[Kzyxtalk] KZYX "Where the Truth Lies" Bob Bushansky

[she-la]

The question is, Why was it necessary to add the title Executive Director to Coate's contract?  
  Coate told me at a Board meeting last March that it was in the contract of Belinda Rawlins. Someone who on the Board at that time said the position of Executive Director was a "non issue" which implies it was never discussed or implemented. 
  Additionally, if a new position is created, it must be defined in the public file. If there are no added obligations or responsibilities, why the need for an empty title?
    As was shown at the community meeting of Dec. 2012 when I asked the Board whether they had read the letter I had written to them and got silence for my answer, Coate answered that he had 'assumed ' responsibility for replying since it dealt with administrative matters. ( I asked, as a member  with rights to review the corporation's documents, to look at the NPR contract). 
   Coate denied me the information and claimed it was protected under The Uniform Trade Secrets state code. Someone at KMUD later told me that was the prices given stations was not competitive as Coate claimed but standardized. 
   So, in my opinion, for reasons of his own, Coate is not being forthright and transparent. His actions have decreased his credibility. He still claims he does not have to break down the salaries of employees in the yearly budget report. I have found that his version of what the current law requires is not in sync with what other non profits are doing. I have asked the Board to investigate this matter several times without any action or response by them. 
  If these issues get resolved, it would help to dissolve the barriers that are keeping the station from being an all inclusive team working to bring a wider support from its listening base.
        Sheila Dawn


Toni Rizzo <toni at mcn.org> wrote:

>I'm posting this for Bob Bushansky. Please respond to him if you have comments (email at bottom).
>
>    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
>
>May 15, 2013
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