WBAI is fundraising, and I’m doing my major stint from 4-6 tomorrow (Thursday). If you like the show, and you’ve got some spare change, please make a pledge during my time slot.
I’ve got some good news about WBAI, for a change. The station was been under a mix of toxic and ineffectual leadership since the death of Samori Marksman in 1999. Morale sank, listenership dwindled, the airwaves were filled with drivel, and fundraising sagged badly. The station fell months behind on studio and transmitter rent. It was years behind on its payments to Pacifica, the network that owns the license, and threatened to drag the whole five-station network down.
Finally, Pacifica’s new executive director, Grace Aaron, decided it was time to intervene. She fired the station manager, Tony Riddle, a likable fellow who nonetheless did next to nothing, and suspended and banned from the air the dreadful program director, Bernard White. White’s politics are a crude sort of black nationalism, and he’s been surrounded by a gang of acolytes calling itself the Justice and Unity Coalition (JUC), who’ve dismissed any criticism of White’s disastrous reign as racist. (Among its many offenses, the JUC is in tight with the Workers World Party.) White and some of his JUC cronies denounced their critics as “pieces of fecal matter” and “CIA agents” on the air. Aaron decided there’d been enough of this, and has essentially taken control of the station. The JUC hacks are on the run, and it’s a beautiful sight.
Enough internal politics. The bottom line is that this is the most hopeful thing that’s happened at WBAI in at least a decade and there’s a real chance of turning the thing around. Which is why I feel much more enthusiastic about fundraising tomorrow, and why I can urge everyone reading this to contribute generously. You can pledge online—and be sure to mention “Behind the News” as your favorite show—but it’d be best if you called in a pledge during my time slot, between 4 and 6 PM Thursday, NYC time, and tell them how much you’d like to hear more. Assuming you would, of course. The pledge line is 212-209-2950.
Doug,
Is the itunes version of your show up to date? My latest one is April 23rd.
By: Ben on May 13, 2009
at 12:34 pm
That’s the most recent one. I was off last week for fundraising. There won’t be a show this week either. I’ll be back next week with a KPFA-only show.
By: dhenwood on May 13, 2009
at 12:36 pm
Amy Goodman should run BAI. Let her and her colleagues program the entire station. She is the reason I listen!
By: jack medoff on May 15, 2009
at 8:57 am
Why is WBAI’s office on Wall Street? That’s some pretty expensive irony.
By: Tony Van Houten on May 18, 2009
at 4:31 pm
How does the Itune thingy work. I did a search and found a nice photo of Doug in a field, with the option to subscribe for free. Does it update with new episodes?
By: Pollyannish Pedro on May 19, 2009
at 4:04 pm
Thanks Doug.
Yes, Pedro, it updates autmotically.
By: Ben on May 19, 2009
at 9:40 pm
White and his JUC are just plain nuts: I e-mailed Esther Armah to express my ourtage that she remained silent while Errol Maitland called Mitch Cohen a CIA agent, and she replied: “Sorry, I don’t know who Mitch Cohen is..” –Huh?
By: David Blanchard on June 4, 2009
at 7:01 pm
Doug I just read your comments about white and the JUC and I loved it thank you.
By: Miguel on July 22, 2009
at 7:54 pm