[Kzyxtalk] from the AVA's "Mendocino County Today" -- May 17, 2014

[sako4 at comcast.net]

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WRITING ON THE COAST LISTSERVE a Mr. Bob Bushanski wrote: “WHERE THE TRUTH LIES — When I see non-profit boards of directors try hard to improve their organizations, I cheer for them. Serving on a non-profit board is often difficult, time consuming, almost always unpaid and emotionally unrewarding. When one person or a group of people, on the board or off, decide that they don’t like what is being done or how it is being done and take a thoughtful, informed, knowledgeable, and honest approach to changing things it could be positive for that organization. KZYX, our Mendocino County Public Broadcasting radio station, on the other hand, is being attacked and individuals are having their reputations impugned by a board member who is thoughtless, uninformed, unknowledgeable, dishonest and conducting a campaign of malicious intent. I am going to list only a few of the oh so many statements and false accusations made by John Sakowicz, current KZYX board member. I will refute the falsities and submit documentation that disproves Mr. Sakowicz’s alternate reality. In his letter to the FCC, dated January 27, 2014, [Exhibit # 4] John Sakowicz alledged a number of things: * Former KZYX reporter “Christina Aanestad was fired without cause”. Response: Attached is an e-mail from Christina, dated June 21, 2009. In that e-mail she clearly states “I was laid off not fired. John [Coate] has done right the right thing in this process.” Exhibit # 1 

• JS goes on to say: “It should be noted that Mr. Coate unilaterally added both the title of Executive Director and its powers, to his former title and powers of General Manager. This expansion of Mr. Coate’s powers means that he does not have to consult the Board on most decisions regarding the operations of the station.” 

Response: In John Coate’s Employment Agreement, dated August 18, 2008 and signed by David E. Hopmann, Board President, Item 1 states that “The Station shall employ the Employee and the Employee shall serve the Station as its Executive Director and General Manager.” The Employment Agreement further states: “The Executive Director/General Manager reports to the Board. Paid and unpaid Staff report to the Executive Director/ General Manager.” The Employment Agreement also says that the ED/GM will “manage hiring, dismissal and recognition of employees, assuring compliance with authorized personnel policies and applicable laws.” Exhibit # 2 In other words John Coate is doing what he was hired to do – manage the day to day operations of the Station. 

• Another JS accusation was that John Coate was not following EEO (Equal Economic Opportunity) rules, which require the posting and advertising for staff positions under FCC regulations. The specific instance was the opening of News Director in 2011. JS states “Another employee, David Brookshire, was hired without posting or advertising the job.” 

Response: When the number of full time staff exceeds 5, the Station must file an Annual EEO Public Report. The report filed for the year ending July 21, 2011 clearly shows that four recruitment/advertising sources were used to fill the position of News Director. They were: the Ukiah Daily Journal, Monster.com, Mendocino Beacon-Fort Bragg Advocate-News and the KZYX Website. There were a total of 8 persons interviewed from those sources. The 2011 Annual EEO Public File Report is Exhibit # 3. 

For the time being I am only putting forth these items with which I have copies of documents that belie John Sacowicz’s false claims. 

The puzzling thing to me is, what is the motivation for this bad behavior? If it is, as is claimed, to improve the station then why did he not bring his grievances to the board before jeopardizing the station by independently submitting a letter to the FCC asking for the denial of the station’s license renewal. If he is successful, it could be the demise of the station. At best he has delayed the normally quick process. At one time in his life John Sacowicz may have had stature. Currently if his name is mentioned people roll their eyes and one person has said to me that the way to tell if John Sacowicz is lying is to wait for his lips to move. 

KZYX&Z just had a board election and two people running for open seats that supported John Sacowicz’s view of things were defeated. The members seem to have more sense than to believe anything that John Sacowicz and his acolytes have to say. If you want a copy of the 4 exhibits please contact me and I will show them to you. 

— Bob Bushansky erb at mcn.org“ 

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SAKO REPLIED: “O, I guess I could refute Mr. Bushansky’s claims, one-by-one. But why bother? I just got home from a week on the road to report on the Council on Foreign Relations meeting in New York on military leadership and strategy, then on to Sacramento for the SACRS meeting. I’d much rather spend some time with my wife, our three whippets, and tend to our rose garden. 

Let the Bushanskies of the world babble on. Suffice it to say listeners vote with their dollars, and KZYX’s Spring Pledge Drive this week is something less than spectacular. The people of Mendocino County are starting to get it . By getting it, people are starting to realize KZYX is less of a truly “public” public radio station than it is a private clubhouse for a few insiders. KZYX management is secretive, paranoid, and punitive. Its management is Stalinist, not democratic. Zero-tolerance for dissent is the price of admission into the club. 

Censorship is the price of admission. 

Last year, Doug McKenty was kicked out of the club. His “Open Lines” show was canceled, and Doug had his broadcasting privileges suspended. Why? He started agreeing with station critics. An attempt is now being made to kick me out of the club. Last week, KZYX’s so-called “business development manager,” a niggly piggly-type named David Steffen, tried to revoke my broadcasting privileges. Why? Because he falsely said I failed to read station ID at the top of the hour during a recent show. The real reason? Because I filed an informal objection of the station’s two FCC licenses pending a change in station management. 

But when Norman De Vall was recently kicked out of the club by being dumped as the moderator for the candidates debates, well, that pissed off a lot of people. Norman is the retired, highly respected, member of the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors. Norman is also the former, long-time, popular radio show host of “The Access Program” on KZYX, He is currently a court-appointed advocate for children. Why was Norman dumped? For the simple reason he started www.kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org to allow a public forum for unrestricted free speech on issues at KZYX. 

Bad move dumping Norman. Very bad. 

I predict KZYX will be forced to change as support wanes. KZYX must change or die. Change or die — the station’s flunkies, apologists, and pit bulls, notwithstanding.” 

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A FEW HOURS LATER ERIC SUNSWHEAT REPLIED: “The construct of email complaint below against John Sakowicz, from Bob Bushansky is wrong. The email claims to be about WHERE THE TRUTH LIES. But it really appears to be just a hatchet job to point out a few errors in a large volume of statement facts of John Sakowicz. Where is the congratulations of all the facts where John Sakowicz speaks truth to power. Bob Bushansky does not relay the broad breath and depth of the multi-faceted concerns nor admit that there is any truth or valid concern with any statement of John Sakowicz. Furthermore the seemingly ugly email smear is illustrated by the following falsehood, that lumps recent KZYX Board member candidates as having ‘supported John Sacowicz’s view of things’. Bob Bushansky – “KZYX & Z just had a board election and two people running for open seats that supported John Sacowicz’s view of things were defeated.” And Toni Rizzo inadvertently serves to perpetuate the smear, by in effect, directing list serve readers to respond offlist, to Bob at an email address if you have comments. Who set Bob up to construct such a one sided biased email attack, or am I misreading ‘the elephant in the room’, that being email errors by omission. Forgive me for believing there might have been some intent by Bob to not serve the greater KZYX listener community, and fail to promote harmony and compassionate understanding, to resolve the KZYX infrastructure funding crisis. I apologize for being heavy handed in the tone of this email, however sometimes a polarity is needed to help with simple reading comprehension, to support situational analysis among the myopic glazed eyes readers, struggling to contribute to keep KZYX signal from going off the air, so that the radio sound drones on. — Eric” 

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