LA Activists Hear Pacifica Voices in Protest while KPFK Signal is Down

In a demonstration co-sponsored by the Pacifica Campaign and the Pacifica Accountability Committee, local activists

protested the current administration of Pacifica and KPFK on the sidewalk and listened to speakers from Washington DC, New York, Berkeley, and Los Angeles. Houston was, regrettably not represented.

Featured speakers included Amy Goodman, Verna Avery Brown, Aaron Glanz,Lyn Gerry, and David Adelson. Goodman, Brown, and Gerry spoke via ampliphied cell phone. Adelson, KPFK LAB Chair and LAB plaintiff gave an update on the negotiations with the PNB.

Ursula Ruedenberg spoke on behalf of the Pacifica

Campaign and Ed Pearl represented the Free Pacifica Neighborhood Network on behalf of Los Angeles listeners. Other speakers included local activists Lloyd Karsch, Tom Camarella, and Frank Dorrell, producer of an anti-war video which he recently withheld as a premium for KPFK in support of the boycott and the Pacifica Campaign. Kathy Arnold, an

activist from San Pedro provided striking signs in the shape of clothing, labeled "dirty laundry" to call attention to the gag rule, purged programs, illegal bylaw changes, and other abuses of current management.

During the protest, KPFK was off the air. The signal was down for approximately 45 minutes. On Friday the 2nd, the

signal was also down for approximately 90 minutes during Marc Cooper's regular drive time-slot. On Friday evening, station Manager Mark announced on the air that a problem

with the transmitter was responsible for the outage and that a back-up system was not yet in place. He added that the back-up system would be installed within a couple of weeks.