The first meeting of the soon-to-be Coalition for Progressive Media has taken place and the dream of a Democracy Nowified Buffalo begins to coalesce. The meeting basically discussed the various ways that can be utilized to bring Democracy Now here. The first step was discussing the possible locations of the show. Because the airwaves have been overwhelmed by the corporate media it is a bit more complicated than simply setting up the garage. The overwhelming opinion seemed to be that we need to get this show heard by as many as possible, and talk centered around which station could provide us with that. Now the problem, of course, is monetary. Democracy Now is actually the cheap part-they give away the first year, and thereafter base the price on a sliding scale between $1,000-$5,000 (to reference this, News Hour w/Jim Lehrer is in the 6-digit range). But, the air time is sold at differeing rates per station, which, for a daily hour-long program, ranges from a couple to twenty-couple thousands of dollars.
From here the discussion led to the inevitable, fund-raising. This money can be generated from ads on the program, but will primarily come from donations. To this effect, Amy Goodman will be appearing at a fundraiser in early December. Our efforts are now focused on advertising this event and the principle behind it and securing enough support to actually make Democracy Now happen ASAP.
We will hopefully have the flyers ready around the beginning of next week. If anyone has anything to offer or to suggest, please email elmwood, paul, emily, or terry. The program needs to be here. It is just the first small step in taking back the public airwaves, but it has the possibilty of opening so many eyes/ears that otherwise may never have the opportunity. Let's do it!
