13 March 2001
44 Fifth Ave. #172
Brooklyn NY 11217
v-mail: (212) 631-1115
e-mail: billw@echonyc.com
WBAI
120 Wall St., 10th flr.
NY NY 10005
Utrice Leid:
After the broadcast of the Moorish Orthodox Radio Crusade on the
night of Tuesday March 6, you asked for the air-check of our program,
refusing my request for an explanation and stating that you "just needed
it." I found this particularly strange since Paul Williams was
observed
making an air-check in the adjacent studio, and he presumably could
have
made a copy for you on the spot.
We have grave concerns that your demanding the air-check is another
way of intimidating producers, guests and listeners from speaking
their minds on the crisis at WBAI. We insist that when this crisis
is in
the headlines and op-ed pages of the city's newspapers, it is no longer
an
"internal matter" or "dirty laundry." During our broadcast we took
pains
to steer the conversation away from personalities and even to defend
you
from listener criticism. But we insist that "free speech radio" has
a
responsibility to provide the listeners with a forum on matters related
to
an institution which (after all) they pay for.
My schedule did not permit me to provide the air-check "immediately,"
as
you had demanded. However, as a gesture of good faith-and because we
have
absolutely nothing to hide-I am providing it now, as I said I would
be
able to last week. I do wish to clarify that I consider your demand
contrary to the spirit of free speech, and that I am not waiving my
right
to refuse any such demands in the future.
Yours,
Bill Weinberg
for the Moorish Orthodox Radio Crusade & Ann-Marie Hendrickson,
co-producer