Sep 16 2015
KPFK GM Leslie Radford Has Cut Uprising’s Hours
The general manager may be contacted at gm at kpfk dot org
A letter from Uprising host, Sonali Kolhatkar:
Dear fans of Uprising, I have an important announcement to share with you. After weeks of wrangling with KPFK’s new General Manager Leslie Radford, I have been informed definitively that I am being taken off the air 2-3 days a week out of 5 days and replaced with what I am told are “volunteers.”
Here is a timeline so you can understand what has happened:
Aug 17 – Radford told all KPFK staff they would be cut down to 1/2 time within 2 weeks, and that 3 staff were being laid off. She asked for work schedules within 2 days. The lay offs and pay cuts were in violation of our current union contract. An arbitration with the union is on-going.
Aug 19 – I asked our union for advice on how to respond to Radford’s request for a work schedule. This is what I sent Radford based on union advice: “it is my understanding is that the union has not agreed to any reductions. My part time job is 17.5 hours and that’s 2.5 days. Currently I am producing and hosting 5 shows per week. If I get paid half time naturally my abilities will be simply halved.”
Aug 26 – Realizing that my ability to oversee production of a TV show 5 days a week for Free Speech TV (FSTV) would be utterly jeopardized by a half time cut, I attempted to come up with a solution that I hoped would salvage the KPFK-FSTV contract. I asked FSTV if they would be okay with me doing 5 shows a week for 2 months and then being off the air for 2 months. That would buy us some time to either acquire other funding for the coming months, or allow the union to reach a settlement, or simply put off the decision of what to do for the TV show for a little bit. Such a schedule would also make it possible to cover the day-to-day news as a continuous 5-day block is better suited to hard news analysis than a show every other day. It would give the station the same cost savings as having my producer and I work half time for 4 months.
I approached Radford and offered this proposal. Radford said no because she had already made arrangements for other people to host “Uprising.” She accused me of making one proposal and then changing my mind. I reminded her, that we were barely given time to adjust to an extremely dramatic change.
When I asked how she would pull off a TV show with volunteers, which is an extremely complicated and technically challenging task, and that the TV production used unique elements that my team and I slogged over months to perfect, I was told that it was none of my business.
When I brought up that FSTV had a contract with KPFK to deliver 5 shows a week of Uprising, she noted that nowhere in the contract was my name mentioned; it only said that KPFK would deliver a show called Uprising to FSTV 5 days a week. Essentially she was using a loophole in the contract to renege on the deal. It was always FSTV’s understanding that Uprising would be only hosted by me.
Sept 10 – Sixteen days after I proposed my new work schedule, Radford emailed Free Speech TV telling Executive Director Ron Williams that she “would like to continue the contract with Free Speech Television with FSTV’s agreement that we can provide the hosts of our choice while maintaining the quality and format of the show.” FSTV expressed to me that they were not interested in any other hosts but me and they apparently expressed the same to her.
Sept 11 – FSTV sent an email to me and Radford, saying, “We have made the decision on our end to cancel the program for now, effective Monday, September 14, 2015. We share everyone’s disappointment with this outcome.”
A few staff people informed me that they had overheard Radford was upset about me criticizing the staff cuts on the air during the funddrive and that she was extremely angry with me.
Sept 14 – After mulling over the great loss of the FSTV contract over the weekend, which I and many others had worked so hard to acquire, I concluded that now that there was no longer a TV show to produce, at the very least I could keep my radio listeners happy. My fellow hosts Ian Masters and Margaret Prescod planned to continue producing their shows on half time so I could offer to do the same. Radio is significantly easier to produce than television, and if we were efficient, my producer and I calculated that we could produce 5 shows for radio a week while working part time, a combination of live and taped. I informed my supervisor, the Program Director, Alan Minsky about this and he agreed it was a good idea (the Program Director is in charge of programming).
Radford, against Minsky’s advice, decided she did not want to accept this offer. She wrote to me saying, “Alan tells me that you are now willing to volunteer to do your show for the additional 2-3 days/week. Unfortunately, this offer has come too late, as I’ve made commitments to other people to host Uprising on Thursdays and Fridays starting this week.”
