[Kzyxtalk] Kzyxtalk Digest, Vol 22, Issue 3
Doug McKenty
dougmck at gmail.com
Wed Nov 4 17:49:03 PST 2015
Jim,
Despite Sako's bombast, I don't think he is expecting Aigner to help produce programs, I think he is simply wondering what Aigner does and if she follows the job description outlined for her by the board as described in the station handbook and other policy documents.
I am concerned, as John is, that KZYX staff is using a facility which should be a community resource to fulfill there own political agenda, both in terms of local and national issues as well as station issues. They choose programs of there liking, and use the production studio to produce programs of their liking. The mission statement is clear that the studio and airwaves should be open to "all points of view," but with no oversight or transparency into the production decision making process how can we as members ensure that all points of view are represented?
The board created the Programmer Advisory Committee in 2009 to ensure that all applications for program production were processed in an open and transparent manner yet staff has chosen not to follow this policy, preferring instead to make production choices independently and behind closed doors.
Shouldn't we all, as members, be concerned about this? Especially as we have seen such a decline in membership and community financial support over the last decade... Perhaps if the community were allowed input into they type of programming produced out of the facility, more financial support would
be forthcoming.
Sent from my iPhone
> On Nov 4, 2015, at 12:02 PM, Jim Heid <jim at heidsite.com> wrote:
>
> Yay name calling! I'm not sure why Beth, whom I've never met but whose activism I admire and whom I suspect I'd agree with on 4 out of 5 major issues, considers me a puke, but hey -- discourse is discourse, right?
>
> And King, my dad's experience was many decades ago. He program-managed KPO in San Francisco (now KNBR, Go Giants!). From there he moved to a station in Tuscon; don't know the call sign. From there, he moved to Pittsburgh, where he PD'd KDKA and KQV.
>
> All fairly big stations, particularly KDKA, a 50,000 watter.
>
> His job at all of the stations was to develop the program grid and do on-air work. His job was NOT to line up guests, help outline programs, and the like -- all things John seems to think Mary should have been doing for him when he was a KZYX programmer.
>
> Thank you for the kind words about "Point & Click Radio"! I like doing radio to honor my dad's memory and to share what I know about computers (and, on Sundays, jazz) with others.
>
> Jim
>
>
>
>> On Nov 4, 2015, at 9:55 AM, kzyxtalk-request at lists.mcn.org wrote:
>>
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>> Today's Topics:
>>
>> 1. "fact" checking (Jim Heid)
>> 2. Re: Who is anonymous? (Jim Heid)
>> 3. Re: "fact" checking (Doug McKenty)
>> 4. Re: "fact" checking (nsi at mcn.org)
>> 5. Re: "fact" checking (Chuck Wilcher)
>> 6. Re: "fact" checking (King Collins)
>> 7. Re: "fact" checking (Liz Helenchild)
>>
>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 1
>> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 14:35:25 -0800
>> From: Jim Heid <jim at heidsite.com>
>> Subject: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>> To: kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> Message-ID: <A987820E-36F1-43E8-935F-A073D022ACE3 at heidsite.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>>
>>> On Nov 3, 2015, at 12:00 PM, John Sakowitz wrote:
>>>
>>> Further fact check: Mary Aigner, Program Director, is entirely superfluous. She's unnecessary. Dead weight. During the almost seven years that I had a biweekly show on KZYX, Aigner did nothing to help me. Nothing. Zero. Nada. Zilch. I planned all my own shows. I scheduled all my own guests. Every single one. I outlined all shows. Prepared all questions. And, I did all my own follow-up, including thanking guests.
>>
>> Do you know what a program director does, John? I do -- my father was one for many years at radio stations in San Francisco, Tuscon, and Pittsburgh.
>>
>> I'll let wikipedia take over from here:
>>
>>> Typically, a program director decides what radio program or TV program will be broadcast and when.
>>
>>
>> I would NEVER want a program director intruding on the content of a show I did by outlining, preparing questions, or anything else. That isn't a program director's job.
