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Last revised: January 24, 1997

. . .On the Need to Find Common Ground

by Mary Moore
November 17, 1995

It's painful!! Trying to find common ground between warring factions (even when they're on the the "same side") is all too common these days among progressives. Divide and conquer is an age old strategy used by the ruling class and unfortunately we all too frequently assist them by creating our own divisions without their help. The current situation at KPFA is a classic example.

I've spent the last six months mired in the muck of it all and the last two issues of the Sonoma County Free Press have carried updates and opinions from both sides. I've had a real problem putting together this current issue because there is enough material out there to write several books. The E-mail debate just by itself is enormous (and there actually are plans to put it out in journal form) to say nothing of the behind the scenes mail, press releases, phone calls and meetings. I don't want to take up space with old information so if you are new to this mess, please send for back copies to get caught up.

Here's what I see at this moment--10:30 A.M. Friday, Nov. 17, 1995. I see a large, actually exceptionally large and diverse group (TAKE BACK KPFA claims 800) of people genuinely concerned about what they see as a betrayal by the management of the station. These listener/supporters experienced an abrupt--some would say rude--purge of long time programmers. Not all 800 are upset in the same degree or even about the same things but there does seem to be consensus that management is cold, aloof and not interested in communicating. Send in your money but don't voice your opinion.

Management sees itself as doing a tough but needed job to bring the station into the '90's with a more solid and predictable format that will reach out and bring in new people--especially people of color. They also feel "under seige" with the outburst of criticism they have received for this move. Perhaps they even anticipated this backlash which would account for a lowered goal (which was met) in the October marathon. One of the programmers has done an excellent analysis of this marathon for anyone interested.

I've had an opportunity to talk a little bit with Ginny Z [Berson] about all this and I do believe that she feels she is doing the right thing. She feels frustrated, targeted and as a result defensive and understandably outraged about receiving death threats and anonymous calls. I want her to know that I appreciate her giving me this time but I have some serious and very basic disagreements with her conclusions. The main one is that she is painting everyone in the loyal opposition (TAKE BACK KPFA) with the same brush, assuming that we are out to do KPFA in. That simply is not true. In any institution or movement there has to be room to air serious disagreements without being "written off". This is not just any station that we're talking about here. To serious activists, this is our voice--our way of getting out information as well as talking to each other. When someone starts tinkering with that we will react, as well we should, especially when we are 80% of the financial base.

The people in TAKE BACK are not people with no lives who are simply upset over losing their favorite programmers. They are concerned about the direction they see the station going. Whether those concerns are justified or just paranoia remains to be seen, but writing off a whole group because of the actions of a few is a mistake. I will take Ginny and Marci at their word about the death threats but that was no reason to "presume" that they came from people in TAKE BACK. And there was absolutely no reason except mean spiritedness for Pat Scott to send out a press release calling sincere people "bullies" and comparing them to the agent provocateurs of the '60's. Pat Scott needs a long R & R and a history lesson.

Management also claims that all the current staff and programmers are united and "on board" regarding the new format. That is not true, as anyone with access to E-mail can tell you. And why should it be? Dissension in the ranks is not in itself unhealthy. But when it's kept closeted it can sure get that way. I personally wish that those on staff with reservations would voice them more openly but I do understand why they don't. The prevailing sentiment seems to be, "Let's give it a chance".

I've also had an opportunity to talk with many people active in the TAKE BACK group and it's been my pleasure to meet some very sincere and concerned folks. Are there people in there with their own agendas? Probably, but the majority of people are afraid they are losing their information lifeline and they want more communication and they want to be heard.

If there is one thing I would like to say to this group it is "let the present 'leadership' take a back seat for awhile and let some fresh 'leadership' emerge. I think that Jeffrey and Mariah have put in hours and hours of hard work and should be thanked and respected for that but they are red flags to KPFA management and its holding up the "peace process". Why can't Hulda, Les, Marianne and others emerge as spokespeople?? Why can't we have some more much needed dialogue where both sides show some good faith instead of hunkering down in their polarized positions? What's wrong with bringing in professional and needed facilitation?

This column will no doubt win me few friends from either side, but that's the way I see it. I do not want to see KPFA off the air or in any way diminished. I also don't want to support a station or network (Pat Scott is now Executive Director of Pacifica) that is arrogant and unresponsive to those who keep it going. It is the activist community that stands to lose the most if the TAKE BACK group is correct in its perceptions about the station's new format. And lastly, management needs to keep in mind that we are idealists, and many of us believe that how you execute change is every bit as important as the change itself.