I wrote back saying, “I have not volunteered to do my show. I told you I was not going to do that. It was impossible to do five TV shows a week on half time as we were barely managing to do it full time. Then, when the TV show was canceled on Friday because you would not accept my work schedule – which was of course my biggest fear – it enabled the possibility of doing five radio shows on half time. Just as Margaret and Ian are being allowed to do. We can do live shows on the day we are here and tape shows for the days we are not. Radio is simpler than TV. I assumed that you wanted to save the station dollars while preserving the air waves. Was I wrong in making that assumption? Was the pay cut about taking me off the air?”
Sept 15 – Radford responded saying, “You will not be on the air on Thursdays or Fridays during the work reductions. I have no confidence that you will not come back with another work plan, and KPFK needs as much stability as it can get in these trying circumstances. I asked for your work plan, and you told me 2 ½ days/week. You changed that request to 2 months on and 2 months off, but by then plans were underway to operate the business around the reduced work week that you and everyone else opted for. Now you say you can do 5 days/week, but I don’t see how that can happen since you already had a contractor, 2 staff people, and a volunteer beyond your assistant producer to produce for FSTV. The pay cut was NOT about taking anyone off the air. Nor am I responsible for cancelling the FSTV contract.”
I responded saying, “Let me repeat what I said yesterday. I am not doing the TV show anymore. So there is less need for the extra staff I had. This appears punitive to me and retaliation for what you say is me “bashing” you on the air. If you are penalizing me for on-air comments please apply the proper policy. Also I note that you are going against the wishes of the Program Director, who I thought was in charge of programming.”
Conclusion: Radford is refusing to air programs that my producer and I will be creating for our listeners. No other hosts have been targeted in this manner. No other host will be taken off the air, except me.
On Thursday Sept 17 and Friday Sept 18, which are the first two days that I will not be at work due to the pay cut, Radford intends to put as-yet-unnamed volunteer hosts on the air at 8 am.
Listeners can visit www.uprisingwithsonali.com to listen to those shows that we have worked hard to produce and that Radford is choosing to not air. We will continue doing our job in the service of our audience. On days when you tune in between 8-9 am PST and find another program on the air, you can instead find original Uprising programming on our website hosted by me.
Feel free to contact the general manager at gm at kpfk dot org.
39 Responses to “KPFK GM Leslie Radford Has Cut Uprising’s Hours”
Sonali,
I will miss your presence on air. Your program is so excellent.
Mike
Beckville, MN
What the hell is going on?! It’s like Crazyland over at KPFK! Someone at KPFK takes their show national and on TV and is rewarded? NO, punished. Let’s destroy it!
I will write to the board and have already written to the station. What else can I do? I’m ready to ditch the station.
Has Amy Goodman used any of her great power to intervene? What about other Pacifica people? Would mainstream media coverage help any?
Keep up the fight, Sonali. You have done great work that is much appreciated and needed.
This is a nightmare. Who is this Leslie Radford? How did she become the general manager? This is exactly what the ultra conservative right wing nutcases have hoped for and tried to do with the cutting off of funding. I will listen to you on line, Sonali on Thursdays and Fridays as I find your show most enlightening and informative.
During one of the fund drives I became a sustainer with the hopes of helping to save the station but I think the people in charge have no clue what they are doing or worse – do know, and are destroying the station. I’m so sorry to say that I am now withdrawing my sustainer membership. I can’t support this craziness.
You are will survive this and go on to bigger and better and I, like the other listeners dedicated to your shows, will be there to support and learn. In case you haven’t heard it enough, THANK YOU for all that you do.
Patty M.
A similar thing happened 12 years ago and many were let go because their “aired dirty laundry on the air”. We formed the Free Pacifica movement and kicked the GM, Mark Shaub (sp?), and a few other people out. Looks like the beast is rearing its hideous head again. We need to organize and form a movement again. KPFK has been moving to the right and increasingly identifying with the Democratic Party. So there is no room for independent and radical hosts such as Sonali.
BTW, Ian Masters was one of the hosts that was in bed with Mark Shaub at the time. He sold the station down the river and instead of being kicked out, because of his charm, was promoted to 5 hours a week!
