Loooong time member, first time diarist, but this is a cause near and dear to my heart and I consider this critical. I've never asked anything of you before.. (and I'm looking at you WA state folks in particular)
I am taking a stab at reaching out to ask for support for a totally independent, public supported radio station, and the last of its kind in western Washington State. They receive NO government grants and no advertising; fully 50 percent of their support comes from the listeners and they are hanging on tight right now.
KSER 90.7fm (www.kser.org) is in the middle of their twice-yearly fund raising gig. They are, for the first time in a long time, falling quite short of a very modest goal. This station doesn’t endeavor to rake in the wealth; they merely need enough to pay for operating expenses and some of the most excellent programming you will hear.
Democracy Now! is aired twice a day, in the morning and again at evening drive time. Amy Goodman has put her full support behind KSER in the last couple of years, recording pledge drive promos, and coming for public appearances in the area to raise funds. She’s coming again this Sunday, and donating books as incentives, along with tickets to spend time with her in a private reception (a chance for those of you in the greater Seattle area to meet and hear Amy). She’s done this in the past, and most funding for this station is received by phone during airing of Democracy Now!
The station also airs Jim Hightower daily, the President’s weekly address and the Republican rebuttal weekly, and invites the community to come in and air their opinions, no matter which side you’re on, to encourage debate and action.
This is the Little Station That Could, guys. It’s truly fair and balanced reporting, and works very hard at delivering quality reporting. Democracy Now! costs them $7K a year to air. Can you help? If you are behind independent radio, no government or corporate intervention or monies controlling what is aired, will you help keep them on the air? They have been on the air since the 70s and stand a real chance of losing that if they can’t meet their goal. They’ve been running the current pledge drive for a little over a week and it ends tomorrow. (They do accept donations at any time throughout the year, but the fund drives are critically timed) They will take any amount (even $5 is a thrill), but a year’s membership is $35.00. You can call (425) 303-9070, or donate online at www.kser.org .
You WILL feel good for having done this. I promise. You can tune in from anywhere in the world, via streaming at www.kser.org. Their small goal is only $2K during this morning’s airing of Democracy Now!
Thanks for anything you can do to help this public, progressive, totally independent radio station. I would love to stun them with the power of Progressive action. Please show them some love.
ETA: This station is all volunteer powered, commercial free, with an eclectic music format during the day, and specialty shows in the evening. The broadcast is peppered throughout the day with public information and political programming. The news is brought to you via the BBC.
Thanks,
krank