>>
>> It's funny how the people who complain about Mary Aigner tend to be those whose shows she's cancelled.
>>
>> J
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 2
>> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 14:42:36 -0800
>> From: Jim Heid <jim at heidsite.com>
>> Subject: Re: [Kzyxtalk] Who is anonymous?
>> To: kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> Message-ID: <F7E8B3CC-2AEB-4848-9F4F-58E78F6C9B08 at heidsite.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>>
>>> On Nov 3, 2015, at 12:00 PM, Mary Massey (by way of John Sakowitz, oddly) wrote:
>>>
>>> Who is Anonymous? Who is willing to issue challenge grants/donations throughout the lengthy on-air drives and not make it known they support KZYX? Why would those issuing challenge grants not wish to be known given the nature of supporting KZYX and community radio?
>>
>> Have you really never heard of an anonymous charitable donation? Really?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 3
>> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 15:30:25 -0800
>> From: Doug McKenty <dougmck at gmail.com>
>> Subject: Re: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>> To: kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> Message-ID: <7B3EFACA-F068-4A59-89B2-F973F90CEA27 at gmail.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>>
>> It is also funny how the programmers who have lost there show happen to be the ones who believe that the membership should have "control" over the programming and operational philosophy of the station as the mission statement stipulates.
>>
>> Mary Aigner was hired as the program director, not as executive producer. This is a role she has taken for herself in defiance of current board policies which place the decisions about which programs the KZYX studio should produce in the hands of a committee that is representative of the membership. The vast majority of non-profit community radio stations in the country make production decisions in this way.
>>
>> The board of MCPB created this policy in 2009 in response to the fact that the station began losing its shirt in 2007. One reasonable explanation for the lack of community support for KZYX is that the programming is not representative of the needs of our community.
>>
>> Mary Aigner unilaterally chose to disregard this board directive and continues to make production decisions without valuable community input. Without a CPB bailout, the station would have gone under years ago and all those concerned about the sustainability of this valuable community resource should be interested in discovering how to bring a larger segment of our community back into the fold.
>>
>> The station has lost 30% of its membership since 2006 and at least that in community financial support. Its total net worth is down from almost $500k to around $50k. An attempt to look at the books by concerned members (in order to fact check) has been stymied by the current board in defiance of MCPB bylaws. The CPB has begun a draw down of the extra grant money that has kept the radio station going the last five years. Without the extra money, it is my fear that the station will fail.
>>
>> I hope that other concerned members will help discover the root of the problem and help seek a remedy before it is too late.
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>>> On Nov 3, 2015, at 2:35 PM, Jim Heid <jim at heidsite.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> On Nov 3, 2015, at 12:00 PM, John Sakowitz wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Further fact check: Mary Aigner, Program Director, is entirely superfluous. She's unnecessary. Dead weight. During the almost seven years that I had a biweekly show on KZYX, Aigner did nothing to help me. Nothing. Zero. Nada. Zilch. I planned all my own shows. I scheduled all my own guests. Every single one. I outlined all shows. Prepared all questions. And, I did all my own follow-up, including thanking guests.
>>>
>>> Do you know what a program director does, John? I do -- my father was one for many years at radio stations in San Francisco, Tuscon, and Pittsburgh.
>>>
>>> I'll let wikipedia take over from here:
>>>
>>>> Typically, a program director decides what radio program or TV program will be broadcast and when.
>>>
>>>
>>> I would NEVER want a program director intruding on the content of a show I did by outlining, preparing questions, or anything else. That isn't a program director's job.
>>>
>>> It's funny how the people who complain about Mary Aigner tend to be those whose shows she's cancelled.
