WBAI-FM in Crisis
By Vajra Kilgour

The corporate takeover of the Pacifica Foundation through a self-selecting governing board came home in New York City over the Christmas weekend, when the locks were changed at WBAI-FM, a new station manager was installed, and three longtime staffers were fired. Shortly afterward, half a dozen volunteer workers at the station were banned from the premises, and a "gag rule" was put into effect, banning on-air discussion of the crisis at the station and any announcements about actions to take it back.

"Housing Notebook," Met Council’s own radio show, has been a staple on WBAI for decades; Scott Sommer, who is chairman of the board of Met Council, has been the show’s host for 16 years. He has signed on to producers’ statements protesting the gag rule and calling for a return to the station’s mission.

"People need to really be concerned regarding the change in the Pacifica board when there are people from union-busting law firms, the National Association of Home Builders, and people who are at best Clinton Democrats on it," Sommer noted recently. "The listeners have to be concerned that the information that Pacifica has been able to distribute for fifty years will be squelched."

New Pacifica board member John Murdock--who has drafted new bylaws that could spell the end of Pacifica’s historic mission--comes from the law firm Epstein Becker & Green, which advises employers on how to maintain "union-free" workplaces. Pacifica vice chair Ken Ford is program director at the NAHB. The NAHB’s New York City affiliate is the Associated Builders and Owners of Greater New York, which works closely with the Real Estate Board of New York and the Rent Stabilization Association, a landlord group. Board members of the ABO include Donald Trump, Peter Kalikow, Howard Milstein, and Donald Zucker.

"Tenants should not relax their vigilance in protecting WBAI and Housing Notebook when the Pacifica board is connected to the likes of these people," Sommer said.

Juan Gonzalez, former co-host of the popular Pacifica national show "Democracy Now," has launched a campaign to unseat the current board. and is calling for a boycott of all Pacifica fundraising until the campaign succeeds.

The Pacifica Campaign can be reached at (212) 871-9322. A local organization, Concerned Friends of WBAI, has two hotlines: (718) 707-7189 and (800) 825-0055. An e-mail alert subscription address is at http://savewbai.tao.ca