Tag Archives: leslie radford

Pacifica in Exile Newsletters

The Empire Strikes Back Delayed

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Berkeley – Pacifica’s ticking bomb, the 15-year incredibly expensive WBAI transmitter lease at the Empire State Building, has been the center of attention, since the owners of the iconic NY skyscraper reneged on the supposed deal announced by then-IED Margy Wilkinson in December of 2014 to reduce monthly rent from $50,000/month rate to $12,000/mo and sued Pacifica for the balance of the unpaid rent for the 2014-2016 period. The deal, much to the distress of the then-PNB minority was described as “verbal”, and if it existed at all, has no legal enforceability in court. Due to traditionally bad Pacifica negotiating, this time by then-interim ED Ambrose Lane in 2005, Pacifica is locked into the lease until 2020, which was never economical, goes up by 9% per year and is currently set at 4 times the current market price for radio antenna/transmitter space in Manhattan.  Continue reading The Empire Strikes Back Delayed →

Pacifica in Exile Newsletters

Sunshine In Los Angeles

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Berkeley – A turbulent 21 months at KPFK in Los Angeles has come to an end with a change in the station’s general manager position made on February 27, effective immediately. Leslie Radford was hired in May of 2015 to be KPFK’s general manager by outgoing IED Margy Wilkinson on Wilkinson’s last day. The hire was against the wishes of incoming executive director John Proffitt, who was literally driving from Texas when Wilkinson made the hire. Proffitt had asked Wilkinson to allow him to interview the KPFK candidates, but she did not do so and hired Radford, a former Siegel/Brazon-affiliated national board member, to the KPFK job.  Continue reading Sunshine In Los Angeles →

Pacifica in Exile Newsletters

Notice Was Immaterial

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Berkeley – After throwing out two consecutive elections by WBAI’s delegates to fill 3 WBAI vacancies on the national board, and rigging the 2017 affiliates director election by not allowing any independent WBAI directors to vote, PNB treasurer and board majority member Michael Novick admitted that “in retrospect”, the board majority was wrong and the “flawed notice” was immaterial. In correspondence with a Pacifica employee, Novick said:

“I abstained on the vote not to seat the people elected at the LSB meeting in December. In retrospect I think the flawed notice was immaterial, as it had no impact on the outcome of the vote. Since I abstained, however, I am not in a position to move for reconsideration” Continue reading Notice Was Immaterial →

Audio

Radford on SAG-AFTRA: It’s All John Proffitt’s Fault

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In this clip from the September 18th KPFK local station board meeting, GM Radford, whose salary cuts, layoffs and denial of severance pay actions in September and October of 2015 resulted in a $200,000 plus arbitration loss for violating the station’s SAG-AFTRA union contract, blithely proclaims her actions are not her fault at all and decides Pacifica should pay for her six-figure labor violations settlement. Continue reading Radford on SAG-AFTRA: It’s All John Proffitt’s Fault →

Pacifica in Exile Newsletters

The One-Page Financial Recovery Plan

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Berkeley – Ballots mailed for Pacifica’s 2016 board elections from the East Coast on August 15th. Pacifica in Exile’s candidate endorsements for all stations can be found here. You will find online voting instructions inside your printed ballot envelope. The voting period ends on September 30 at 11:59pm in your own time zone. If you donated, but don’t receive a ballot or for any ballot-related question at any station, you can contact King Reilly, a KPFK member who has graciously agreed to assist folks, at kingreilly@roadrunner.com. Continue reading The One-Page Financial Recovery Plan →

Pacifica in Exile Newsletters

Mass Layoffs Averted; Now What?

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Berkeley – Ballots mailed for Pacifica’s 2016 board elections from the East Coast on August 15th. Pacifica in Exile’s candidate endorsements for all stations can be found here. You will find online voting instructions inside your printed ballot envelope. The voting period ends on September 30 at 11:59pm in your own time zone. If you donated, but don’t receive a ballot or for any ballot-related question at any station, you can contact King Reilly, a KPFK member who has graciously agreed to assist folks, at kingreilly@roadrunner.com.

For more on our endorsed slates, see the Committee to Strengthen KPFK, Move KPFT Forward, United for Community Radio (KPFA), and WBAI Indy Caucus websites. Continue reading Mass Layoffs Averted; Now What? →

Pacifica in Exile Newsletters

Minority of Zero?

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Berkeley-The Pacifica national board will be meeting this evening at 5:30pm Pacific in the middle of a financial crisis getting worse every day. Their top two priorities per the meeting agenda: delegate elections (i.e. their own seats) and witch hunt punishments for the board minority and the organization’s chief financial officer for holding an emergency meeting on finances on June 26th. Yep, those are the top two items on the agenda, with the witch hunt also scheduled to continue in the executive session behind closed doors.

Continue reading Minority of Zero? →

Pacifica in Exile Newsletters

Crackdown During Breakdown

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Berkeley-The emergency PNB meeting on finances with the CFO went off as planned on June 26th, despite attempts to block it. You can listen to the full 90 minute audio here. CFO Sam Agarwal’s written report prepared for the meeting can be read here. A shorter (28 mins) audio segment with selections from the meeting can be heard here. Continue reading Crackdown During Breakdown →