Welcome to the Pacifica Restructuring Project, where we are working to protect the mission of the Pacifica Foundation, and to ensure its survival and growth. We hope the sun will rise on a new day for Pacifica – one where Pacifica will grow stronger and more influential, where people across the US (and beyond) will look to Pacifica for high quality independent news, music, and public affairs that they can’t get elsewhere, and which has adapted to the media challenges of the 21st Century.
But many Pacificans and others are worried that we’re seeing the sunset of Pacifica, and have expressed disappointment, dismay, and worse with:
- our governance (our boards), which are filled with distrust, infighting, and dysfunction,
- our boards’ inability to deal with problems such as declining listenership and growing debt, which is threatening our very survival, and
- the very serious risks the above create for all of our stations, and which put Pacifica’s survival in doubt.
Background:
Because the operations of our boards are controlled by the Pacifica Bylaws, please help us determine what changes are needed. In 2018, we conducted an online survey to help determine what changes Pacifica members wanted. From that, it was clear that an overwhelming number of Pacificans wanted major governance reform to address the above issues. Then in 2019, two groups came together to form the Pacifica Restructuring Project, to work on a complete re-write of the Pacifica Bylaws. The new proposed Bylaws will protect member’s rights while making changes to Pacifica’s governance – our Local Station Boards (LSBs) and the Pacifica National Board PNB, in order to further the Pacifica mission and ensure that our governance can better deal with the very serious challenges that threaten the very survival of the Pacifica Foundation and our stations.
The current Bylaws date from 2002-2003, with minor amendments since then, but have resulted in governance that struggles to function (five 24-person Local Station Boards and a 22-person Pacifica National Board). Meanwhile, listenership, membership, and donations have declined and debt is strangling the Foundation and our stations.
About the proposed new Bylaws:
For more on why new Bylaws are needed and why this is so urgent and important, please read this Introduction
An summary of the completely new Bylaws being proposed is here: Summary
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions are in the FAQs
For still more information, see this summary Comparison of the Current and New Bylaws.
The full text of the proposed Amended and Restated Bylaws is here. Within the proposed Bylaws is a transitional provision appointing as At-Large Directors the six individuals named here.
How you can help
If you have not already done so, please sign our online petition for new Bylaws. It only takes a couple of minutes, and by providing your contact information it also makes it easier for us to send you occasional updates.
Tell your Pacifica friends! The more members who know about the need for new Bylaws, and why they should vote for them in the upcoming election, the better.
Beware of misinformation and scare tactics. Some current board members and their friends have already sent out misleading (or downright wrong) information about the new Bylaws, in attempts to discourage people from supporting these much-needed reforms. We realize current board members were elected under the current Bylaws and may be reluctant to change them.!