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DESCRIPTION:KPFA-FM Building on the Auction Block\n\nPress Conference:  Wednesday, 
 February 12 at noon\n\nKPFA studio, 1929 MLK Jr. Way, Berkeley \n \n KPFA 
 Unpaid Property Tax Bill Hits $486,000;\n\nAlameda Tax Collector Schedules 
 Public Auction\n\nBerkeley - KPFA-FM management has not paid property taxes 
 to Alameda County for the last six years for the station's studio in 
 Berkeley.  As a result, the County Tax Collector’s office has announced 
 its intention to seize the property for public auction.\n\nBoard members, 
 staff and listeners are asking: Is this the result of incompetence or 
 internal sabotage?  The plan to turn KPFA into NPR-type programming was 
 defeated in 1999, yet the rogue KPFA management has engineered a financial 
 meltdown through deliberate fiscal mismanagement to force its hand once 
 again. This has resulted in an imminent auction of the Berkeley 
 building.\n\nThe engineered financial meltdown also explains why:\n• 
 There was a violent seizure of the WBAI studio in New York during a 
 successful fund drive.\n• There have been repeated failures to submit 
 timely audits, causing a loss of CPB grants.\n\n \nTracy Rosenberg, former 
 Treasurer of the Pacifica National Board warns that, “The situation is 
 grave and serious. I hear the paternal ‘let management take care of 
 it’, but that was tried and for seven years management did not take care 
 of it. So the whole community needs to get KPFA out of this pickle.”\n\n 
 \nThis same rogue management is attempting to substitute a new set of 
 bylaws to take away the listener control won in 1999.   KPFA Foundation 
 incorporation papers secretly filed in 2013 by former Pacifica CEO’s Dan 
 Siegel and Margy Wilkinson enable a bankruptcy judge to order the sale of 
 the WBAI license and other station assets and operate KPFA under new 
 anti-democratic bylaws.  All 5 of Pacifica’s Local Station Boards 
 overwhelmingly voted NO on the substitute bylaws.\n\nIn addition to 
 financial mismanagement, Pacifica’s anti-war mission is under threat. 
 KPFA was known for broadcasting often lone anti-war voices in the midst of 
 “embedded” journalism and for stepping outside of the two-party 
 political framework with in-depth analysis rarely found in mainstream 
 media. Instead of following this unique and crucial tradition, KPFA has 
 been regurgitating mainstream media arguments and management has canceled 
 popular programs without due process: Guns and Butter, Twit Wit Radio, 
 Discreet Music, WorkWeek. \n\nBut listeners are determined to keep KPFA 
 true to its vision:  In just a few weeks, over 500 people signed a petition 
 to bring WorkWeek Radio back on the air, the ONLY labor show on KPFA. 
 \n\nJack Heyman, retired member ILWU Local 10 told KPFA's General Manager, 
 "The ILWU has been a supporter of KPFA from the beginning. Work Week is the 
 ONLY KPFA program which has consistently covered the developing crisis at 
 the Port of Oakland, a critical fight for the ILWU. Please reconsider this 
 drastic cut at such a critical time."\n\nAs in Iowa, is what we see 
 negligence or sabotage?\n\nKPFA building up for auction? \nVote NO on the 
 proposed substitute bylaws! \nProtect corporate-free radio!\n\nKPFA members 
 will soon receive a ballot asking that you approve a set of undemocratic 
 and dangerous bylaws.  The rogue KPFA management pushing these bylaws has 
 plans to overturn founder Lew Hill's vision by turning KPFA into NPR -- and 
 they've also engineered a financial meltdown through deliberate fiscal 
 mismanagement.   This strategy has resulted in an imminent auction of the 
 Berkeley building due to six years of unpaid property taxes.  \n \nIt also 
 explains why:\n•  there was a violent seizure of the WBAI studio in NY 
 during a successful fund drive\n•  there have been repeated failures to 
 submit timely audits, causing a loss of CPB grants\n \nThis same 
 incompetent Rogue management is attempting to win our consent to abolish 
 Pacifica Radio's existing bylaws by substituting a set of bylaws.  Secret 
 KPFA Foundation papers were filed in 2013 by former Pacifica CEO's Dan 
 Siegel and Margy Wilkinson to enable a bankruptcy judge to order WBAI and 
 other station assets sold for tens of millions of dollars, allowing KPFA to 
 use the proceeds to pay down the debt and operate KPFA under substitute 
 bylaws. \n \nThe substitute bylaws:\n•  Enable an unnamed self-selected 
 board to accept corporate or major donor contributions, instead of listener 
 support,\n•  eliminate community elected Local Station Boards and 
 oversight, \n• .eliminate staff representatives on the Pacifica National 
 Board, and\n•  disenfranchise the 200+ affiliate stations.\n \nThis is 
 exactly what we successfully defeated in 1999.  Are we moving 
 backwards?\nAll 5 of Pacifica's Local Station Boards overwhelming voted NO 
 on the substitute bylaws.\n  \nIn addition to financial mismanagement, 
 Pacifica's anti-war mission is under threat by continually airing the fake 
 opposition politics practiced by mainstream media and both major parties.\n 
 \nKPFA management has canceled popular programs without due process:  
 CounterSpin, Twit Wit Radio, Guns and Butter, Work Week and Discrete Music, 
 but recently played gavel to gavel coverage of what every corporate media 
 outlet was covering.  The listeners are being ignored, and the substitute 
 bylaws would institutionalize us as being completely irrelevant.\n\nVOTE NO 
 on the substitute bylaws, and prevent the NPR model of corporate control, 
 so KPFA can once again become the leading voice in opposition to endless 
 wars!\n\n https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2020/02/09/18830557.php
SUMMARY:KPFA Press Conference — KPFA-FM Building on the Auction Block
LOCATION:KPFA studio, 1929 MLK Jr. Way, Berkeley \n 
URL:https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2020/02/09/18830557.php
DTSTART:20200212T200000Z
DTEND:20200212T210000Z
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