We demonstrated outside KPFK for a whole year and organized with the staff who had integrity in order to topple the old regime. Sonali is not the first to go and I believe she will be fired altogether…
Sonali, you are inspiration.
I listen to your program every morning on my drive to work and am a much better/well informed person because of the hard work that you do.
I’m so sorry to hear of the horrible turn of events at KPFK.
I will be boycotting kpfk on thurs/fri morning and will listen to your show online.
Thank you for posting this blog to keep us informed. I have been worried about KPFK since you informed us on air (thank you also for that).
Please know that your work is appreciated and voice has been a deep inspiration in my life.
Peace & <3
How could this type of attack come directly from KPFK, with such a tradition of progress? I just wrote a note to GM, asking her to do what is right. Like a fellow listener remembers, this attack on progress has actually happened at KPFK before. Awful that the station would be persuaded to behave in such a way when attacks from non-progressives are so widespread. We need progressives to support progressives in order to make any change in the world. Isn’t that what KPFK is about? Giving a voice to the voiceless? Sonali did that for the voiceless of the world. I can’t accept that Sonali will be voiceless. Something must be done. I am so disappointed that I am not able watch it on FSTV either. How will I stay truly informed on news around the world? Sonali reported on things that weren’t being reported and gave acknowledgement to people struggling across the Middle East, Africa, and worldwide. I hope something is done to bring Uprising to normal!
When I first heard you talk about this on your show which I hear on KPFA, I donated $60 to your YOU TUBE version and, a few days later, signed on as a subscriber. Now I know why that never happened. You have a sense of compassion, empathy and sadness too in your voice at times about humanity that led me to support you as, ideally, I would rather see the two hour Morning Show back in place on KPFA. I hope you do not have to leave, but even a labor of love needs adequate salary too. I continue to wonder how Pacifica exists with all the infighting, lack of income, and bad management. I thought it would be better after the big fight up here in the late 1990’s, but that has not been true. I keep expecting KPFA to be the only station to survive. You deserve better and I hope it happens to you.
I listen to your show almost every weekday, and I admire your work and your integrity very much. I will continue to listen to your show, and will NOT tune in to KPFK on the days that you are not on, but I WILL listen to your show online. I am shocked and saddened at what is happening to this glorious radio station.. or should I say, once glorious radio station. It has been my university for the past three years since I moved to Los Angeles. Keep up the good fight! You have many supporters behind you.
I am so disappointed with KPFK. It definitely seems like the station is retaliating against Sonali after she rightly placed the blame on them for the cancellation of her tv show. The entire Pacific network needs a major overhaul. I can tell you I did not enjoy the Sonali’s replacement this morning and will continue to listen to uprising on the internet.
What a shame that the new managment is destoying this wonderful station. I started listening during the Iran Contra Hearings and this helped me complete my transition from the right to the left. I never received my pledge drive gifts and will not contribute to KPFK again until trust is restored. What a shame that a successful station was dragged down by totally selfish beings whoever they are.
It looks like the station is censoring Sonali’s program because she aired dirty laundry. On the KPFK archives you can see Tuesday’s and Thursday’s programs, but not Wednesday’s. Of course this could be a coincidence. But this has happened before. They pulled the same stunt in 2003 when they censored Democracy Now because Juan Gonzalez went on the air and quit because of the hijacking that was going on. They also verbally abused Amy Goodman at the station and locked her out of WBAI and canceled Pacifica’s flagship program (DN!). That’s why when the Free Pacifica movement won Amy insisted on having her own independent studios.
BTW, Ian Master was completely OK with how Amy and the rest of the programmers were treated back then. He was on the same side as Nation Institute’s Marc Cooper and station GM Marc Schaub (sp?). Reminds me of the old adage: “the weaver in his own web”!
This is terribly disappointing. It’s this kind of pettiness and mismanagement that is clearly chasing away donations and listeners.
There are only a handful shows worth a listen on KPFK, and yours is one of them. Sonali, you are one of the few people who seem to understand that being “community-run” and “non-profit” is not an excuse to produce shoddy, amateur work. I appreciate the effort that your team puts into production value as well as content.
