[Prairiegreens] Re: Community Radio (was: Re: [Peace-discuss] Re: [Prairiegreens] Flag flap)

[Alfred Kagan]

I am glad we have got a discussion going.  Can someone please forward 
this message to Paul Riismandel?

It is certainly true that there are major differences in comparing 
what can happen in a large city to what is possible in twin towns of 
our size.  But there are still many points in common. It is fine to 
take credit for the community and volunteer nature of our station.  I 
can only respond by saying congratulations and keep up the good work. 
However, we can still try to be better.

As a long-time contributor to WEFT, I feel I have the right and 
obligation to state my opinions, and I am not amused that this is 
categorized as complaining.  I also want to build.  That is the whole 
point.

Paul makes several points about doing fundraising campaigns so that 
we can do more.  I say fine.  I would contribute to such an effort. 
But this is the first I have heard about the real needs and the idea 
of a large fundraising campaign. I would be particularly motivated to 
help out if the idea was to build more capacity for news and public 
affairs.

That said, we don't need to build anything to have more progressive 
nationally produced news and public affairs programs. And we don't 
need to build anything to change the hours around to reach more 
working people.

I would ask Paul and others to stop being so damn defensive, and 
start considering what needs to be done to reach a larger audience.


At 12:44 AM -0600 11/17/03, Jason Pitzl-Waters wrote:
>Al wrote:
>>Robert has gotten a new perspective because he has now experienced 
>>just how great a community radio station can be.  WEFT is a good 
>>station, but in my opinion, it is greatly underutilized.  The 
>>balance between music and public affairs is tilted way too much 
>>toward music.
>
>I would like, in answer to this, post a response from Paul 
>Riismandel on this issue and the difference between KPFK and WEFT...
>
>>The LA metro area is about 10 million people, 10/11 of the population of
>>the entire state of Illinois.
>>
>>KPFK has an annual budget well in excess of $1 million, and scores of
>>paid employees. Their current job search for an assistant to the manager
>>of KPFK lists a salary significantly higher than what WEFT pays its
>>station manager.
>>
>>Until about 24 months ago, the management of KPFK and Pacifica were
>>engaged in a campaign to oust most volunteer programmers and especially
>>many volunteer programmers serving LA's least numerous minority groups.
>>It's good to see that trend reversed, but it is foolish to forget that
>>recent history.
>>
>>KPFK has a program director, not a committee. And while I understand
>>that there is some volunteer input in programming decisions, in the end
>>they are the domain of paid management, not volunteers or listeners.
>>That is significantly less democratic than WEFT.
>>
>>KPFK has a full-time news director, and full-time news editor, paid on
>>par with other similar positions at the station (~$30,000 annually to
>>start), along with a news editor. Certainly, that makes news production
>>a little easier.
>>
>>The LA metro area also has several times as many noncommercial stations,
>>including many fine college stations, that are able to play abundant
>>quantities of independent rock and other musics, thus relieving KPFK
>>from this demand. KPFK, therefore, can serve a proportionally smaller
>>niche of the greater LA community, which nevertheless exists in higher
>>numbers than the entire population of Champaign county and surrounding
>>areas.
>>
>>
>>In short, comparing KPFK and WEFT is apples and oranges, and unfair.
>>
>>Want more public affairs at WEFT?
>>
>>How about help raise $10,000 to rebuild our back studio so that more and
>>better news production can go on?  How about another $25 - 50k so that
>>we have a working main studio, where we can more easily host and produce
>>local public affairs programs?
>>
>>Or what about helping build a newsroom/interview room where an
>>airshifter (like myself) can conduct interviews in peace?
>>
>>How about help the IMC raise money to renew its radio news coordinators
>>contract? Or to help pay news directors at WEFT?
>>
>>How about help organize volunteers who want to do LOCAL public affairs
>>programming?
>>
>>The only resistance that you can legitimately find at WEFT right now is
>>towards adding more National/satellite public affairs programming.  I
>>have seen no resistance to local public affairs -- it just apparently
>>takes more effort to propose and produce these shows than trying to
>>convince  the rest of WEFT to clear out schedule space for more
>>non-local satellite programs.
>>
>>Thus far I have not seen any new local public affairs programs be denied
>>a slot.
>>
>>As a host and producer of a local public affair show, I know it can be
>>done, but that it would be easier if the resources at the station were
>>better.
>>
>>I would gladly train people to do local news and public affairs shows at
>>WEFT if the resources were there.
>>
>>This responsibility falls on all of us, including me. But I also know
>>that the current Programming Committee has done more to promote local
>>public affairs than any in the last ten years, supplemented by efforts
>>from folks like Sascha, who spearheaded bringing DSL and a PC to WEFT so
>>that airshifters would have more global Internet resources available to
>>them.
>>
>>More can be done, and a true grassroots effort would help build the
>>resources needed (like that which created the IMC).
>>
>>It's easy to complain and compare.  I prefer to build.
>>
>>--Paul
>
>
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-- 


Al Kagan
African Studies Bibliographer and Professor of Library Administration
Africana Unit, Room 328
University of Illinois Library
1408 W. Gregory Drive
Urbana, IL 61801, USA

tel. 217-333-6519
fax. 217-333-2214
e-mail. akagan at uiuc.edu

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