Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Project Censored appearance benefits public radio

An appearance by Dr. Peter Phillips drew a packed house on Saturday, Dec. 16, with attendees turning out in support of non-profit community radio.

Donated silent auction items lined Clearlake City Council Chambers, with proceeds going to Lake County Community Radio’s KPFZ. A $15 suggested donation also benefited the local station.

“It's been a complete group effort,” said Barbara Christwitz, who organized the event with Project Censored intern Heather Leidner.

Project Censored was founded by Dr. Carl Jensen in 1976 and is currently headed by Dr. Phillips. The non-profit organization operates out of the Department of Sociology at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park.

Each year, Project Censored produces a volume of the “Top 25” news stories that were underreported by the mainstream media. The stories are researched by Project Censored interns and submitted to review by SSU professors and a nationwide panel that comprises professionals in a variety of fields. From about 3,000 potential entries come the final 25.

During his presentation on Saturday, Dr. Phillips touched upon the Top 25 from the group's most recent yearbook, Censored 2007, which was published by Seven Stories Press. “Students write the first 100 pages,” he said concerning the interns’ time researching articles.

Dr. Phillips also highlighted arguments from another new book, Impeach the President: The Case Against Bush and Cheney.

Several members of Iraq Veterans Against the War were also in attendance on Saturday and were offered an opportunity at the microphone before attendees made bids on auction items.

According to Andy Weiss, a volunteer organizer with KPFZ, 90 percent of at-the-door donations, as well as auction proceeds, went to benefit KPFZ. Lake County Communty Radio has received a federal matching grant to put a full-power station on the air at 88.1 FM. Weiss reported that the station has raised three-quarters of necessary funding to provide the local match.

Additional proceeds also benefited PEG Channel TV8, which is available to Mediacom subscribers through its franchise agreement with the City of Clearlake. Videographers recorded Dr. Phillips’s presentation for later broadcast on TV8.

Originally published in the Clear Lake Observer American

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