFANDARY, co-director, KPFA News
EMILY ALMA, Chico Peace and Justice Center, Butte Environmental Council, Occupy Chico, Chico Palestine Action Group
DR. NANCY ARVOLD, psychologist, social activist, feminist
L. AYRES-FREDERICK, Artistic Director, Phoenix Arts Association Theatre
TINA BACHEMIN, KPFA reporter
DAVID BACON, labor correspondent, former KPFA Morning Show; TNG/ CWA Local 39521
BOB BALDOCK, KPFA Public Events Producer
VIC BEDOIANPacifica Evening News Central Valley reporter, Fresno
JIM BENNETT, Former Interim General Manager, KPFA, Former Pacifica National Board Member, Former Operations Director, KPFA
LARRY BENSKY, Pacifica National Affairs correspondent (1987-2007)
LAYNA BERMAN, unpaid weekly programmer
IAN BOAL, social historian of the commons
SUMMER BRENNER, author, Richmond Tales, and community activist
MALCOLM BURNSTEIN, KPFA board member and retired civil rights lawyer
SCOTT CAMIL, Activist
CATHY CAMPBELL, president, Berkeley Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1078
CLAIRE CUMMINGS, former Food and Farming editor, KPFA
LAWRENCE DAVIDSON, former co-host of KPFA’s Probabilities
JIM DAVIS, filmmaker, Meeting Room
JANE DICKSON, artist
PAMELA DRAKE, Oakland activist, KPFA Local Station Board member
ELLEN DUBROWIN, listener, former programmer & off-air staff (unpaid)
STEVE EARLY, labor journalist (CounterPunch), TNG/ CWA Local 39521
BRIAN EDWARDS-TIEKERT, KPFA News
BARBARA EPSTEIN, professor, History of Consciousness, UCSC
JAN ETRE, Crafts Fair Coordinator
DANA FRANK, Professor, History, UC Santa Cruz, AFT 1299
JULIANA FREDMAN, public interest attorney and activist
JON FROMER, singer/songwriter, NABET/CWA Local 51 shop steward
GLORIA FRYM, writer
SASHA FUTRAN, member, KPFA local station board
DAVID GANS, music programmer, KPFA board member
SHERRY GENDELMAN, attorney, former chair, KPFA board; former chair, Pacifica National Board
PAUL GEORGE, director, Peninsula Peace and Justice Center
SUZANNE GORDON, journalist and author, NWU/UAW
ANDREJ GRUBACIC, anarchist historian, author of Wobblies and Zapatistas
MIGUEL GUERRERO, KPFA web producer, producer of Rock en Rebelion
CONN HALLINAN, foreign policy analyst, Foreign Policy In Focus, Institute for Policy Study, columnist, LSB member
MATTHEW HALLINAN, listener rep, KPFA Local Station Board
JOHN HAMILTON, KPFA News anchor
WILLIAM HARVEY, Retired Sec/Treas CWA Local 9415, Retired President Alameda County Labor Council AFL-CIO
JANE HEAVEN, KPFA producer/host, field recording engineer
JANE HIRSHFIELD, poet, author, listener-member
JOHN IVERSON, health activist
SHEILA JORDAN, Alameda County Superintendent of Schools
RAMSEY KANAAN, KPFA unpaid staff, founder AK Press and PM Press, co-founder San Francisco Anarchist Bookfair
CHRIS KAVANAGH, former elected Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner (2002-2008), former Green Party of Alameda County Central/County Council member
LARRY KELP, KPFA producer and host, Sing Out!
LISA KERMISH, Vice President, UPTE-CWA Local 9119
SHELLEY KESSLER, Secretary-Treasurer, San Mateo Labor Council
ROSE KETABCHI, KPFA News
ERIC KLEIN, former FSRN tech producer; former KPFA News producer; former tech producer, Flashpoints
HELENE KNOX, poet, editor, KPFA listener & volunteer
