>From: "Carol Spooner" <wildrose at pon.net>
>Subject: Executive Director's Report to Interim Pacifica Board
>Date: Tue, 12 Mar 2002 23:35:52 -0800
>
>[In case you were not able to listen on-line to Dan Coughlin's report to the
>Pacifica Board Friday
>evening, here it is. -- Carol Spooner, Interim Board Secretary]
>
>Pacifica Radio Acting Executive Director Report to the
>Pacifica National Board
>March 8, 2002
>
>The priorities of the Pacifica national office - in addition to the
>day-to-day management of network operations -- have been to:
>
>1) Get a clear handle on the network's financial situation and to stabilize
>economically.
>2) Begin the healing and rebuilding process in each of the five signal areas
>as mandated by the December legal settlement and recent board resolutions.
>This includes the urgent need for reconciliation between Local Advisory
>Board's and local stations in the run-up to LAB elections and by-law
>changes.
>
>The Pacifica Radio network is in far worse financial shape than any of us
>have imagined. Let me be very clear: Pacifica has been - and remains - on
>the brink of financial collapse. Every day at the national office, and at
>our five stations, staff are dealing with vendors and creditors banging on
>our doors. We are living hand to mouth, figuring out how to meet payroll and
>keep the network running for another day. Whether it is a phone bill or a
>transmitter problem or an angry law firm, we have been thrown into crisis
>management and will remain so for some time to come.
>
>As you all know, the new board and administration inherited a network that
>faced a $1.5 million budget gap for this calendar year and a $5 million
>working capital deficit.
>
>In addition, Pacifica's national offices, and its professional relations,
>were in chaos. Our institutional capacity to handle day-to-day operations
>let alone a full blown crisis were - and are - extremely limited. While an
>interim comptroller was hired, and an independent review of the books was
>conducted, there are no formal accounting procedures and policies in place,
>and basic systems - like our accounting software -- are not functioning
>properly. To be sure, strengthening Pacifica's financial spine is one of our
>top priorities over the coming months.
>
>Despite these difficulties, we are moving aggressively to tackle the
>problems and we've adopted a three-pronged strategy to address what I am
>calling "Pacifica's Special Period:"
>
>1) Negotiating Existing Debt: Based on the board decision made on the Feb.
>15th conference call, we have hired a law firm to bring order and
>professionalism to the largest legal and professional claims now
>outstanding. These total about $2 million from some eight professional
>service firms. (Deputy ED Verna Avery-Brown report.)
>
>2) Cutting Costs: We have taken aggressive steps to balance our budget for
>this calendar year. We closed down the network news operations on Feb. 15
>and reorganized the Ku satellite system. (Calendar year 2002 savings from
>cuts is estimated at $900,000). We have also cut back sharply on salaries
>for national management and general managers. In fact, salary cuts for top
>managers have ranged from 32 percent to ten and five percent. Overall, the
>focus of our cuts have been at the national level. Our local stations are
>the heart of the network and we will do all we can to preserve them.
>
>3) Raise revenue: I am happy to announce that in the wake of December's
>legal settlement, and the dropping of the listener boycott by community
>groups across the country, Pacifica Radio posted its highest ever winter
>fundraising drive in history, generating nearly $3 million in on air pledges
>at four stations. Listeners at WBAI in the New York tri-state area led the
>surge, doubling the amount given during last year's winter drive. Both KPFA
>and KPFK hit a historic high fundraising marks. And during its programming
>time slot, Democracy Now! raised an incredible $630,000.
>
>All five stations participated in a historic one day nationwide solidarity
>drive to help repair KPFK's transmitter, which is presently at reduced
>power. That raised $180,000 in on-air pledges and generated a day of
>riveting national programming. The response was so positive that we will be
>doing some more programming of this kind in the near future.
