"...Air"

I was just online chatting with a pal from my radio days. Mind you for those not familiar with the station I was with or the demented political chaos in American public radio you may want to skip this. However I know there are plenty of old listeners out there so here we are.

My rant:

"Radio WBAI, and the others within the Pacifica network were grand places. They were a noble experiment in free thought. However what was learned is that there has to be a reasonable balance. A filter to the extremes.

In the case of the Pacifica radio network of which our former station was a member. All controls were overthrown by the most extreme elements.

These insurgents hid behind the white liberal/progressive phobia of being called or even intimated that they were racist or sexist. Few had the nuts to call black anti-Semites programs what they were. Some did I did.

I would often go to management about violations of our charter, and State law. I was told in not so many words that Hate speech if it was directed at oppressors was acceptable. The definition of "Oppressor" tended to change with the whim of ideological currents.

So supporters of oppressive governments, and local ethnic chaos had open access to the best broadcast time slots. The forces of reason wit, and intellect were dismissed as un-needed reactionaries. I believe the Bolsheviks did similar.

Soon many of the programs of value were pushed to aside their hosts harassed till they just left or were outright thrown out. What was left was of the Fidel Mugabe worshipping type. Btw this bankrupted the whole network. Rational progressives went to NPR, and the internet. However to this day the tiny fragment left of the foundation, and Wbai specifically continues as it was. Myopic, and delusional. Imagine a left-wing Fox News.

This is a great pity.