WPVM Controversies and a New MAIN
ByThis story is complex and convoluted, but from what I understand via the station’s volunteers were asked to create an operational plan by the Board of MAIN. They did. Several Board members quit. The remaining chose not to adopt the operational plan, instead suspending nine volunteers for a six-week “cooling off period”. Former WNCW director Kim Clark was named WPVM’s Interim Manager. You can get up to date on the latest surrounding this controversy by listening to last night’s Revolutionary Radio podcast here, and you can read all about it at the new WPVM volunteers’ blog.
MAIN and WPVM Executive Director Wally Bowen is rolling out “MAIN 2.0″ this Monday, Feb. 23rd. The press release reads:
“MAIN 2.0: Next Generation Community Network” will be presented at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 23 by Wally Bowen at Pack Library’s Lord Auditorium in downtown Asheville. The talk was re-scheduled from Feb. 4, when the library closed due to inclement weather”.
[...]
Bowen said that MAIN will continue deploying its Wi-Fi City mesh-wireless network throughout Asheville, while planning the rollout of a new “white spaces†network for mobile broadband. Industry watchers predict that the new technology could be available as early as 2010.MAIN was recently awarded a $100,000 grant from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and a $22,000 grant from the Media and Democracy Fund to continue its broadband advocacy and to develop community journalism via the MAIN 2.0 strategic vision.
This vision can be previewed at:
http://main.nc.us/spotlights/main-2.0-strategic-plan.html
1 Comments
February 17th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
As one of the ‘nine’, I can tell you we all were fired, not suspended. And not by the Board, this was done unilaterally by the Executive Director. I suspect most of the Board members are not pleased. As for fired/suspended, there is no ‘forgive and forget’ where Wally Bowen is concerned, even if any of us felt like going back after being treated this way.
This was a purge. Mr. Bowen is threatened by anyone who challenges him, pure and simple. The ‘nine’? With only one exception (the former station manager), we were the ones who attended Edwin Shealy’s presentation to MAIN’s Board of the volunteer proposal for station management. You can read “Organizing WPVM” & see for yourself if it sounds like kids playing Pirate Radio, at: http://www.wpvm.blogspot.com
We showed commitment to the radio station, the willingness to sit down with a man who had played dirty with us for years, and the humility to propose a compromise structure that gave everyone a partial say in station management, while staying under strict Board control. For our trouble, we were each kicked out of the station we helped build.
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