Today, we were told that the judgement against Pacifica in a case filed by Steve Brown has come down in his favor. The ruling grants Brown the full amount plus all legal fees. This case had to do with Bernard White's lawsuit, alleging that his firing had been based upon his race.
It's a somewhat complicate case, made worse for Pacifica due to its own false claims (almost a pattern here, don't you think?).
In the meantime, Gary Null has withdrawn his case against Pacifica, WBAI, and involved individuals, but only temporarily—as he emphasized in a commentary delivered on his WBAI show today, Thursday the 31st of March, 2016.
Add it all up (without Reimers/Cohen embellishments) and it becomes clear that Pacifica—with its substandard programming, narrow vision, and inept, dishonest management—is closer than ever before to being morphed into a painful footnote.
Bear in mind last night's dire reality check from Pacifica CFO Sam Agarwal as you listen to Gary Null's commentary. Don't be thrown off by Mr. Null's penchant for embroidering his own import—what he says about Pacifica's darker side, including its copyright infringements, is no fantasy.
(Originally sent this to another thread earlier, but better suited here.)
ReplyDeleteWhat did I tell you? I said Null's lawsuit would go nowhere! Gary Null is the biggest load of bullshit on WBAI!
Starting about 12:43PM, he went into a rambling, barely coherent, attempted face saving speech about why he is withdrawing his lawsuit against WBAI "temporarily." Yeah, right, Null.
Let's see if his Friday slot suddenly gets reinstated now.
This is all just so funny. I can't wait to see Null eat his crow and break his being vegan just once.
SDLaughing like crazy!
Somebody explain this: Steve Brown's lawsuit filed on behalf of Bernard White has been won. I guess Steve Brown is a lawyer. I guess Gary Null's lawsuit against Pacifica has Steve Brown in it somewhere, since since they seemed joined at the hip. Bernard White and Gary Null are "mortal" enemies. Is there a Steve Brown conflict of interest?
ReplyDeleteKGT
If I remember correctly, White sued Pacifica/WBAI and Brown but Pacifica/WBAI did something stupid so Brown wasn't dropped from the lawsuit or some such thing.
DeleteSDL
I believe that is pretty much the situation.
DeleteQuote from RPM:
ReplyDelete"The lawsuit wasn't only BS because he (White) charged he was fired because of his race, he also claimed that Steve Brown was in charge of Pacifica...Pacifica could have had Brown dropped from the lawsuit right away but they didn't."
Only at Pacifica could an employee be fired, file a lawsuit and then be elected to the LSB to help govern the station that he is suing AND return to the airwaves.
http://wbai-nowthen.blogspot.com/2015/02/whos-suing-who-for-what.html
Gary's broadcast was full of lies: He had the number 1 health broadcast in the U.S. with a huge national following. Really? The only show on WMCA with a national following was Larry King overnight. He had plenty of offers from commercial radio but chose WNYC and WBAI? I doubt it. He gave millions of dollars of free plugs on his WABC show for WBAI? He mentioned it in passing a few times. Make it five hundred bucks. An it was to his benefit. He had a popular show on WNYE? Nobody listened. Internet radio is eclipsing terrestrial radio? They have to know you're on first to tune in to internet radio. You can't tune in accidentally. Not even SiriusXM wants him. Cut the b.s. Gary
ReplyDeleteKGT
If you are going to inflate your accomplishments, you might as well do it grandly. Whatever one thinks of his stuff, the fact is that he has had commendable success. Exaggerated claims are not so admirable in my book, but the "cast of millions" and "ten years in the making" puffery did get people into movie houses, didn't it?
DeleteWhen someone falsely claims to have a "cure" for a debilitating or fatal illness, I find it unconscionable—whether they sell it or give it away—but I am also bothered by someone like Berthold Reimers, who accepts a $100,000.00 (now said to be $110,000.00 job at a struggling non-profit organization based entirely upon a fabricated background
Is that Goebbels's Big Lie? I agree with Old Joe up to a point. But if you're dealing with a pseudo-sophisticated audience, a Little Lie, or a slew of several Little Lies timed at intervals, is better and more effective and not prone to questioning as Big Lies are. There is an art to know which-when.
DeleteKGT
p.s.- The Big Lie was from Adolf. Not Joe.
DeleteKGT
p.s- I take it back, Gary You're NOT lying.
ReplyDeleteTo lie, you have to know the truth and deliberately tell an untruth with malice aforethought.
Gary: You're so deluded and warped at this point, you think you're telling the truth. That's why you're so convincing to the neophytes. But I know and readers of this blog know the real deal. You're in need of one of these new age anti-psychotic medications. Not one of these dandelion root concoctions you peddle.
KGT
Call me old school. But while I'm not an attorney I did study lots of law in university. One thing you learn early on; never do or say anything to potentially damage your case. That being said, I'm surprised that his attorney hasn't told him to keep his mouth shut during litigation.