>
>In the meantime, we will be launching a comprehensive fundraising campaign
>that will include direct mail drops, the targeting of high donors, national
>on-air fundraising, and special events. We are also looking at ways we can
>leverage Pacifica's real estate assets.
>
>But the reality is that even with this record fund drive, Pacifica must
>still raise $1.5 million between now and May 15th just to cover operational
>costs and salaries across the network. And between May 15th and October
>15th, we will have to raise another $2 million in addition to our normal
>on-air drives.
>
>So how do we Save Pacifica?
>
>Everybody in the Pacifica community - on their own initiative -- must become
>a fundraiser - every LAB member, every National Board member, every Pacifica
>worker and listener. Today, this task must be the No. 1 priority of all of
>us associated with the network. Save Pacifica Committees - or Save our
>Station committees - can be created throughout the country and every
>listener can be urged to become an organizer and recruit five or ten new
>members. We need to organize in the streets, at community meetings, in
>churches, in trade unions. We can and must organize huge fundraising events
>in New York, California, Texas, and Washington, DC, and bring in name
>musicians and speakers. The same mass movement that has brought the promise
>of democracy to the network can save the network by independently raising
>hundreds of thousands of dollars in a few short months.
>
>This strategy relies on our greatest strength -- the thousands of loyal
>Pacifica listeners and the spirit of solidarity and volunteerism that has
>shaped this network for more than 50-years. It mobilizes people into action,
>it forces us to organize and expand the base of our membership, and it
>simultaneously paves the way for a greater voter base in the democratic
>elections of advisory boards that must be accomplished within the next year.
>
>
>
>One important way to mobilize listeners at the level would be through a mass
>education campaign where we explain, in detail, exactly how Pacifica got
>into this mess in the first place. As the independent financial review of
>Pacifica's books revealed, the previous Pacifica administration went on a
>reckless and irresponsible six million dollar spending spree in a 15 month
>period. And not just because of the exorbitant fees paid to and charged by
>legal firms. Senior Pacifica managers treated the network like a trough.
>
>In the first six months of 2001, for instance, one top manager racked up an
>American Express bill of nearly $120,000 on travel expenses alone. And on
>their way out the door, these managers handed out exorbitant golden
>parachute severance packages to themselves and their staff without any
>regard to professional standards.
>
>Upon leaving Pacifica, one former executive charged up huge hotel bills and
>absconded with a rental car, saddling the network with thousands of dollars
>in bills. We had to call the police and report the car stolen to get it
>back. And to this day, some former officials believe the gravy train is
>still flowing and they continue to demand huge sums, like more than
>$100,000, to leave and/or not file lawsuits. In total, some 20 severance
>payments were handed out over the last year at an expense of nearly $500,000
>to the network. We believe these were improper and they have been halted
>pending a review and renegotiation.
>
>These kind of payments are part of the reckless and uncontrolled spending
>that occurred over the last year. One firm, for instance, has billed
>Pacifica more than $500,000 for a few months work. Most alarmingly, I also
>want to report to you and the entire Pacifica community that the former
>administration apparently committed hundreds of thousands of listener
>dollars on an undercover intelligence operation targeting Pacifica staffers
>and listeners. Secret dossiers were apparently created on programmers, like
>Amy Goodman, on board members like Leslie Cagan, and on listener activists.
>Undercover agents were reportedly despatched to spy on Local Advisory Board
>meetings and on community events. Internet newsgroups and web sites were
>closely monitored and liaisons were established with local police forces.
>
>It is imperative that some kind of independent review of the files from the
>last two years be conducted - a kind of Truth Commission, if you will -- to
>ascertain what exactly happened and why. At the very least, there must be
>some review of what appears to be an extensive surveillance operation and
>appropriate steps must be taken to properly handle the information gathered
>from such undercover activities. Our challenge is to figure out how to learn
>from the problems and weaknesses of the past so we can develop new
>safeguarding mechanisms, as well as new governance structures and new
>commitments to mission-driven programming. And also, if we are asking for
>on-going financial support from our listeners, we need to be completely
>transparent with the wider Pacifica community about why.