Shows like yours are the only ones that bring in regular listeners, and I’d also bet that they also bring in the most donations. It’s a shame to think that management is killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.
I hope this doesn’t presage the return of more even more of those terrible new age snake oil fundraisers.
Sonali, you rock. Very sad over the FSTV show. I hope things will turn around. Agree with another post regarding Amy Goodman. Listen to your podcast which is great. Currently listening to segments of the show via Stitcher.
Stay true to yourself and keep doing what you are doing. Good luck to you
Sonali, this fills me with great sadness for you, your staff, and the public. You provide such a necessary service and antidote to corporate media. As a many year listener and supporter of KPFK, I’ve been following the slow, downward spiral that is KPFK for awhile now, and this is the last straw for me. I’ve just cancelled my monthly sustainer donations to KPFK and will be telling them as much on their website as soon as I finish posting here. I am done with KPFK until they get management that respect the workers and volunteers there (how ironic I type this about KPFK!). There are other sources of progressive, non-corporate media out there, just now on my commute to and from work in LA. I’ll listen to your show on the internet and support you directly. Goodbye KPFK, but not Uprising!
Typo in the above comment. I meant to type “just not on my commute”
Why do you refer to the hosts who will replace you for 2 or 3 days a week as “volunteers,” with quotation marks? Are they so-called but not in fact volunteers? Do you believe they are instead paid staff?
The people who are “filling in” for Sonali on Thu and Fri are volunteers. They are scabs! Even on the left you can find self-expediency!
Friends and Comrades,this is very sad,as you know, what imperialism is doing every where in the world ,where Henry Kissinger is called Freedom Fighter,the real freedom fighters like Sonali is taken out by a sneaky coup.I support you,continue fighting.Remember Imperialism is digging its own grave.
Friends and Comrades,this is very sad,as you know, what imperialism is doing every where in the world ,where Henry Kissinger is called Freedom Fighter,the real freedom fighters like Sonali is taken out by a sneaky coup.I support you Sonali ,continue fighting.Remember Imperialism is digging its own grave.
Regards
James
Dear Sonali,
I am greatly saddened that the new general manager of K.P.F.K., who appeared out of nowhere (like so many before her) is obviously a DEEP COVER, CONSERVATIVE/CORPORATIST MOLE. She is now exposed as being in league with the small-in-number but powerful-in-dedication-and-influence, union-busting and anti-people forces at the station. Her very IDEOLOGY, as made crystal clear with her autocratic edict to cut your broadcast back, betrays her obvious and unmistakable intention of weakening it with her irrationally pie-in-the-sky idea of new volunteer programmers to take your show from you. But these people are SCABS (and they know it) and should be SHUNNED by all the other people at the station. SHAME on them. They don’t understand the FIRST THING about progressive ideology. Ms. Radford is punishing you for challenging her power and calling her out for her traitorous acts. She is obviously a petty, vindictive, lying, back-stabbing, anti-union crypto-corporatist, probably in someone’s secret employ to drive the final nails into K.P.F.K.’s coffin. Her lack of vision and sense of fair play is only the beginning of her mischief. Watch how she will further erode the station’s mission, bit by bit, relentlessly, with tactics right out of the conservative/corporate playbook, to complete her secret and sinister task of undermining Pacifica’s core values as set forth in its mission statement.
I am sick and tired of all the internecine warfare at the station, and have come to the even sadder conclusion that progressives don’t DESERVE to win our battles when getting us to agree on even the smallest things is like herding cats. And all these infinite, unending battles are ever about is ego, ego, EGO. We need to learn from the conservatives that SOME compromise and DISCIPLINE in the ranks are what move issues and ideas along and brings the consensus which brings the rules which brings the changes.