JACK KURZWEIL, listener rep, KPFA board
JAMES LAFFERTY, host, The Lawyers Guild Show (KPFK); Executive Director of the National Lawyers Guild, Los Angeles
JOHN LAVINE, activist, former Berkeley Peace and Justice Commissioner
YING LEE, Asian-Americans for Peace and Justice
SASHA LILLEY, KPFA’s Against the Grain; Shop Steward, CWA Local 9415
LAURA LIVOTI, founder, Justice in Nigeria Now!
ROBERT LONGER, Exec VP, CWA Local 9421
TIM LYNCH, KPFA producer and host, unpaid staff
PHILIP MALDARI, KPFA’s Sunday Show; Shop Steward, CWA Local 9415
JOANNA MANQUEROSMusic of the World, unpaid staff
DAVID MARTINEZ, radical filmmaker
DIANA MARTINEZLetters & Politics, unpaid staff
EMILY MCMILIN, Former KPFA Station Engineer
PETER OLNEY, listener and ILWU organizing director
ZEESE  PAPANIKOLAS, listener, Oakland CA
EDDY PAY, KPFA music programmer
SCOTT PHAMFree Speech Radio News, Technical Producer
SALLY PHILLIPS, KPFA Producer, Host, Engineer
MAX PRINGLEKPFA News Reporter
LAURA PRIVES, former executive producer of the KPFA Morning Show; producer, Letters & Politics, KPFA board member, Pacifica National Board member
GLENN REEDERKPFA News anchor, unpaid staff
BLANCHE RICHARDSON, owner, Marcus Books
DERK RICHARDSON, host of KPFA’s The Hear and Now
FRANCESCA ROSA, member SEIU 1021, delegate, SF Labor Council
SUSAN SACHEN, Campaign Director, California Labor Federation
CHARLOTTE SAENZ, community artist and educator
LYNNE HOLLANDER SAVIO, Mario Savio Memorial Lecture & Young Activist Award
LEWIS SAWYER, producer, Early Morning Music, former KPFA Receptionist
DAN  SIEGEL, civil rights and labor attorney, former Pacifica General Counsel
BONNIE SIMMONS, host, KPFA’s Bonnie Simmons Show; former LSB, Pacifica National Board member
SARA STEFFENS, Newspaper Guild/CWA District 9
SUSAN STONE, Former Director, KPFA’s Drama and Literature Department
VANESSA TAIT, KPFA News; co-founder, FSRN; author Poor Workers’ Unions; TNG/ CWA Local 39521
MARY TILSON, Host, America’s Back 40 (with Bette Beasley)
ANDREA TURNER, cultural and community activist, LSB member
SALLY VENABLE, president, CWA Local 9415
RICHARD  WALKER, professor, radical geographer & author of The Country in the City
KATHLEEN WEAVER, Author of Peruvian Rebel, listener/member
KRIS WELCH, KPFA’s Living Room
JOHN WHITING, KPFA Production Director and Program Producer (1960-1965); London Correspondent, Pacifica Radio (1966-1972)
BARBARA WHIPPERMAN, treasurer, KPFA local station board
MARGY WILKINSON, chair, KPFA Local Station Board
CAL WINSLOW, labor historian, co-author of Rebel Rank and File
RYCHARD WITHERS, Executive Director, Fresno Free College Foundation, General Manager, KFCF (Fresno)
EDDIE YUEN, KPFA’s Against the Grain
(Please note: all titles & organizations for ID only)

SEE the full endorsers’ list here, as well as additional lists of SaveKPFA’s endorsers supporters.

Why Recall Rosenberg?
Pacifica treasurer Tracy Rosenberg has been the principal defender of the current management at Pacifica, the corporation that owns KPFA. With Rosenberg’s support, and at her behest, Pacifica has:

Let’s get KPFA back in the hands of local listeners and staff — VOTE YES on the KPFA recall! Questions? Email us. Fill out this form to add your endorsement.