February 2000 Statement of support for the PNN strike from the academic community Dear friend and/or colleague, We are writing in support of a strike on the part of freelancers for Pacifica Network News, over the issue of censorship of the news, and to urge you to support this strike as well.  In November of last year Pacifica news director Dan Coughlin was "reassigned" after airing a story describing a boycott by sixteen Pacifica affiliates over the issue of censorship.  More recently news anchor Verna Avery Brown has left Pacifica over issues including censorship and a trend away from progressive coverage in Pacifica's national news. Since the crisis at KPFA last spring, when armed guards were called in to lock out the KPFA staff, management has repeatedly censored or altered PNN news stories and public-affairs programming, or prevented segments of programs or whole programs from being aired. The strikers' demands are that Coughlin be re-assigned as news director and that Pacifica renounce censorship of the news throughout the network.  The striking journalists comprise a majority of active contributors and reporters to Pacifica Network News, a daily, half-hour news program that airs on some 70 stations nationally. Those committed to the strike include journalists from ten states and four continents.  Virtually the entire news staff of the network's flagship Berkeley station, KPFA, and its New York station, WBAI, are supporting the action. The demands have been sent to the Pacifica governing board.  Since they have not been met, a strike has begun. Since its inception Pacifica has been a bastion for free speech. For fifty years Pacifica has been a voice of protest against repression and injustice, and an invaluable resource for progressive movements. We cannot afford to lose it. Pacifica Network News relies on airing comments by academics and others. Please support the strike by refusing to provide comments if you should be contacted by Pacifica Network News.  And please forward this message to colleagues and friends. Sincerely,