I will continue to listen to K.P.F.K. until it finally implodes and closes its doors, which won’t be long by most accounts. Sonali, I’ll continue to listen to your podcast as I will Ian Masters’ and a couple others. I’ll tune in from time to time (although certainly NOT during the nearly-constant, never-ending and always “extended” and “mini” fund-drives) to listen to a few other shows but from now on, I am withdrawing my support from K.P.F.K., and believe now that it is so compromised, so diseased with its many cancers (crypto-conservatives and fanatical idealogues) that it SHOULD NOT survive in its present incurable form which just continues to writhe in agony, flailing around and moaning in pain, and just needs to die. Ms. Radford will undoubtedly move it efficiently and inexorably along toward that end, and may she and her cohorts -all members of the club of the “Middle Mind” be cursed for doing so. The only good that can come from this is a lesson to all we true progressives, and that is that our methodologies are not working for us. And until we can learn to agree on fundamentals and truly defend them, we will never fulfill our own mission to strengthen our OWN values, but always be bested by our enemies, who, through their strong agreements with each other on basic ideas and marching in their military lockstep, almost always win their battles against us.
Good luck for the future, Sonali!
And rest in peace, K.P.F.K. May your next reincarnation have better safeguards against those Trojan horses taken in by you only to cause your defeat and destruction.
There are so many crises occurring around the world, to our beautiful planet and its creatures, to nations, to so many aspects of people’s lives. Now more than ever, we should be grateful to have the means and opportunity to present the voices and ideas, like Sonali’s, Ian’s and many other fine articulate programmers and guests of the past and present to offer alternatives to the propaganda offered in mainstream media. Not to belittle the very real concerns of all working and volunteering at the station, but, please let’s set aside our bickering and turn our precious time, energy and efforts toward doing what we can to make the world a more just, wise and beautiful place! I think of KPFK and its listeners as my family. It breaks my heart to see the turmoil. The world needs us to put aside resentment and work together. I am so confused! I love KPFK. I would love to have the time to volunteer. Even if I did have the time to, I’m not sure if I’d be welcomed or resented, at this point. Maybe both. I am on the outside and I don’t know the details and have nothing that can help. I present my thoughts here so the station understands how some of us outside of it are feeling through all of this. Thank you. We love KPFK and stand with the original purpose. We want it to stay on course.
I’m sadden to see you go Sonali, I will strongly support you as a progressive we will continue to follow you and speed the word this shouldn’t happen to kpfk this manager of yours needs to do the right job.
I’m so sorry that you are going through this Sonali, and I am very sad that KPFK is going through this – it’s hard when you see a great institution destroying itself from the inside.
Hi, I recently started watching you on FSTV. At first, I thought it was just a fund raising drive that was overriding your show. Then I could not find you anywhere on the guide today. I then took to the net to figure out what was going on. This is disappointing news. Your show is not broadcast on the left leaning radio station out here.
There are few shows out there I care for. I took to yours quickly as you speak of the same issues that are important to me. The local political radio station over here is clearly struggling also.
I am very upset that Sonali’s time has been cut. She has shown over many years her great intellect, creativity and talent and is the star of her show. Instead of the “new age” health shows that make dubious recommendations of health cures from people who are making a mint of money, she should be encouraged and promoted. Alternative medicine has it’s good side, but unfortunately many people use pseudoscience to further their own economic goals. The direction that KPFK is going is very troubling. I say this as a supporter and daughter of a supporter since the 1960’s. KEEP SONALI!
In your place this morning, Sonali, there was an anti-vax program. What sort of nonsense IS this?
I look to KPFK to opinion, yes, but opinion based on facts, not on polemics.
I was one of the first people to call to have my name on a plaque and received a phone call from you immediately afterwards. I also signed up as a sustainer. Now I will do neither.
So sad.
I hope all of you who are “so saddened” call and write KPFK and express your outrage and threaten to withdraw your financial support. This is the only way to reverse the sadness!
Is the General Manager taking a pay cut as well? It sounds like there are problems in the whole Pacifica organization (various hosts mentioned this financial crisis beginning when an employee failed to turn in paperwork for government funding by a deadline), but it appears some stations are doing better than others (KPFA was able to go all summer without a funddrive). ………. I’m going to start getting more involved in Pacifica elections. I’ll continue my sustaining membership for now. Hopefully things will get better in January. I hope you’ll be able to resume your TV production. This kind of programing needs more exposure not less.
I, too, have withdrawn my monthly autopay donation in protest for the change in Uprising staffing. I was appalled when I tried to listen to Uprising Thur & Fri shows from the archived podcasts. I prefer your efforts, insights & guests to the other programs being offered. Please continue. You have an appreciative audience for your broad-minded coverage of local, nat’l & world news and in-depth reporting.
