SEPTEMBER 2014 e-Newsletter
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From the Station Manager
Berthold Reimers

 

Dear WBAI Family,

 

I am pleased to announce that Mario Murillo is our new Interim Program Director. Mario is a seasoned professional that I look forward to working with and encourage you to read his message below. 

We met our Summer Fund Drive goal, although we had to extend its duration to do so. We continue to pay our bills and catch up on outstanding bills with the help and collaboration of the Pacifica National Office. Pacifica Foundation CFO, Raul Salvator met with us in New York and we had very pleasant and productive meetings.

I am very excited that WBAI will be launching its new and improved Archive in September. We are making progress on all fronts; WBAI has received funds from New York City Council Member Discretionary Funding for the first time in 54 years. We have successfully launched the Julianna Forlano Show that has been an asset to our air. We continue to make partnerships with various local organizations. On September 19, WBAI will be a media sponsor for the Apollo Theater's "Harlem/South Africa Connection" as well as for our new partner Creative Time's project, "Funk, God, Jazz, and Medicine: Black Radical Brooklyn."

 

- Looking forward to continuing the work towards a better WBAI.  

 

Berthold Reimers

General Manager

From the Interim Program Director
Mario Murillo
WBAI Welcomes Interim Program Director Mario Murillo

Greetings to the WBAI Community,

I send you warm regards and positive thoughts on these waning days of summer, pleased to once again be a part of the WBAI family after a five-year absence. It seems like only yesterday that I did my last broadcast over the airwaves of Pacifica Radio's flagship station in July 2009, yet now I'm very much looking forward to the next few months of collaboration, camaraderie, and struggle.

 

As some of you may have heard by now, I am taking on the role of Interim Program Director after discussing the current situation at the station with many people associated with WBAI over the last few weeks. The question I continued to ponder was how and if I could factor into any of the potential, constructive solutions for making the station viable once again. I spoke with the station manager, several members of the local board, a number of veteran local and national on-air programmers, and many members of the communities that WBAI serves, including both current and former listeners who remain steadfast in their support of our unique institution, not to mention my own close circle of friends and family. It wasn't an easy decision to make, knowing the many urgent challenges facing WBAI at the current juncture and how difficult it will be to have a long-term positive impact on the station. But in recognizing the extraordinary efforts made by dozens if not hundreds of people in recent years that have tried to sustain the station as it went through one of its most tumultuous periods in its legendary history, I finally decided to give it a try... Read Mario's full message and see his bio HERE 

 

Program Updates events2

  • Monday, SEPTEMBER 1, 6-11pm - BUILDING BRIDGES LABOR DAY SPECIAL (regular programming is pre-empted). While the economy shows some signs of life, workers aren't fairing well, and those looking for work are finding that their search is harder and is taking too darn long. Yes, that's some of the bad news.  Oh, but  there's good news and whole groups of workers aren't just sitting back and taking the hits. Listen to award winning hosts Mimi Rosenberg and Ken Nash.
  • Sunday, September 21, 10 am - 1 pm -  Live Coverage by WBAI of the People's Climate Rally,  with interviews throughout the day from the line of march. New York's climate march is intended to coincide with the United Nations Climate Summit.  The march in New York City may be the largest action ever to demand a response to the climate crisis.  In addition to being large, the march will bring focus to the climate crisis as a global issue that must be addressed in concert by all nations. The march will be especially impactful with the memory of Superstorm Sandy still in our minds.

    With our future on the line and the whole world watching, labor and community groups will join forces and take a stand to bend the course of history. And as the people take to the streets to demand the world we know is within our reach: a world with an economy that works for people and the planet; a world safe from the ravages of climate change; a world with good jobs, clean air and water, and healthy communities WBAI will be there to provide live coverage of the staging rally and then bring you the voices throughout the day from the line of march. Join the march here.
Host Highlights
Gary Null
 Congratulations to  Gary Null:  Awards for his documentary films

Chew On This: Dangers of the American Diet Exposed
and
Silent Epidemic: The Untold Story of Vaccines

Chew On This
exposes the dangers of the Standard American Diet which significantly increases the USA's gastronomical health care expenses,
causes extensive pollution to the environment due to methane emissions coming from large scale factory farming and has already begun the widespread administration of genetically modified foods that have not yet been extensively tested for human safety, especially in children.

Silent Epidemic is a science-based review and evaluation of vaccines addressing their impact on people's health. The Gary Null Show can be heard daily from noon to 1pm.



John McDonagh

 

 

 

RADIO FREE EIREANN (Saturdays 1-2pm) host John McDonagh will  
be included in the Cornelia Street Labor Day Par-Tay where he will be reading 2 poems about " how from the front seat of my yellow cab I have been driving New York City crazy for 30 years." LABOR PAR-TAY! Friday, September 5, 6 pm Cornelia Street Cafe, 29 Cornelia Street (btwn W. 4th & Bleecker) 212-989-9319. Admission $8 (includes a free drink) Details: [email protected]


 

Back of the Book,
hosted by
R. Paul Martin and Pickles of the North, will air the show's 28th anniversary on Sept.13th. "Usual celebrations will ensue." The show airs Saturdays from 5-6am and for those of you who prefer to sleep in - you can hear the show on the Archive at any time. 

