DISCLAIMER: Opinions and facts alleged in the Candidate Statements belong to the author of the statement only and should not be assumed to be true or to reflect the editorial stance or policy of the Pacifica Foundation or the opinions of its management, Pacifica National Board, station staff.or other listener members.
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Contact Andrea Prichett
Listener Candidate for the KPFA Local Station Board
Statement
I am running for re-election to the KPFA board because, I truly believe that people of conscience can work together to maintain common space. It is more crucial than ever that we be united as we face the hard times ahead. I know well and have been saddened by the amount of collective energies that have been spent in the building of factions over these recent years. I want to put forward another way of relating to KPFA. We may love it or hate it, but still, it is ours and we must do our best to be good and faithful stewards of this precious resource. We need the station to unite people and support an inclusive educational process that distributes reliable information to and about communities.

There is plenty that I want to do and want to see done. I want to focus on traditionally less partisan areas of station functioning. I helped to start the KPFA Outreach committee and now some very dedicated volunteers have come forward to take up that work. In addition to tabling, volunteers are exploring how to start support groups in other listener areas, how to partner with community groups, how to make ourselves known in diverse communities and how to get the fact that we can be heard in Santa Cruz more widely known.

I want to work on a project to help KPFA renovate its website and online presence. I want the membership to migrate to an online system where members could pay a fee, get a membership and a login number and then be able to access a whole library of interesting DVDs and archival recordings for an annual membership fee. I also want to be able to encourage Pacifica to do the same. Pacifica could generate its own money by offering annual memberships and providing access to the Pacifica Radio Archives to donors.

We need a strong network of stations to be supported by a Foundation that coordinates the commons, facilitates sharing of content, helps with distribution of resources and curriculum about topics related to volunteer radio and much more.
I want us to consider an online voting system and how to secure such a thing. Imagine how much we could save in election materials. What if we could have many elections for very low cost? How could that change our understanding of democratic radio?

There is a lot we can do to promote and strengthen KPFA and the ties within our communities. United for Community Radio is made up of activists and others who share a vision of a station that facilitates and encourages grassroots, community access and that acts as part of a federation of similarly independent stations and affiliates. These are also folks who get things done in the neighborhood. Vote for me and others on the United for Community Radio slate: www,VoteCommunityRadio.org

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Answers to Candidate Questionnaire
1. In what ways is your station moving in a positive direction, that you would want to continue or perhaps improve?
  I think that efforts to include listener input and to try to democratize the station are positive. I also have seen efforts to expand the signal reach of the station into parts of Santa Cruz and towards Sacramento. If expanded coverage of a signal area was followed by a significant outreach effort, we could really increase the listenership.
2. In what ways is your station moving in a negative direction, that you would want to stop or change? What changes would you work for?
  I am worried that we are not implementing a plan to develop the capacity of the station. We need a comprehensive plan to re-design the way that our news and information are transmitted (digitally, via social media, etc) and to commit ourselves to bringing KPFA into the 21st century. This must be followed with a Development Plan that includes grant writing, alternatives to fund drives and new ways of being a "member" of KPFA online.
3. What key experience, connections, skills or traits would you bring to the Local Station Board to advance the station’s mission?
  I have been a community organizer for almost 30 years. I am also a school teacher. These key experiences have taught me that in order to move a community of people in a new direction, they must be prepared, educated, engaged and agree to go there. If we want to move KPFA into truly new and bold new styles of information delivery, we must give our listeners time to adapt and they must see and share the vision. We must use the airwaves to educate our listeners about the possibilities of new media and allay their fears about changing technologies.
4. What ideas do you have for helping the station and the Pacifica Foundation meet the financial challenges currently being faced?
 
I have voted in each of my three years on the board for the hiring of a Development Director. I want there to be a plan that all groups within the KPFA community can get behind and support. I have circulated a plan to move our membership to become more of an online membership with access to "premiums" all year long via the web. I want Pacifica to start a membership for people who want access to the Pacifica Radio Archive so that we can generate money from members who want to access the historical recordings that Pacifica has maintained. We have so much to offer our listeners that, if we just organize and agree amongst ourselves, we could easily generate more than enough revenue to keep KPFA and Pacifica afloat.
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