Notice to All:
By mutual consent, Janet Kobren is no longer affiliated with United for Community Radio.
Tag Archives: Janet Kobren
Despite Declining KPFA Membership, UCR Stays Strong and Steady
United for Community Radio and all the candidates say “THANK YOU” to all our supporters! UCR candidates Scott Olsen and Sharon Adams were elected to the KPFA Local Station Board.
Sharon Adams
Scott Olsen
T.M. Scruggs was the first runner-up and will replace Andrea Pritchett at the first meeting of the new KPFA Local Station Board, scheduled for January 23, at 11 a.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. This means that UCR will have 4 new representatives on the LSB.
United for Community Radio candidates won 3 seats, and so-called “Save KPFA” candidates won 6. Although SK candidates won more seats, we at UCR believe that the election results show that UCR is moving in the right direction. And we believe that UCR can obtain a majority of the LSB seats in the next election, currently scheduled for later in 2016.
UCR’s message is resonating with the KPFA members.
UCR maintained its support, despite a large decrease in voter turnout and a decrease in overall KPFA membership. This is good news for UCR, as it means we have a chance to WIN the next election.
The number of listener-members of KPFA has been decreasing over the last 10 years:
YEAR—–Listener-Members
2005 —– 24,000
2006 —– 22,000
2010 —– 20,000
2012 —– 18,000
2015 —– 16,0000
2006 —– 22,000
2010 —– 20,000
2012 —– 18,000
2015 —– 16,0000
Likewise, the number of voters has been decreasing, although not as much as the decrease in members; reflecting the fact that the people who continue to contribute to KPFA are massively committed to the well-being of the station.
Despite the decline in members and in voters, UCR has maintained a steady base of approximately 1000 votes. This means that support for UCR is growing within the KPFA community! This is great news for UCR and means that we are on the right track. In contrast, SK has been losing voters as the membership has declined.
| Election Year | Total Voters | SK Votes | UCR Votes |
| 2010 | 3,457 | ~ 2,400 | ~ 1,000 |
| 2012 | 3,257 | ~ 2,200 | ~ 1,000 |
| 2015 | 2,300 | ~ 1,300 | ~ 1,000 |
For more details click here.
Notice: Some may recall that Janet Kobren ran on the UCR slate. By mutual consent, Janet Kobren is no longer affiliated with United for Community Radio.
UCR Candidates In The News
Jeremy Miller spoke against Urban Shield at the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, and is also one of the hosts of Heterotopia music program on Mutiny Radio, located at 87.9 FM in San Francisco.
Sharon Adams at Berkeley City Council
Sharon Adams spoke against Urban Shield at the Mt. Diablo Peace & Justice Center, and spoke at the Berkeley City Council in support of Berkeley’s status as a Sanctuary City, and in opposition to proposed federal legislation attacking Sanctuary Cities across the United States.
Tom Vohrees is active in a community radio start up coalition, Radio for People (R4P). Tom has been seen putting up radio transmitters for low-power radio stations all over the West, from Moscow Idaho, to helping get KFFR on air in Colorado.
Don Macleay
Don Macleay is writing a memoir of his work in Nicauagua during the 80s, which is taking some time away from writing on his blog. He continues his work with as a Green Party activist, and his decades-long commitment to supporting and volunteering in the local community. He recently volunteered at the East Bay Innovation Academy on the Thurgood Marshall campus in Oakland, giving a class in bike maintenance.
Mario Fernandez is active in many campaigns, currently phone banking with the San Mateo Labor Council, and active in the Bernie Sanders campaign. He is also involved in Occupy Oakland and BlackLivesMatters movements.
Virginia Browning is currently serving on the KPFA Local Station Board and on several national committees of the Pacifica Foundation. To learn more about Virginia’s life-long love of radio, click here.
Janet Kobren, one of the founding members of the Northern California 9-11 Truth Alliance, plugged the importance of KPFA, her UCR LSB candidacy (and the UCR 9) when she introduced one of the videos during the 9-hour 9-11 Truth Film Festival held on September 10 at the Grand Lake Theater in Oakland. Janet Kobren is currently serving on the KPFA Local Station Board, and also on the Pacifica National Board, representing UCR interests as an officer on the Pacifica Foundation.
Scott Olsen continues his work with Iraq Veterans Against the War, Iraq Veterans Against the War, and tweets about militarization of the police and in support of strong communities.
T.M Scruggs is an anthromusicologist and musician. His primary research focus is on the use of music to construct social identity in the Americas, with a geographical specialty in Latin America and the Caribbean. He collaborated with Project Censored to share some of the best-known labor and revolutionary ballads on May Day 2015.
Marilla Arguelles recently attended a Single-Payer Health Care conference.
“Meet Candidates” Garden Party
Please join us for our
UNITED FOR COMMUNITY RADIO
“MEET CANDIDATES”
GARDEN PARTY FUNDRAISER
SUNDAY, AUGUST 9th, 3 pm – 7 pm
GRASSROOTS HOUSE,
2022 BLAKE ST., BERKELEY
RESCUE KPFA!
LEARN ABOUT
our LOCAL STATION
BOARD CAMPAIGN
AND HOW WE CAN HELP
LIBERATE MEDIA TOGETHER
Donation: $4 – $400 or more and everyone is welcome to bring food, beverages and music to share
UNITED FOR COMMUNITY RADIO CANDIDATES
for the 2015 KPFA LSB ELECTION
From: Flickr – nekonomania (6)
· Don Macleay – 5 years working for the Sandinistas, 19-year school volunteer, Green Party activist, former union organizer and shop steward Oakland
· (G.) Mario Fernandez – recent SF State political psychology graduate, former Napa Community College Student Body President, former Occupy Oakland volunteer
· Janet Kobren – current LSB member, Pacifica National Board Director, PNB Secretary (Pacifica Foundation officer), 2010 Gaza Freedom Flotilla survivor
· Jeremy Miller – Idriss Stelley Foundation program director, San Francisco No-Taser Task Force member, host of Heterotopia on Mutiny Radio, independent journalist with S.F. Bayview newspaper
· Marilla Arguelles – former President of home care workers’ chapter, SEIU, Local 616, editor of “Extracts from Pelican Bay”, former KPFA Labor Collective member
· Scott Olsen – Board member, Iraq Veterans Against the War, survivor of police raid on Occupy
· Sharon Adams – attorney; immediate past vice-president of the National Lawyers Guild, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter; was instrumental in getting Berkeley to refuse to hold people in Berkeley jails for civil ICE detentions.
T.M. Scruggs
· T. M. Scruggs – Executive Producer at TheRealNews.com; ethnomusicologist; Professor Emeritus, University of Iowa; volunteer for community radio stations in U.S., Nicaragua and Venezuela
· Virginia Browning – current LSB member, health care researcher, down-winder, and longtime KPFA activist
· Anthony Fest (Staff) – Producer and host, KPFA’s “Weekend News.” Producer of “Project Censored Show,” “Afternoons with Andres Soto,” and “Poor News Network.”
United For Community Radio also supports:
· Richard Hart – former natural foods store owner, Berkeley progressive activist, longtime WBAI member
· Tom Voorhees – early-on KPFA volunteer transmitter engineer; 2014 volunteer of the year, National Federation of Community Broadcasters
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