ReplyDeleteIf Gary Null were Nero, he would give speeches about his great sacrifices in trying to save Rome as he watches it burn.
ReplyDeleteMr. White besides his other qualities. Such as a champion of people of color everywhere is perhaps somewhat delusional. Eh, this regards certain subjects.
ReplyDeleteI recall well when being called on his carpet.
Actually several times. Always with a union rep at my side. This particular time I was turned in by an anonymous listener. My crime apparently was saying there was rampant bigotry on WBAI during my show.
Besides providing proof of my claims which were dismissed by Mr. White. The subject of the late Samori Marksman came up. It was noted that at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine Samori had a memorial crowd of 5000+ persons.
Mr. White remarked that of course 'he' would have the same or rather more at his.
To which myself, and my Union rep Jose Santiago then head of the News Dept. looked at each other with suppressed humorous disbelief. I asked "are you sure of this?"
We were basically assured this eventuality was without doubt.
????!!!
Well that about sums up the perhaps delusional, and litigious Mr. White. He who was dismissed by a Black manager at a Black majority staff, at the time, place of employment. From which he was convinced said dismissal was because he was "Black".
It's likely looking back he was serious.
I mean in the sense that he embraced the concept of "Authentic Blackness". Of which the Black people that gave him his long deserved heave-ho were not.
Otherwise I'm sure Mr. White is a fine fellow, and I look forward to going over old time with him. This at the no doubt soon to come "Former WBAI" staff/volunteer annual re-union parties.
Hum,...maybe I should start on designing t-shirts for these now.
Simply put, Null is a crackpot cult leader who uses the classic technique of instilling fear of anything outside the cult not directly approved by the leader.
ReplyDeleteHis saying HIV doesn't cause AIDS was absurd. His saying he cured people of AIDS was simply unforgivable. Where are these people, Null? Show me. No, Null, Death isn't a cure for AIDS. I remember when my ex of ten years first heard his crap and how shocked she was. You know why? Because she worked with one of the world's top AIDS vaccine research teams and worked with the HIV virus almost every working day!
Another lie from Null was how he forewent millions of Dollars in salaries from Pacifica stations all these years. Total nonsense! They weren't offering him millions. He, in fact, got to sell all his trash for all these years and make shitloads of cash.
Null's lawyer probably did tell him to not discuss the lawsuit, but Null is a temperamental and erratic personality who can't control himself. Look at his ramblings for the few months leading up to the lawsuit.
To paraphrase an old TV advertisement: "How do I spell bullshit? G-A-R-Y N-U-L-L"
SDL
Also, like all successful cult leaders, Jim Jones, Hitler, Warren Jeffs, David Koresh, Gary started benignly, caringly, adoring his listeners and they adored him likewise. Then the occasional reprimand and they responded, "Gary Dear, What did we do wrong. We'll try to do it better". It's not instilling fear at first, it's instilling guilt (take it from a Jew). Then comes the verbal beatdowns, then the physical beatdowns. I'll bet if we looked hard enough, we would find even them. Then the Kool-Aid (multicolored glop)and the "Throw away those crutches (in this case- Throw away that AZT). The purple Kaposi's Sarcoma lesions are the physical abuse. Unfortunately, he isn't offing himself like Jim Jones. WBAIers, you're stuck with him. This is how he differs from Jones, Jeff, Hitler, Koresh....
DeleteKGT
In case anyone missed it, both Gary and Utrice Leid were going on last week about how Gary saved her life a year ago this month.
ReplyDeleteWhy, were it not for his "protocols", Urtice would not have lost 90 lbs, her uterine cancer would not have abated, she would not have competed in a marathon (!), her lung cancer would not be in remission, and in fact, she would not be here at all.
I'd love to know the details of this "case", and why it isn't a lead article in JAMA, and in the Health section of the NYT...
Howard Jordan ... Where everything is a white wing conpiracy !
ReplyDeleteNot among my favorites, but WBAI has worse in its grab bag.
Deletetrue, like ron daniels , gary byrd , mimi, gloria j brown , rebel diaz. haskins and pam etc etc ...
ReplyDeleteBasically half the people on the air , imo.
For sheer lunatic nonsense, let us not forget Kathy Davis and Geoff Brady.
DeleteExcuse me if this has been covered. But here are some key reasons why nobody's made an offer yet to buy BAI:
ReplyDeleteDebt load. Name any one of the mega corporations (Clear Channel, etc.), and almost every one of them has a massive debt load. Example: CBS. CEO Les Moonves says they're going to sell ALL of their radio stations over at least the next year. Translation: ratings and ad revenue continue to go down. Listen to CBS Sports Radio or WFAN during stop sets. A lot of it is recruiting ads for salespeople, Cars for Kids, stop the IRS from seizing your assets, etc.
Even though BAI has a prime spot on the FM dial, with all of their endless internal bs, who would want to be a part of that? The only reason Amy Goodman has stayed with Pacifica is because nobody else will touch her "Democracy Now". Besides, why Pacifica agreed to her contract giving her Democracy Now is still a mystery to me.