Thanks,
Brenna, Shawnee, KS (formerly of Brea, CA)
I confess I had become so disgusted with what had been going on at KPFK that I stopped listening (missing a few programs I like, such as yours but while I hoped things would get better and there would be a big turn around at KPFK I could see it was not to be) and it was only a mention on LA Observed at three programmers leaving that got my attention.
I see that the program listing for Uprising has the three ‘volunteer’ hosts listed now:
Nana Gyamfi (W), Thandisizwe Chimurenga (Th), Sis Charlene Muhammad (F)
and having read brief bios I know I will never listen to them. Strikes me the deck is being stacked against the kind of open reporting you’re known and respected for and for divisive limited viewpoint single subject hosts.
I can’t go back and change anything but I will follow you on your website and enjoy you there.
I know it’s not a main area of interest for you but I have followed the Attorney General (CA) pursuit of Pacifica about their failures to file proper records…I hope that has a positive effect on changing current management.
My best wishes for your work and success
I LOVE Uprising with Sonali. I am a teacher in SF and she brings the best people and ideas and news to the airwaves right before I go to work and I feel hopeful instead of dread after listening to her show.
What shame on KPFA/KPFK for retaliation- they should be expanding and celebrating Sonali and all the folks working to bring us this great program.
The GM needs more pressure. We have to do it. The people if united can change hearts and minds.
Sonali:
I enjoy listening to your show every day in the car on the way to work. I still do, but unfortunately due to program cuts I listen thru mobile devices from the Berkeley station. What a shame.
Is this the best remaining Podcast URL or is there a better one?
https://kpfa.org/program/uprising/feed/
Leslie Radford is racist…there, I said it
I already sent a letter to program director Alan Minsky that I will not be contributing to KPFK unless Sonali is back 5 times a week.
It looks like a personal grudge on the part of the general manager against Sonali. It reminds me a certain majority leader in house of our Congress. Just obstruct at any price.
General manager has probably her own agenda and does not care about ditching the station.
I found on the web information that Corporation for Public Broadcasting withdrew its funds for KPFK because KPFK could not produce audit records. That might be the reason why KPFK is in financial troubles.
I guess it is time to tune my radio into waves other 90.7. It is a big loss for me. I have been listening to this radio for many years and I consider Sonali as one of the best journalists. I wish her the best.
Ms. Kolhatkar,
I have enjoyed your program, rattled sometimes by the depths you reach and the subjects you investigate, make open, and expose. In the early 1970’s I volunteered for a while at KPFK. Though I didn’t have any idea how decisions and programming were decided upon, I felt that the full schedule of informative programming was well-constructed and I greatly enjoyed being amidst the hustle-bustle and creative egos. Lately I do not feel the same about the programming, and in reading your article, this site’s relaying of the goings-on between you and the GM, and other comments, I see that the change you outlined — wherein the layout of managership was changed — was not for the best. I am wondering if you could, without being accused of any wrong-doing or Svengali-ism, suggest a better layout of the Board (its members), playing the advocate for a better station? I will continue to go over the candidates and their listed qualifications, but without some sort of a ‘debate’ (‘what would you do to correct?’, or ‘what would you do in this situation?’ sort of back-and-forth, they are all no more to me than words on a page).
Regards,
This is terrible news! I loved to listen to Sonali and bought her CD of interviews. I’m a sustaining member but if this is how the GM treats one of the best hosts on KPFK I will reconsider donating to this station. One of the ways positive change can occur is to elect the right people to the Board. I don’t know those who are running so I’d like Sonali to recommend who she thinks will change the station for the better. Please email me. Thank you.
I am so heartbroken to see this. Ive been tuning in and out of KPFK, mostly because every time I tune in theres always fund-drives. I renewed my sustatinership because I listen to your show and hoped it would help cut down on the fund drives, but now that this happened, I feel like theres hardly a reason to keep giving.
This is a big mistake! Sonali Kolhatkar’s program is very incisive and relevant. Better than Amy Goodman in my opinion. I will subscribe to the YouTube channel. Where there’s the will; there’s a way.