Round Up: “What Can I Do?”

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

It’s the very first Amendment out of 27. 

From Pexels.  Photo: Julian Cardero

KWMR does not care who you voted for or plan to vote for in the future. The radio station is a platform for all voices, and I can attest that over the past 15 years the views expressed by the hosts and guests on KWMR have for the most part leaned to the left. I am not sure if those with right-leaning values do not think that their values would be welcome on the KWMR airwaves (because they are welcome), or if they just tune in to other media that overall more aligns with their values. No real clue.

I don’t think it will come as a huge surprise to those of you who read this newsletter that many people are concerned about our democracy in the U.S.A. 

I had the privilege of attending a virtual Town Hall with Congressman Huffman two weeks ago, hosted by the Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership. There were about 100 attendees from nonprofit organizations across the North Bay, all in Huffman’s district. He basically said that we should not count on federal funding for the next several years. His advice was to get engaged and help with peaceable, organized protests against the many cuts being put in place by the Department of Government Efficiency and executive orders. 

I am all for being efficient. I have been known to map out my route when running errands to avoid left hand turns since I think right hand turns are more efficient. No pun intended.

What we are witnessing in action is the result of years of planning that has resulted in a document called Project 2025. Congressman Huffman suggested to people to get involved with an Indivisible organization or Move On, both are organized and have plans to continue to work to maintain our democracy.

We are lucky to have an Indivisible Group right here in West Marin that is very active. They are thoughtful, thorough, and organized. Indivisible West Marin reached out several years ago for time on the airwaves and they have conducted some of the finest interviews that I have engineered. Here is the most recent Archive. You can sign up to get the Indivisible West Marin Newsletter (it comes out every week) and learn about what things regular people can do to affect the change that they want to see.

I am concerned about federal funding for public media. Rural stations all over the U.S. receive funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) in order to provide radio services, including emergency information to communities, and are sometimes the sole source of local information. KWMR receives 26% of our budgeted funds from CPB. It has not been eliminated yet, and thanks to public outcry and votes for the Continuing Resolution in Congress, public media funding is set until at least September of 2025.

Here is an excerpt from Project 2025 found on Charles F. Kettering Foundation website:

Also within chapter 8 (246–248), Project 2025 calls for defunding the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which channels resources allocated by Congress to PBS and NPR stations around the country, many of which reach underserved communities. Defunding the CPB has been a long-standing goal of the conservative movement (246). According to Project 2025, “Cutting off the CPB is logistically easy. . . . The 47th president can just tell the Congress that he will not sign an appropriations spending bill that contains a penny for the CPB” (247).

You can see why I might be a bit concerned as the Executive Director of KWMR.

I hope this information is helpful to you if you are looking for ways to engage without the firehose of mainstream news media. I have cut way back on listening to the mainstream news and try to avoid doom scrolling. I am more concerned with what I can do to help protect democracy.

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If you have not snagged a copy of “Harvesting History” by Muriel Murch. I recommend that you get your hands on one and give it a read. It is wonderful. Muriel is zipping off to the UK soon and has wrapped up her book events in West Marin.

All three KWMR Program Directors: Muriel Murch, Jeffrey Manson, and Lyons Filmer. Photo: Gregory DeMascio

Jeff’s book discussion with Muriel was recorded and we will announce when it will be up for airplay on KWMR.

Thanks to everyone who responded to our open call for Board Members! That recruitment window has closed.

Amanda Eichstaedt
Station Manager and Executive Director