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KPFA/Pacifica up for sale - again?
Are plans to sell KPFA/Pacifica public listener-supported radio resurfacing, after listener efforts saved it from the corporate raiders just a few years ago?
----------------------------------
"CONFIDENTIAL"
Riva Enteen
PACIFICA AND KPFA FOR SALE AGAIN?
Sunday, August 7, 2005
Bulletin #13
----------------------------------
Please feel free to distribute.
http://www.struggle-and-win.net
"This is the only non-profit I've ever been involved with without a line-of-credit. You
cannot keep doing business this way. The board ought to authorize a line-of-credit...
Read the bylaws. Read the powers of the Executive Director. He doesn't have to [get
board authorization]. It's my choice..."
-AMBROSE LANE, PACIFICA INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
"Each station is now struggling with a deficit or shortfall... I do not believe it can
be ignored for any reason. We must act."
-LONNIE HICKS, PACIFICA CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER (CFO)
"We spoke to Wells Fargo today which has the loan on Pacifica's KPFA building. They
talked about a 7.25% interest rate, which is about 1% above prime. We chatted a bit and
made a connection. It's always good to make a connection, especially in the banking
business where we're already banking... We're also looking at the Bank of America..."
-MARNIE TATTERSALL, PACIFICA NATIONAL FINANCE COMMITTEE MEMBER,
Treasurer, KPFA Local Station Board (LSB),
and Director of Finance for KGO & KSFO (radio stations owned by ABC/Disney)
The quotes above are from the Pacifica National Finance Committee meeting of July 29,
2005. Is this deja vu all over again?
In 1999, in his infamous email to then-board chair Mary Frances Berry, Pacifica
National Board (PNB) member Michael Palmer suggested that "The [KPFA] primary signal would
lend itself to a quiet marketing scenario of discreet presentation to logical and
qualified buyers."
Today, in 2005, Pacifica's management wants to take out a "line-of-credit" in order to
pay for the looming budget deficit that they have created through their gross
mismanagement. Is this not one more "quiet marketing scenario of discreet presentation" -- this
time to Wells Fargo or the Bank of America?
DOWN THE MONEY HOLE
The Pacifica network is hemmoraging money. According to a report presented at the
National Finance Committee meeting, prepared by Chief Financial Officer Lonnie Hicks, each
of the five Pacifica stations are over budget.
Pacifica's national office, located in Berkeley, is also significantly over budget.
According to Hicks, "We have spent $100,000 over the gross salary line, and $139,000 in
salaries and related... Adding salary increases for management staff put us over budget."
Under questioning, Hicks confessed that these management salary increases had not been
authorized by the Pacifica board. Some of these increases, Hicks said, were
"retroactive" for six months.
Is this one of the reasons that Hicks and other Pacifica management personnel,
including former Executive Director Dan Coughlin, have repeatedly refused to allow elected PNB
members full access to the network's financial records?
The biggest financial hemmoraging is at WBAI, Pacifica's station in New York. WBAI is
currently about $500,000 in the hole. How does a station get this far out of whack?
According to Stephen Brown, a WBAI LSB member:
"Every year, since 1978, the Gary Null Natural Living program has been responsible for
raising up to 1/3 of WBAI's total yearly revenue... This revenue stream was
deliberately cut off approximately three years ago, when WBAI Program Director Bernard White began
personally insulting Null on the air, snipped 20% off Null's daily air-time with no
reason or explanation, pre-empted him from virtually all pledge drives (again with no
reason or explanation), and then finally fired him in December of 2004." Brown calculates
that the "still unexplained decision to pre-empt Null from more than 12 pledge drives
has so far cost the station (and the foundation) up to $3.6 million."
Is this mismanagement, or sabotage?
In one small example, the KPFA Local Station Board is now paying a parliamentarian $80
an hour to attend every meeting, including "executive sessions," because the current
chair is so unfamiliar with elementary parliamentary procedure.
Another example -- security guards are now routinely hired for all PNB meetings.
"GIVING TEEN-AGE BOYS CREDIT CARDS..."