Richard Wolff and Bill Maher



Two program hosts associated with WBAI - Democracy Now's Amy Goodman and Economic Update's Richard Wolff - appeared live as guests on Bill Maher's REAL TIME (HBO) on July 25. See Rick Wolff's opening segment HERE

 

 

 

Events + Activities
   
  • Monday, SEPTEMBER 1, 7pm-1am MONDAY NIGHT COMEDY, TOO RAW FOR RADIO
    Our monthly pro show has drawn RAVE REVIEWS from enthusiasts and critics alike. Join us for a night of hilarious irreverent funny folks waaaay too raw for radio, proceeded by a reception with drinks and vegetarian fare provided by
    Powerful Pioneers Catering to loosen up the old gears. Join us in welcoming our new host, comedian extraordinaire Clipperman as we embark upon a comedy odyssey like never before. First Monday's will never be the same. The best, healthiest happy hour in town! At 388 Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn. Get Info Here

 

 
  • Saturdays + Sundays, Sept. 20 - Oct. 12, Noon to 6pm- WBAI partner Creative Time and Weeksville Heritage Center present Funk, God, Jazz, and Medicine: Black Radical Brooklyn; a walkable, month-long art exhibition that pairs four artists with four community partners (including WBAI's Dwight Brewster) to reveal 150 years of local Black self-determination in Bedford Stuyvesant and Crown Heights.  Each project will be accompanied by free public workshops, as well as special events at Weeksville Heritage Center located at 158 Buffalo Avenue and Bergen Street 
    (A/C to Utica Ave). Get Info Here

 

  • Fridays, Sept. 26, Oct. 3, 10, 17, 24 - WBAI 1st Feminist Film Festival - Organized by  
    Fran Luck of Joy of Resistance, showings will include "feminist classics" the defining feminist films of many eras with some of the directors  present in person or via Skype. Also: rare documentary shorts, feminist comedy, and live performances. The series will kick off on Sept. 26 with Jennifer Lee's 2013 release "Feminist Stories from Women's Liberation". At "The Commons," at 388 Atlantic Avenue - click HERE for details + showtime updates. Sign up between now and Sept. 26 to be a BAI BUDDY and you will receive free entry to all 5 showings! Sign up HERE.

 

 
  • Friday October 24 - WBAI Annual Salsa Dance Benefit -with Eddie Palmieri, known as one of the finest Latin jazz pianists of the past 50 years, known as a bandleader of both salsa and Latin jazz orchestras, will be joined by several other bands for a night of music and dancing. SAVE THE DATE - Details will be announced shortly!

Interns + Volunteers
Intern of the Month: Romiro Sebatian Funez
Ramiro S. Funez
Ramiro S. F�nez is a Honduran-American political journalist, activist and foreign policy analyst earning his master's degree in politics at New York University. In his own words:

"As an aspiring advocacy journalist and political theorist, interning at WBAI has certainly opened my eyes to the essence of direct democratic news production and independent, non-corporate media. While studying journalism as an undergraduate student, I became disillusioned by the corporate nature of classical journalism and quickly became inspired by the kind of horizontal journalism theorists like Michael Parenti and Noam Chomsky have propounded.


Coupled with the romanticism and hope surrounding the Occupy Wall Street movement, I turned to social media and advocacy journalism as my modus operandi--this worked out well for me by the time I began working at WBAI. It was a tremendous inspiration seeing the amount of racial, economic and religious diversity at the station and it gave me a glimpse into the future of progressive, independent and democratic media. Some may say WBAI is on its last hinges; I dare to disagree--the kernel of WBAI's journalistic moral proves impenetrable by any price. It is this very organic nature of WBAI that makes me a strong believer in its ability to grow, as more news-consuming masses become more disillusioned by the status-quo media, as I have."
 
To apply for Fall / Winter Internships send your resume to:  [email protected]
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VOLUNTEER @ WBAI
WBAI relies on a substantial team of talented volunteers to help support our staff. They are an integral part of our operations. As a volunteer you can help with mailing out thank-you gifts, filing, organizing, stuffing envelopes and data entry. 

Help is needed at live events, answering phones and doing research. Have a specific skill? Let us know. 

Contact our Volunteer Co-ordinator at [email protected]  

  

Listener Commentary
Kimberly Massengill

In my despair to find some listenable music on the radio these days, I have stumbled onto something pretty cool. Kimberly Massengill's "Thump And Growl" show on WBAI 99.5 FM New York (Tuesday 10-Noon) struck a chord with me. Today she spun a most boss Joan Armatrading tune from 1976 that totally smoked, and a cut by some guy named Mark Growden that featured some really fierce standup bass that drove me nuts!! High praise to Kimberly Massengill and "Thump And Growl"!!!!  -Jeff Magnum, NYC


Please send your comments, complaints, or compliments related to any program subject matter aired this month to[email protected]with "Listener Comment" in the subject line. Submissions should be limited to 400 words and please include your full name and location. We reserve the right to edit where deemed necessary.