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Pacifica Radio Finishes Historic Poll
February 25, 2003
Pacifica Radio Release
Contact: pacifica@pacifica.org
BERKELEY (Feb. 25) – A high voter turn-out marked balloting
in the transition to the country's first democratically-run
national media organization, Pacifica Radio officials announced
today.
The five-station Pacifica Radio network last month mailed
ballots to some 100,000 active members nationwide who cast
votes for 317 candidates running for 120 local board seats.
Listeners and staff returned more than 16,000 ballots in
electing the five 24-member Local Station Boards (LSB) representing
KPFA 94.1 FM in Berkeley, KPFK 90.7 FM in Los Angeles, KPFT
90.1 FM in Houston, WBAI 99.5 FM in New York City, and WPFW
89.3 FM in Washington, DC.
The local boards have in turn elected representatives to
a 22-member Pacifica National Board that is due to be seated
in mid-March at a meeting in Berkeley, California, home of
the Pacifica Foundation.
Detailed official results can be found at: pacifica.org/elections.
"The courage of the Pacifica leadership in taking this
bold step, coupled with the commitment of listener members
nationwide, bodes well for the future," said Pacifica
Radio Executive Director Dan Coughlin. "The challenge
ahead is to turn this historic milestone for the media and
democracy movement into practical action.”
Leslie Cagan, the chair of the outgoing interim Pacifica
National Board, praised the network’s election workers
and said that the strong turn-out for a non-profit organization
reflected renewed confidence in Pacifica and its peace and
justice mission. She noted that the elections meant that the
Pacifica Foundation successfully executed the terms of a court
approved settlement agreement in Dec. 2001.
"In an age in which media giants are becoming ever bigger
and less responsive to local needs, Pacifica is renewing its
commitment to the communities we serve," Cagan said.
"The implementation of our new bylaws opens the door
for a reinvigorated network.”
The election caps a stunning 2-year turnaround at the nation's
first and oldest listener-sponsored broadcaster, which was
founded in 1949 by World War II conscientious objectors.
In January 2002, a new Board and executive leadership took
over following a series of bitter internal conflicts and a
legal settlement that mandated revisions of the by-laws and
empowerment of local boards with listener-member elections.
But the network was functionally insolvent, wracked by lawsuits,
and facing bankruptcy. The network posted a FY01 deficit of
$4.4 million.
Over the last two years, network staff and listeners turned
the deficit into a surplus of $1.8 million in FY03, rewrote
the Pacifica Radio bylaws in a community-driven process, rebuilt
the Pacifica's national affiliates network, saved and upgraded
a powerful transmitter in Southern California, and moved Pacifica's
national office from Washington, DC, back to its original
home in Berkeley, CA.
Pacifica officials also settled more than dozen separate
pieces of litigation.
Founded in 1949, Pacifica Radio is the nation’s first
listener-supported, community-based radio network.
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