The discussions on what to do about the looming financial crisis are now centered in
the PNB's National Finance Committee. These discussions have focused on a debate about
whether or not to take out a line-of-credit. But what is not being discussed are the
underlying political problems that plague the network and are the real cause of the
financial crisis -- bloated staff expenses, poor programming that fails to garner the
necessary financial support from listeners, and the failure of the PNB to seriously address
these problems.
For example, the PNB National Finance Committee is now meeting almost weekly. Yet the
PNB National Program Committee, where real political discussion about programming should
occur, has barely met since the first PNB was elected in 2004.
Instead of dealing with the very real problems that plague the network, Pacifica
management is proposing to resolve the crisis by borrowing money. This is like "giving
teen-age boys credit cards," said Sandy Weinman, the LSB Treasurer of KPFT in Houston, Texas.
"We've survived this far in our history without a line-of-credit. It's not time to turn
over the Monopoly cards and mortgage our future."
To borrow money, Pacifica would have to put up something as collateral -- the
buildings, the broadcast equipment, the station licenses. In one scenario, the collateral would
be future income. Imagine a pledge drive where your money goes, not to Pacifica, but to
Wells Fargo or the Bank of America.
It should be obvious that if Pacifica goes deep into debt to cover up our runaway
budget problems, we are just asking for trouble, and serving up the network on a silver
platter to our creditors. "Our assets are beyond our buildings. The real worth is the FCC
licenses and the bankers know this," said Weinman at the most recent National Finance
Committee meeting.
But, in the minds of our current management, not to be in hock to the banks is somehow
unbusinesslike. "Is our role to survive?" mused Interim Executive Director Lane. "The
responsibility of a board member is to enhance the value of the corporation for which
they serve."
Not so, said PNB member David Adelson, a representative from KPFK in Los Angeles. "I
think the charge is to see that the Pacifica mission is fulfilled, not to enhance the
assets of Pacifica."
WHO'S IN CHARGE?
When it was her turn to speak, Patty Heffley, a PNB National Finance Committee member
from WBAI, said that she had not known that Pacifica management had received unbudgeted
raises and bonuses. "Who is in charge of the managers," she asked, "so they don't
overspend?"
"That's an interesting question," CFO Hicks answered. "Who's accountable for management
expenses of this organization? The issue has not been resolved... We need a national
policy for monitoring and controlling expenses."
If the current Pacifica management has its way, the Pacifica community might find Wells
Fargo or the Bank of America "monitoring and controlling expenses."
[ The quotes in this report are transcribed from the Pacifica National Finance
Committee meetings of July 29 and August 2, archived at: http://www.kpftx.org/#archives ]
also, notes of the meetings are at: http://wbai.net
"CONFIDENTIAL"
Riva Enteen
PACIFICA AND KPFA FOR SALE AGAIN?
Sunday, August 7, 2005
Bulletin #13
----------------------------------
Please feel free to distribute.
http://www.struggle-and-win.net
"This is the only non-profit I've ever been involved with without a line-of-credit. You
cannot keep doing business this way. The board ought to authorize a line-of-credit...
Read the bylaws. Read the powers of the Executive Director. He doesn't have to [get
board authorization]. It's my choice..."
-AMBROSE LANE, PACIFICA INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
"Each station is now struggling with a deficit or shortfall... I do not believe it can
be ignored for any reason. We must act."
-LONNIE HICKS, PACIFICA CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER (CFO)
"We spoke to Wells Fargo today which has the loan on Pacifica's KPFA building. They
talked about a 7.25% interest rate, which is about 1% above prime. We chatted a bit and
made a connection. It's always good to make a connection, especially in the banking
business where we're already banking... We're also looking at the Bank of America..."
-MARNIE TATTERSALL, PACIFICA NATIONAL FINANCE COMMITTEE MEMBER,
Treasurer, KPFA Local Station Board (LSB),
and Director of Finance for KGO & KSFO (radio stations owned by ABC/Disney)
The quotes above are from the Pacifica National Finance Committee meeting of July 29,
2005. Is this deja vu all over again?
In 1999, in his infamous email to then-board chair Mary Frances Berry, Pacifica
National Board (PNB) member Michael Palmer suggested that "The [KPFA] primary signal would
lend itself to a quiet marketing scenario of discreet presentation to logical and
qualified buyers."
