I'd respect your letter a bit more if you were more honest with us. We all do
listen to the radio you know, and most of us have listened to RFPI. It's not all U.S.
programming, though a good portion of it is. We have heard them read the Tico Times,
and are well aware that it is not a U.S. paper. We also know the Zapatistas don't
haunt the streets of Chicago. And while the United Nations news show broadcast by RFPI
actually is based in NYC - I've heard tell that the U.N. is known to take a global
perspective: fancy that. Nor can I say I have ever heard RFPI "target" the U.S.
commercial shortwave broadcasters you mentioned simply because they are commercial
broadcasters and anybody with the cash can buy an hour of time; even you, even me.
They do target the various Neoklannazimilita shows that are broadcast from said
stations and speaking as a person who lives in these United States, I am glad they
have been doing it. Why is North America's only national left of center radio station
based in Central America? I get worried when everybody's on the right, and I get
worried when everybody is on the left. Those kinds of majorities are grotesque,
disfiguring, and dangerous.
I liked RFPI, and I also had my share of complaints. I think the Far Right Radio
Review got too casual and lost much of its effectiveness. I recently tuned into some
of their in house programming that consisted mainly of some cranky guy spouting off
for ever and ever. That's not radio.
Mostly though, I'll miss them. For all it's technological prowess and wealth, or
perhaps because of it, American journalism - left, right, and center - is horrible. To
find an American who's well informed about international affairs is a rare find
indeed. There are a few people here that would like to become well informed, but they
really have to dig deep to find a good source. It was a horrible irony when the BBC
World Service started cutting back transmissions to the U.S. We don't need foreign aid
here, we don't need food, but we sure could use some information aid. The same goes
for opinion. We have huge debates between the marginally left and the marginally right
and that's about it.
RFPI had lots of news, and lots of opinion. They had American labor news! Labor is
a dirty word here. You can talk a lot of trash but don't say that dirtiest word of all
UNION. So a lot of my labor news came out of Costa Rica.
For me RFPI's finest hour was back in '94 or '95 when they had gotten an email
from someone in a town in Mexico that had been surrounded by the army who were about
to go in and stomp anything that moved, but somebody had a computer and a modem,
somebody got the word out in real time. RFPI was asking everyone to immediately send
email to the responsible parties and get things cooled off. I never did hear any
follow ups on the incident. I hope things got settled down. The idea of someone
throwing a rock over the wall of a besieged city and having it land in a million
mailboxes made a big impression on me that day and that's the day I decided that I
needed a computer.
I hope RFPI gets through this trouble. Someone once said of the Grateful Dead that
it "isn't that they are the best at what they do, they are the only ones that do what
they do", and that surely sums up this little station. They did a lot with what they
had too. For some odd reason they seam to have placed their antenna farm in some sort
of tornado alley kind of place and it blew over once a week. They never got the
funding they needed to get a sure grip on things, simply because most of the Americans
with disposable income have never even seen a shortwave radio and their Central
American audience is not all that wealthy. RFPI would sputter and spark for days on
end and then roar back to life, only to have something else blow a fuse. People did
send money though, lots of people, just not enough I guess. It is unfortunate that
there is not an endangered radio genre law because there's a million preachers and
10,000 Brownshirts rantin and a ravin on the radio at any given minute of the day, but
only one free voice from the left.
I am decidedly left of center in my outlook, however I like to have the "loyal
opposition" around too, but I want them to be honest. I won't stand behind any
dishonest speech from my own people and I think you do your cause a disservice by
playing fast and loose with the truth. It's easier to just make stuff up, anybody can
do it, but it takes hard work and determination to check all of your facts and think
out something that's honest and persuasive. And if you're angry, really angry: take
what you wrote and put it in a drawer 'til you calm down and then look at it. Now if
you're always angry, you have a problem unrelated to your politics that is in serious
need of attention. This is a common malady; the one who can't blame himself, so he
blames the Other.
If the cause is just, no deceit is needed. If the heart is pure, the anger will
subside.
----- Original Message -----
From: Henrik Klemetz
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Saturday, July 26, 2003 2:30 AM
Subject: Re: [HCDX] RFPI Eviction
RFPI (I quote) has trained over 300 peace journalist
who now work all over
the world, RFPI (I quote) runs courses in Peace
Journalism and Progressive
Media through Radio, RFPI (I quote) specializes in the
monitoring and
documenting of hate radio and the use of media by
extremist groups.
Let's take a closer look at the last statement. From
their UN programming one would think that the RFPI
outlook was global in scope, but actual listening
shows that the focus is limited to the USA.
Here is RFPI's list of study targets.
PRIVATE U.S. SHORTWAVE BROADCAST STATIONS
Call letters Location Designator Special Notes
WSHB SC R/MN Owned by Christian Science Monitor
WCSN ME R Sold by C.S.M. to another religious group
KGEI CA R
KJES NM R Cultish sounding program
KTBN UT R Part of Trinity Broadcasting network
KNLS AK R
KWHR HI R Sister station to WHRI
WHRI IN R/RFR Has 100,000 watt capacity
KCBI TX R/RFR Rumored Dr. Gene Scott silent partner
WEWN AL R Four 500,000 transmitters
WINB PA R/RFR Pastor Pete Peters considering buying
WJCR KY R Small church station 50,000 watts
WMLK PA R Owned by Assemblies of Yahweh
WRMI FL P/PFR Anti-Castro broadcaster
WRNO LA P/R/PFR/RFR One 50,000 watt transmitter
WWCR TN P/R/PFR/RFR Three 100,000 watt transmitters
WYFR FL R
Per the RFPI website, these are stations susceptible
of airing "far right" radio, a.k.a. "hate radio".
So who is then trying to be mean to such a
'progressive' entity as RFPI?
Well, perhaps the Colombian paramilitary groups, or...
eh, on second thought perhaps it's not them after all:
"There have been recent concerns that the violence of
Colombia's civil
war may be spilling over into Costa Rica, including
the possibility of
paramilitary groups from Colombia operating
in-country. While details
remain very sketchy, it doesn't seem they are involved
in the RFPI
siege; the initial report cites 'guards from the
University of Peace,'
where RFPI has its studios."
(http://www.diymedia.net/archive/0703.htm#072303)
I have tuned in to their unauthorized frequencies on
many occasions, listening to their homebrew Far Right
Radio Review, and I have listened to some of their
Spanish language programs (including those on female
emancipation), none of which I deemed worth the while.
An exception to their dull programming is WOR (World
of Radio), but this program has been and is still
aired elsewhere, including stations considered by RFPI
as outlets of "hate radio".
RFPI has been operating thanks to a presidential
decree, but their frequencies were considered illegal
by the frequency board of Costa Rica already from the
very beginning. This I learnt on a visit to the
country in 1987.
Their eviction is long overdue.
Henrik Klemetz
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