>>>
>>> J
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Kzyxtalk mailing list
>>> Kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>>> http://lists.mcn.org/mailman/listinfo/kzyxtalk
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 4
>> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2015 16:31:33 -0800
>> From: nsi at mcn.org
>> Subject: Re: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>> To: Doug McKenty <dougmck at gmail.com>, kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> Message-ID: <177ac5d4f10b975fd8586383e24ec30557686924 at webmail.mcn.org>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>>
>> Thanks Doug.? Jim Heid is a puke. I know those are words you would
>> not use, but I don't have my dictionary with me. John has been
>> valiant and he deserves his due. --beth
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Doug McKenty"
>> To:
>> Cc:
>> Sent:Tue, 3 Nov 2015 15:30:25 -0800
>> Subject:Re: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>>
>> It is also funny how the programmers who have lost there show happen
>> to be the ones who believe that the membership should have "control"
>> over the programming and operational philosophy of the station as the
>> mission statement stipulates.
>>
>> Mary Aigner was hired as the program director, not as executive
>> producer. This is a role she has taken for herself in defiance of
>> current board policies which place the decisions about which programs
>> the KZYX studio should produce in the hands of a committee that is
>> representative of the membership. The vast majority of non-profit
>> community radio stations in the country make production decisions in
>> this way.
>>
>> The board of MCPB created this policy in 2009 in response to the
>> fact that the station began losing its shirt in 2007. One reasonable
>> explanation for the lack of community support for KZYX is that the
>> programming is not representative of the needs of our community.
>>
>> Mary Aigner unilaterally chose to disregard this board directive and
>> continues to make production decisions without valuable community
>> input. Without a CPB bailout, the station would have gone under years
>> ago and all those concerned about the sustainability of this valuable
>> community resource should be interested in discovering how to bring a
>> larger segment of our community back into the fold.
>>
>> The station has lost 30% of its membership since 2006 and at least
>> that in community financial support. Its total net worth is down from
>> almost $500k to around $50k. An attempt to look at the books by
>> concerned members (in order to fact check) has been stymied by the
>> current board in defiance of MCPB bylaws. The CPB has begun a draw
>> down of the extra grant money that has kept the radio station going
>> the last five years. Without the extra money, it is my fear that the
>> station will fail.
>>
>> I hope that other concerned members will help discover the root of
>> the problem and help seek a remedy before it is too late.
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>>> On Nov 3, 2015, at 2:35 PM, Jim Heid wrote:
>>>>
>>>> On Nov 3, 2015, at 12:00 PM, John Sakowitz wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Further fact check: Mary Aigner, Program Director, is entirely
>> superfluous. She's unnecessary. Dead weight. During the almost seven
>> years that I had a biweekly show on KZYX, Aigner did nothing to help
>> me. Nothing. Zero. Nada. Zilch. I planned all my own shows. I
>> scheduled all my own guests. Every single one. I outlined all shows.
>> Prepared all questions. And, I did all my own follow-up, including
>> thanking guests.
>>>
>>> Do you know what a program director does, John? I do -- my father
>> was one for many years at radio stations in San Francisco, Tuscon,
>> and Pittsburgh.
>>>
>>> I'll let wikipedia take over from here:
>>>
>>>> Typically, a program director decides what radio program or TV
>> program will be broadcast and when.
>>>
>>>
>>> I would NEVER want a program director intruding on the content of
>> a show I did by outlining, preparing questions, or anything else.
>> That isn't a program director's job.
>>>
>>> It's funny how the people who complain about Mary Aigner tend to
>> be those whose shows she's cancelled.
>>>
>>> J
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Kzyxtalk mailing list
>>> Kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org [1]
>>> http://lists.mcn.org/mailman/listinfo/kzyxtalk [2]
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Kzyxtalk mailing list
>> Kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org [3]
>> http://lists.mcn.org/mailman/listinfo/kzyxtalk [4]
>>
>>
>> Links:
>> ------
>> [1] mailto:Kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> [2] http://lists.mcn.org/mailman/listinfo/kzyxtalk
>> [3] mailto:Kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> [4] http://lists.mcn.org/mailman/listinfo/kzyxtalk
>>
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>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 5
>> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 16:41:36 -0800
>> From: Chuck Wilcher <cwilcher at mcn.org>
>> Subject: Re: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>> To: kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> Message-ID: <4B22DCB5-EA1E-445C-91E7-7367114C810D at mcn.org>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>>
>>
>>> On Nov 3, 2015, at 4:31 PM, nsi at mcn.org wrote:
>>>
>>> Thanks Doug. Jim Heid is a puke. I know those are words you would not use
>>
>> Calling people names doesn?t reflect well on your debate skills.