Today, in 2005, Pacifica's management wants to take out a "line-of-credit" in order to
pay for the looming budget deficit that they have created through their gross
mismanagement. Is this not one more "quiet marketing scenario of discreet presentation" -- this
time to Wells Fargo or the Bank of America?
DOWN THE MONEY HOLE
The Pacifica network is hemmoraging money. According to a report presented at the
National Finance Committee meeting, prepared by Chief Financial Officer Lonnie Hicks, each
of the five Pacifica stations are over budget.
Pacifica's national office, located in Berkeley, is also significantly over budget.
According to Hicks, "We have spent $100,000 over the gross salary line, and $139,000 in
salaries and related... Adding salary increases for management staff put us over budget."
Under questioning, Hicks confessed that these management salary increases had not been
authorized by the Pacifica board. Some of these increases, Hicks said, were
"retroactive" for six months.
Is this one of the reasons that Hicks and other Pacifica management personnel,
including former Executive Director Dan Coughlin, have repeatedly refused to allow elected PNB
members full access to the network's financial records?
The biggest financial hemmoraging is at WBAI, Pacifica's station in New York. WBAI is
currently about $500,000 in the hole. How does a station get this far out of whack?
According to Stephen Brown, a WBAI LSB member:
"Every year, since 1978, the Gary Null Natural Living program has been responsible for
raising up to 1/3 of WBAI's total yearly revenue... This revenue stream was
deliberately cut off approximately three years ago, when WBAI Program Director Bernard White began
personally insulting Null on the air, snipped 20% off Null's daily air-time with no
reason or explanation, pre-empted him from virtually all pledge drives (again with no
reason or explanation), and then finally fired him in December of 2004." Brown calculates
that the "still unexplained decision to pre-empt Null from more than 12 pledge drives
has so far cost the station (and the foundation) up to $3.6 million."
Is this mismanagement, or sabotage?
In one small example, the KPFA Local Station Board is now paying a parliamentarian $80
an hour to attend every meeting, including "executive sessions," because the current
chair is so unfamiliar with elementary parliamentary procedure.
Another example -- security guards are now routinely hired for all PNB meetings.
"GIVING TEEN-AGE BOYS CREDIT CARDS..."
The discussions on what to do about the looming financial crisis are now centered in
the PNB's National Finance Committee. These discussions have focused on a debate about
whether or not to take out a line-of-credit. But what is not being discussed are the
underlying political problems that plague the network and are the real cause of the
financial crisis -- bloated staff expenses, poor programming that fails to garner the
necessary financial support from listeners, and the failure of the PNB to seriously address
these problems.
For example, the PNB National Finance Committee is now meeting almost weekly. Yet the
PNB National Program Committee, where real political discussion about programming should
occur, has barely met since the first PNB was elected in 2004.
Instead of dealing with the very real problems that plague the network, Pacifica
management is proposing to resolve the crisis by borrowing money. This is like "giving
teen-age boys credit cards," said Sandy Weinman, the LSB Treasurer of KPFT in Houston, Texas.
"We've survived this far in our history without a line-of-credit. It's not time to turn
over the Monopoly cards and mortgage our future."
To borrow money, Pacifica would have to put up something as collateral -- the
buildings, the broadcast equipment, the station licenses. In one scenario, the collateral would
be future income. Imagine a pledge drive where your money goes, not to Pacifica, but to
Wells Fargo or the Bank of America.
It should be obvious that if Pacifica goes deep into debt to cover up our runaway
budget problems, we are just asking for trouble, and serving up the network on a silver
platter to our creditors. "Our assets are beyond our buildings. The real worth is the FCC
licenses and the bankers know this," said Weinman at the most recent National Finance
Committee meeting.
But, in the minds of our current management, not to be in hock to the banks is somehow
unbusinesslike. "Is our role to survive?" mused Interim Executive Director Lane. "The
responsibility of a board member is to enhance the value of the corporation for which
they serve."