Ask yourself. If you had an offer to buy and restructure BAI (or all of Pacifica), would YOU take on that stress?
We don't know whether or not an offer for the purchase of WBAI has been made, but I doubt that it has, at least not lately. We were offered a million for the frequency back in the Sixties, but--although that was good money for an FM address back then, turning it down was a no-brainier.
DeleteAt 84, I would not entertain such a restructuring job. The reputation Pacifica and WBAI once enjoyed has been shot by the incompetents an opportunists who have chipped away at it for many years (decades), so there really would be no point in doing anything with these wrecks. Starting over and avoiding any association with the Pacifica mob of recent years might make it possible to create a communication setup inspired by Lew Hill's postwar concept, however.
The concept is still needed and can be adapted to today's technology and culture shift--it is the implementation by mindless ne'er-do-wells that destroyed Pacifica.
When the limits on the number of stations a company could own in a market were expanded under Clinton, the corporate radio networks were falling all over themselves buying up stations, merging, etc. Yes, they went often, if not always, went into debt to do so, thinking it was a good investment. Well, technology changed the rules of the game and radio has been becoming a less popular and profitable medium. Now these same few radio corporations are trying to get id of stations.
DeleteIf anyone were to buy WBAI, it would change the format completely. Don't think anyone would buy 99.5 FM in the NY market to put on left wing political programming. They would make it a music or sports talk station.
SDL
Question. Since Null has been putting out garbage programming and premiums, how come he's never been arrested? Is it because Pacifica management is so terrified of him? Is it because he has the world's greatest attorney to cover him legally? Or, is it because they're so desperate for money they'll literally put ANYTHING on?
ReplyDeleteNull is guilty of ultra narcissism and commercialism, but I would not term his program as "garbage" when compared to much of the crap that is heard by a sharply dwindling audience at 99.5.
DeleteI suspect that much of the stagnant crap remains there because the so-called management either doesn't give a damn or imagines gaining full power.
The sooner these people are out of business and forgotten, the better.
A partial answer is that gary Null prescribes nothing. He has flunkie MDs doing it for him. This keeps him one step removed from prosecution. He knows the deal.
DeleteKGT
Simply put, the government can't really prosecute you unless you make absolute medical claims/advice and/or practice medicine without a license. If your (S)stuff isn't sold as medicine nor makes absolute medical claims, it isn't illegal. These "health" supplements you see everywhere are not claimed as medicine and, therefore, don't have to be submitted for any sort of approval.
DeleteKeep in mind that this also applies to religious people doing faith healing.
The government has a fine line to walk with all this. To get prosecuted, you really need to absolutely say, "My xyz pill will cure your diabetes." Ever notice how often Null says he is not dispensing medical advice? Yes, there is a reason for it; it's called covering his ass.
SDL
Doesn't need to say,"Cure" but it needs to claim significant amelioration of symptoms and improvement in a particular condition.
DeleteAlso, Gary and all the "nutrition MDs" are fastidious in having patients sign waivers stating that Null supplements are alternatives and are used when conventional medicine has failed and as such, this is to give the patient a second chance where conventional MDs have been unsuccessful. This form is witnessed and notarized and "absolves Gary Null, Inc. of legal liability". Of course, this paper is legally worthless and he can be sued up the culo but people don't know this.
KGT
Someone was talking about the response to Katrina and said the army general who came in wasn't stuck on stupid. I think that phrase 'stuck on stupid' applies to Pacifica managers. Perhaps the programming isn't addressed because (setting conspiracy theories aside) they truly believe it addresses what they believe is their community. They don't need to address the broader community. All they need is just a few more people who share their beliefs and all will be well. Until they get unstuck on stupid and actually try to reach a broader audience which is more politically and geographically diverse, there aren't a whole lot of options.
ReplyDeleteFunny,today there is actually legitimate talk of an HIV cure.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.foxnews.com/health/2016/04/02/cure-for-hiv-reportedly-3-years-away.html
Gary what are you going to do?
ans.- There's always cancer.
KGT
Gary Null: ..."and after that, "Chronic Fatigue Syndrome", whatever the hell that is".
DeleteKGT
Thought I'd pass this on. I had a conversation with several early 20s year olds today. When radio came up, they didn't know anything about it nor do they ever listen to it. In fact, they barely knew what FM was and had no idea what AM is.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, the couple of more political ones among them read their news, not listen to it, because it's much faster than listening to it. And, no, they never watch news programs on TV.
If Pacifica thinks it's going to get a younger audience to listen to their junk online at their convenience, they are in for a rude awakening, which they will, of course, ignore.
SDL
Radio... radio... what the fuck was 'radio'...?
DeleteWas that something about riding ponies at a gallop to San Francisco...?
Or steam engines... ?
Something like that....
~ 'indigopirate'