>>
>> -chuck
>>
>>
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>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 6
>> Date: Wed, 4 Nov 2015 08:55:03 -0800
>> From: King Collins <king at greenmac.com>
>> Subject: Re: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>> To: kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> Message-ID: <A0195552-6E53-4C07-AD92-4B5AC3A6C32E at greenmac.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>>
>> Fact checking _ work of the Program Director
>>
>> Jim Heid wrote:
>>
>>> Do you know what a program director does, John? I do -- my father was one for many years at radio stations in San Francisco, Tuscon, and Pittsburgh.
>>
>> It would be much more interesting to be more empirical. Jim, you know your technical stuff and you are very personable (collegial). You and Bob (Laughton) have a very good program "Point and Click."
>>
>> 1)What, in your view, is the work of a Program Director? I'd like us to be more scientific about the discussion, which includes laying out what the discussion is about.
>>
>> Some questions for Jim:
>>
>> And also, to understand this we need to know more about your Dad's experience. I don't mean these questions to be personal. But the nice thing about your Dad's experience is that it actually happened!
>>
>> 2) What kind of technology did he use?
>>
>> 3) What was the demographic of his stations? Size of potential listening audience? Power of the transmitters
>>
>> 5) Were they commercial or public or community stations, urban or rural.
>>
>> Thanks for bringing this discussion down to earth.
>>
>> For KZYXtalk,
>> King Collins
>> KZYX board member 2003-2005
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>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Message: 7
>> Date: Wed, 4 Nov 2015 17:55:53 +0000 (UTC)
>> From: Liz Helenchild <deejayliz at yahoo.com>
>> Subject: Re: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>> To: "kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org" <kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org>
>> Message-ID:
>> <41864760.1973988.1446659753294.JavaMail.yahoo at mail.yahoo.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>>
>> Bottom line: Program Director is responsible for keeping the steady stream of programming going out on air. Job description may differ according to place, time, etc.
>>
>> Liz (former PD at K-elsewhere)
>>
>> From: King Collins <king at greenmac.com>
>> To: kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> Sent: Wednesday, November 4, 2015 8:55 AM
>> Subject: Re: [Kzyxtalk] "fact" checking
>>
>> Fact checking _ work of the Program Director
>> Jim Heid wrote:
>>
>> Do you know what a program director does, John? I do -- my father was one for many years at radio stations in San Francisco, Tuscon, and Pittsburgh.
>>
>> It would be much more interesting to be more empirical. Jim, you know your technical stuff and you are very personable (collegial). You and Bob (Laughton) have a very good program "Point and Click."
>> 1)What, in your view, is the work of a Program Director? I'd like us to be more scientific about the discussion, which includes laying out what the discussion is about.?
>> Some questions for Jim:
>> And also, to understand this we need to know more about your Dad's experience. I don't mean these questions to be personal. But the nice thing about your Dad's experience is that it actually happened!
>> 2) What kind of technology did he use?
>> 3) What was the demographic of his stations? Size of potential listening audience??Power of the transmitters?
>> 5) Were they commercial or public or community stations, urban or rural.
>> Thanks for bringing this discussion down to earth.
>> For KZYXtalk,King CollinsKZYX board member 2003-2005
>> _______________________________________________
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Kzyxtalk mailing list
>> Kzyxtalk at lists.mcn.org
>> http://lists.mcn.org/mailman/listinfo/kzyxtalk
>>
>>
>> End of Kzyxtalk Digest, Vol 22, Issue 3
>> ***************************************
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