Not so, said PNB member David Adelson, a representative from KPFK in Los Angeles. "I
think the charge is to see that the Pacifica mission is fulfilled, not to enhance the
assets of Pacifica."
WHO'S IN CHARGE?
When it was her turn to speak, Patty Heffley, a PNB National Finance Committee member
from WBAI, said that she had not known that Pacifica management had received unbudgeted
raises and bonuses. "Who is in charge of the managers," she asked, "so they don't
overspend?"
"That's an interesting question," CFO Hicks answered. "Who's accountable for management
expenses of this organization? The issue has not been resolved... We need a national
policy for monitoring and controlling expenses."
If the current Pacifica management has its way, the Pacifica community might find Wells
Fargo or the Bank of America "monitoring and controlling expenses."
[ The quotes in this report are transcribed from the Pacifica National Finance
Committee meetings of July 29 and August 2, archived at: http://www.kpftx.org/#archives ]
also, notes of the meetings are at: http://wbai.net
Add Your Comments
Comments
(Hide Comments)
We are all still waiting for the answer to the question, "Who is in charge of the managers?" How is it possible that managers are receiving unbudgeted excess salaries? Obviously, these Board members had better do their job and set the salaries of the managers and demand a return of any funds given to them that they should not have.
Let's see. There were several lawsuits that were supposedly settled in December 2002. We can be sure the terms of the settlement agreement included a budget, the setting of management and all other salaries, the duties of the local board and the national board, and much more. Why are there any budget problems at all? What was left out of the settlement agreement? If nothing was left out, why are the terms being violated with no penalties?
Then we look at the struggle-and-win website to read previous announcements and find that the violence issue has not been dealt with and there are now security guards at these local board meetings. I cannot imagine any violence of any kind at any work place. In the offices where I work, if anyone was crazy enough to commit any form of violence, they would be fired immediately if only to protect the company from the obvious liability and lawsuits.
Then there is the real estate issue. KPFA should never have gone into the real estate business and bought property and built a building which is apparently so big that space is leased to tenants. The best thing KPFA can do is sell the stupid building, which in today's real estate market is worth a great deal, and lease space at any very modern office building in Berkeley or Oakland that is sufficient for KPFA and Pacifica. We have an office space glut in the Bay Area, so all KPFA has to do is pick the location, name their price, and they have the space.
This is why most of us keep away from all organizations. Just as fat floats at the top, the stupidity is always greatest at the managerial and board of directors level.
What is most outrageous is most of us receive only snippets of information on what is going on, all of it from whatever anyone cares to post on this website. We appreciate the postings but obviously we are not getting the whole picture. My experience is that things that are bad tend to get worse; that is, if what we are hearing stinks, the rest of it is a rotten stench.
Let's see. There were several lawsuits that were supposedly settled in December 2002. We can be sure the terms of the settlement agreement included a budget, the setting of management and all other salaries, the duties of the local board and the national board, and much more. Why are there any budget problems at all? What was left out of the settlement agreement? If nothing was left out, why are the terms being violated with no penalties?
Then we look at the struggle-and-win website to read previous announcements and find that the violence issue has not been dealt with and there are now security guards at these local board meetings. I cannot imagine any violence of any kind at any work place. In the offices where I work, if anyone was crazy enough to commit any form of violence, they would be fired immediately if only to protect the company from the obvious liability and lawsuits.
Then there is the real estate issue. KPFA should never have gone into the real estate business and bought property and built a building which is apparently so big that space is leased to tenants. The best thing KPFA can do is sell the stupid building, which in today's real estate market is worth a great deal, and lease space at any very modern office building in Berkeley or Oakland that is sufficient for KPFA and Pacifica. We have an office space glut in the Bay Area, so all KPFA has to do is pick the location, name their price, and they have the space.
This is why most of us keep away from all organizations. Just as fat floats at the top, the stupidity is always greatest at the managerial and board of directors level.
