May 1, 2012 will be a day full of activism across Oregon and across the country. Many groups, including Occupy, immigrant rights groups, labor unions and others will rally, march and conduct events to remind the public of the economic inequality in today’s society, and call for change.
KYAQ.org will host live coverage provided by members of The Media Consortium and hosted by Free Speech TV. Live coverage begins at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time, continuing until at least 9:00 p.m. FSTV will feature live video reports from Media Consortium member reporters and free-lance journalists from New York to LA, from Seattle to New Orleans. It will include live video feeds from cities large and small, an interactive map of coverage with real-time updates and links to breaking stories, in-studio analysis from Laura Flanders, Sarah van Gelder (Yes! Magazine), Lisa Rudman (Making Contact) and more.
A soft launch of the interactive map at www.kyaq.org is expected by Saturday, April 28. Full live coverage will be streamed on the site May 1.
“Tens of thousands of citizen activists will be involved in these events and I’m sure there will be virtually no coverage on major news outlets,” said Bridget Wolfe, President of Firebare, Inc. which is building KYAQ-FM. “KYAQ is not yet on the air but we are already working to bring coverage of relevant, people-powered events to the Central Coast through our website. This type of coverage shows why community radio is so important – it allows us to hear the voices of our neighbors, of real people, instead of just the talking heads that dominate corporate media. Please tune in online May 1 and experience what independent community radio sounds like. If you like what you hear, contact us an find out how you can donate, or get involved.”
The Media Consortium, comprised of more than 50 independent journalism organizations, is pooling its resources to provide coverage of May Day activities “so people can get a sense of the movement, its messages, and the ways in which it is succeeding and not succeeding,” said Jo Ellen Kaiser, Media Consortium Executive Director. “Mainstream media will not cover these events accurately or completely,” she said. Occupy Wall Street and other groups have called for a general strike May 1, not in the traditional sense, but a day in which “members of the 99%” take whatever actions they can to withdraw from participating in the normal workings of the economic system – not working, shopping or banking if any of those are options.
May Day, also known as International Workers Day, commemorates the 1886 Haymarket Massacre in Chicago. It is a national holiday in more than 80 countries around the world.
The Media Consortium’s membership includes nationally-known independent media outlets like The Nation magazine, Mother Jones, Democracy Now!, Free Speech TV, Free Speech Radio News, Ms. Magazine, Brave New Films, AlterNet and many others. Get more information at www.themediaconsortium.org.
KYAQ is a full power, non commercial radio service dedicated to advancing the common good of the Oregon Central Coast through the power of connection. Our mission is to strengthen the fabric of our community by weaving together vital threads of news, information, science, music, and art, creating an environment rich with surprise and discovery.