>
>You will be hearing more about what is happening at Pacifica's five stations
>tomorrow. But one key development we have prioritized at the national level
>has been the reintegration of the Local Advisory Boards at KPFK, KPFT, WBAI,
>and WPFW. This process has raised a series of key questions on by-law
>changes and upcoming LAB elections.
>
>Another key issue that has emerged during this period of healing and
>reconciliation has been programming. How do local Pacifica stations
>articulate Pacifica's mission in their day-to-day programming? What are the
>structures and processes around programming? There is widespread debate -
>often sharp -- on the nature of community radio in the 21st century and
>indeed on the very purpose and direction of Pacifica programming. We welcome
>that debate and now is precisely the time to organize a national discussion
>on the issue.
>
>As a result, Verna and I are setting up a commission to look at Pacifica
>both programming and the programming process, what we are calling a Mission
>Commission. The Commission will be empowered to organize a network-wide
>discussion on structure and programming within the Pacifica community and
>those who are rooted in progressive social movements and in community radio
>nationwide. We believe the ideas generated by this process will help
>encourage, focus, inform and strengthen the general debate on Pacifica's
>future as well as providing concrete programming ideas for the network as we
>move forward in this new democratic era.
>
>Verna and I have asked long-time programmer and former Pacifica Board member
>Robbie Osman to coordinate this effort in an unpaid capacity. We have asked
>him to establish panels of respected progressive organizers and activists to
>report to the LABs, the National Board, the station staff, and the national
>office on these questions facing Pacifica.
>
>We hope that out of this period of crisis and upheaval within Pacifica we
>will be able to salvage a unique opportunity to take a careful look at how
>our institutional culture and our decision-making structure affect how
>successfully our programming serves the network's mission.
>
>In terms of day-to day operations at the network we are all working hard to
>reestablish critical network functions. The KPFK transmitter work on Mt.
>Wilson is a top priority for this administration. Our best estimate - after
>hearing from Southern California Edison and Los Angeles County -- is that
>KPFK will be at low power until mid-May, and even perhaps June. The FCC will
>be asked for a third extension to allow this work to be completed. Since the
>delays were out of our immediate control, it will likely be no problem
>obtaining another extension on our special temporary operating authority. A
>full technical report will be made available to you this weekend.
>
>Another key area of operations that this new administration has moved
>quickly to reestablish are Pacifica's sub-carrier licenses. I regret to
>report that between June and December 2001, no revenue was generated from
>Pacifica's 10 sub-carrier frequencies at our five stations. As far as we can
>tell, contracts were just sitting around the national office unsigned. We
>have already got five leases fully activated, in what is a weak SCA market,
>bringing in some $35,000 a month. Fully leased, we expect a revenue of about
>$900,000 a year.
>
>I'm also pleased to report that Pacifica's affiliate stations are returning,
>largely due to the legal settlement and the return of Democracy Now! A total
>of 51 affiliates still remain with the network and we are very pleased that
>many have been spontaneously sending in checks and renewing their
>affiliation.
>
>As these examples show, Pacifica is coming back. Staff, community, and board
>members are pulling together to bring this network into a new and historic
>period in the US media - the first national broadcast network to be
>democratically run. This is an exciting time and it was best exemplified by
>the Save Our Signal day of solidarity with the Southern California and KPFK
>listener community.
>
>But we cannot make these internal changes without actively engaging in the
>world around us. Today, on International Working Women's Day, 64 people were
>killed in Israel and the Occupied Territories. Not only does this underscore
>the urgent need for this radio network to redouble its commitment to peace
>and social justice programming. But it also reminds us that for Pacifica to
>be able to successfully change internally, we must actively engage with the
>historical events and processes and debates that are shaping the world
>today.
>
>Thank-you.
>Dan Coughlin