What is most outrageous is most of us receive only snippets of information on what is going on, all of it from whatever anyone cares to post on this website. We appreciate the postings but obviously we are not getting the whole picture. My experience is that things that are bad tend to get worse; that is, if what we are hearing stinks, the rest of it is a rotten stench.
First of all Marnie Tattersall should be thrown off the board and all committees of Pacifica and KPFA. She is thefinance director of a competitor radio station. How can she be hoenst and trustworthy and a good advocate fro KPFA when she works for a competitor. ( I mean KGO would love to have a Bay Area market without KPFA).
2. I did a google search fo Ambrose Laine and i found this interveiw he did with the absolutely bonkers Lyndon LaRouche. No Lane was treating LaRuche like he had good ideas that were all consistent with each other, rather than the kooky near fsscist that he is. All the questions he asked were done from an admiring perspective. He didn;t ask a single critical question. Is this the man we want running Pacifica? He might even be a stealth LaRouchie. They've done this in certain areas to take over democratic county comiittees, why not Pacifica with its valuable FM frequencies
2. I did a google search fo Ambrose Laine and i found this interveiw he did with the absolutely bonkers Lyndon LaRouche. No Lane was treating LaRuche like he had good ideas that were all consistent with each other, rather than the kooky near fsscist that he is. All the questions he asked were done from an admiring perspective. He didn;t ask a single critical question. Is this the man we want running Pacifica? He might even be a stealth LaRouchie. They've done this in certain areas to take over democratic county comiittees, why not Pacifica with its valuable FM frequencies
"The responsibility of a board member is to enhance the value of the corporation for which they serve."
Wow, that's not something I would expect anyone involved with Pacifica to say! Somebody needs to rent a copy of "The Corporation." Peaceniks that resist more fundamental critics of capitalism and corporations can be so tiresome.
Better yet, they need to understand that there are fundamental differences between serving on a corporate board and a foundation board. Even if a corporate boardmember's first responsibility is increasing shareholder value, a foundation board member's responsibilities are much different.
Wow, that's not something I would expect anyone involved with Pacifica to say! Somebody needs to rent a copy of "The Corporation." Peaceniks that resist more fundamental critics of capitalism and corporations can be so tiresome.
Better yet, they need to understand that there are fundamental differences between serving on a corporate board and a foundation board. Even if a corporate boardmember's first responsibility is increasing shareholder value, a foundation board member's responsibilities are much different.
Being a listener myself, I am also very concerned with the difficulty of getting information about what's going on at KPFA/Pacifica. I've come up with a few methods of doing this for myself, but what I really want is some other ideas of what listeners want, some suggestions. A brainstorm session !
Some things I've worked on so far --
*Asking LSB (Listener Station Board) members to post the minutes of their meetings in a more timely fashion, ie before they are officially approved,
which takes several months! They would be posted as "draft minutes".
*Asking them to video or audiotape meetings & stream/archive them.
*Asking for a KPFA printed program folio again, which listeners used to write in to.
The General Manager said he was working on having an online one.
*Asking that the monthly LSB report on the station (last Monday of month, 1-2:00 pm) have presentations & debates about controversial governance issues.
Do you know you can attend LSB meetings & make "public comments?
And send emails at http://www.kpfa.org/lsb which reach all the reps & the manager too? Call in during the 2nd half of the LSB program above?
I am not saying give up -- quite the opposite! Democracy is a constant struggle, & there are patterns of illegitimate power which always assert themselves plus in this case powerful forces which do not want a free WBAI/Pacifica! But don't give up & stay home & watch spy/adventure movies! This is struggle, & as well as being challenging & exciting, it is necessary!
So I guess I'm advocating a few things here -
1 - Can you think of how listeners could be informed better - write here to let me know, I'll know better what to advocate, &
2 - You can advocate it to the LSB as I mentioned above.
You can ask them for answers to your specific questions.
3 - You can keep trying to inform yourself & look for ways to give input & be active about KPFA governance.
The LSB was going to have another Town Hall Meeting, this time about violence at KPFA. Right now though they are bogged down with dealing with one of these (supposed) matters un a confidential personnel format.
Also check the http://www.PeoplesRadio.net site for public meetings.
As for the question "Who elected these folks?", that's a deep question, but a simple answer is You All are going to do the electing, & you should be informed about the issues & who has been voting/advocating what, so you can inform yourselves & YOUR ASSOCIATES about who to vote for !
Otherwise, people end up voting ignorantly or trying to elect some from each side, which in my opinion is one way we got into these situations around the network. The undemocratic forces don't cut you that slack!
Be informed, inform others, be strong!
Some things I've worked on so far --
*Asking LSB (Listener Station Board) members to post the minutes of their meetings in a more timely fashion, ie before they are officially approved,
which takes several months! They would be posted as "draft minutes".
*Asking them to video or audiotape meetings & stream/archive them.
*Asking for a KPFA printed program folio again, which listeners used to write in to.
The General Manager said he was working on having an online one.
*Asking that the monthly LSB report on the station (last Monday of month, 1-2:00 pm) have presentations & debates about controversial governance issues.
Do you know you can attend LSB meetings & make "public comments?
And send emails at http://www.kpfa.org/lsb which reach all the reps & the manager too? Call in during the 2nd half of the LSB program above?
I am not saying give up -- quite the opposite! Democracy is a constant struggle, & there are patterns of illegitimate power which always assert themselves plus in this case powerful forces which do not want a free WBAI/Pacifica! But don't give up & stay home & watch spy/adventure movies! This is struggle, & as well as being challenging & exciting, it is necessary!
So I guess I'm advocating a few things here -
1 - Can you think of how listeners could be informed better - write here to let me know, I'll know better what to advocate, &
2 - You can advocate it to the LSB as I mentioned above.
You can ask them for answers to your specific questions.
3 - You can keep trying to inform yourself & look for ways to give input & be active about KPFA governance.
The LSB was going to have another Town Hall Meeting, this time about violence at KPFA. Right now though they are bogged down with dealing with one of these (supposed) matters un a confidential personnel format.
Also check the http://www.PeoplesRadio.net site for public meetings.
As for the question "Who elected these folks?", that's a deep question, but a simple answer is You All are going to do the electing, & you should be informed about the issues & who has been voting/advocating what, so you can inform yourselves & YOUR ASSOCIATES about who to vote for !
Otherwise, people end up voting ignorantly or trying to elect some from each side, which in my opinion is one way we got into these situations around the network. The undemocratic forces don't cut you that slack!
Be informed, inform others, be strong!
The Folio was good, but not necessary now. We get the program on the Internet and if we are subscribers, when we send in at least $25. What we need is a 1 page monthly newsletter mailed to all subscribers describing what has taken place at the local and national board meetings, in detail. This is a very standard procedure for any organization. The first one should also list the terms of the Settlement Agreement so we know who is in charge of the managers. This must have been covered in the Settlement Agreement. The problems described in this posting are either a breach of the Settlement Agreement or mismanagement. We also need to know why we have the finance director of a police radio station, KGO, and a LaRouchite involved with KPFA management. This all makes no sense whatsoever. This is not about democracy either; it is about an organization that clearly refuses to function. I have watched this show for the entire existence of KPFA and nothing has changed. So long as it remains a mouthpiece of the Democratic Party, these problems will continue. The main issue that needs to be addressed at these meetings is the pro-capitalist politics of all of the Pacifica stations.
So the Peoples Radio folks are now aligned with ... guess who?
Last month's Corporate Enemy of the People, this month's great Defender of the People's Manager: Marnie Tattersall, who has been very suddenly and very fully embraced by her very recent enemies. How convenient for both parties.
Hypocrites of the worst ilk, all of them. At least they proved what they are really all about: Destroying KPFA. Like peas in a pod.
They don't brook criticism, and Mara sounds like a complete and total sycophant.
Last month's Corporate Enemy of the People, this month's great Defender of the People's Manager: Marnie Tattersall, who has been very suddenly and very fully embraced by her very recent enemies. How convenient for both parties.
Hypocrites of the worst ilk, all of them. At least they proved what they are really all about: Destroying KPFA. Like peas in a pod.
They don't brook criticism, and Mara sounds like a complete and total sycophant.
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