What's the Frequency, Paul

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What's the Frequency, Paul This is the page for more information about "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?"... my "newsicals" consisting of narration music and soundbites .

Each program is 59 minutes long and sets the week's news to music. . Episodes air and stream on various Pacifica stations, The Public Radio Exchange (prx.org) and other non commercial outlets. This program is produced/hosted by Paul Fischer... former writer (24 years) for Dan Rather on the CBS Evening News and former News Director of 2 Pacifica Radio stations (WBAI NY and KPFA Berkeley). After retiring from CBS News, I have returned to my roots in public
radio.

19/07/2024

Finally, a low humidity, clean air day suitable for a Central Park bike lap.

A much needed palate cleanser.

And an opportunity to let my mind idle long enough to mull new descriptors for the presidential campaign.

Grotesque...embarrassing.. cult-de-sac.. Jim Jonesy came to mind.

Memory flash. I think it was 1968..doing the news on WBAI...when i first described a presidential year as the meanest, nastiest most expensive campaign yet.

I know for a fact that's what i wrote at least once every four years as the political writer of the CBS Evening News....because every four years it was true...each was the meanest, nastiest most expensive yet.

And yes, i'm still describing it this way as a retiree, volunteer radio producer of "newsicals"

I suppose i could just describe the current campaign as " the likes of which has never been"...oh right, that's already taken.

But back to the real world. A bike lap in Central Park is a restorative for mind and body.

I can wonder if the major restoration at the top of the park considered whether neighborhood kids had a pool to cool off in this summer while construction was underway.

I could consider the nature of things...as i passed the tree Flaco the owl once called home, there were zero testaments and no outward signs of his residency. Only the mighty oak that preceded and postdates him. ( i think it's an oak tree, but i could be wrong).

I hope my colleagues will have the luxury of idle time before the next wave hits.

15/07/2024

My lifelong journalism mantra was made for times like these. Always be skeptical, never be cynical.

And I’m not just talking about the tossing of the classified documents case against Trump.

Since when does lowering the temperature mean averting a hard look at trump’s plans for a second term…or a sudden silence by democrats on Biden’s fitness.

And whatever the reason, NBC News special coverage across all of its platforms meant on MSNBC…no Velshi, no Psaki…and no Morning Joe come Monday.

The fact that some MSNBC anchors appeared during the special coverage, only underscored the absence of those who didn’t…even if they were back when things settled down.

It’s one thing to lower the temperature, but that’s not the same as dimming the lights.

12/07/2024

Only in America..does the next campaign cycle begin..the minute the last one ended.
France, England...and even Iran..just completed full campaigns and elections in a matter of weeks.
No one's complaining the campaign was too short and didn't cost enough.
Maybe we wouldn't need megadonors at all if campaigns didn't go on forever.
We'd still have deep pocket lobbyists. That's plenty.

11/07/2024

I love George Clooney…but it’s time for a new celebrity megadonor.
George Clooney saved the medical drama once…until Grey’s Anatomy came along. We thank him for that.
And it’s not just that the George Clooney corporate hatchet man of Up In the Air isn’t ER George Clooney anymore .
No, .just 3 weeks ago fundraiser George Clooney was sadly the George Clooney we just saw in that op ed for the NY Times.
The party needs a mega donor with fresh blood and fresh fans.
The party should nominate Taylor Swift for celebrity megadonor/ political influencer…or maybe hold auditions before the dem national convention next month.
Here’s what I love about Pelosi. She can count. She can tell time. She will not call an issue to a vote until she is sure of the outcome..and until the time is right.
The time is right when the VIP houseguests have gone home to their NATO countries..and not make them watch a brutal family fight at dinner.
That will happen..when guests are gone. . Unless the dam breaks before the Nato summit ends.
Biden’s press conference is now delayed till 630 eastern… hmmm…start time for the east coast feeds of the net evening newscasts.
Must see tv.

06/07/2024

Might be worth thinking through a little more.
We keep seeing the same five dems…mostly representative “what’s your name again” from where’d you say, now? On the same channels, hour after hour…day after day.
( okay, okay, I actually know who Lloyd Doggett of Tx is…but the rest?) And Senator Mark Warner's list? I don't think so... at least not yet.
Why do you think that for the first time ever, Trump ISN’T talking. He isn’t… because YOU are.
Think Biden can just hand it over to Kamala and have a unified party rally behind her? Maybe. Maybe Not. There are people out there who think Newsom/Whitmer is the ticket.
They could be right. Or they could be very very wrong.
Can you imagine the reaction inside the dem coalition
if Kamala Harris were passed over. Dems could lose…not just in November…but many Novembers to come.
Can you imagine the reaction if Biden releases his delegates to an open convention…and there’s a foodfight for the nomination.
Seems to me those scenarios are as risky as the risk from Biden staying in...because this was never really an election to reelect Biden. It was an election to stop Trump.
It still is. Yeah, I know, time is short to make a decision. But even when time is short, it’s never a good time to stampede.
So how about waiting . Hakeem Jeffries will talk to the house dems tomorrow. Will they want him to tell Joe it’s over. Or will Hakeem tell them to get behind Biden..or at least shut up for a few days.
Do you really want to dump Biden before or during the Nato summit in DC this week?
You think waiting a week is the difference between winning or losing in November.
It will still be a binary choice. And Trump is the other choice.
(Sorry, no…this doesn’t boost the prospects of any 3rd party choice.)

01/07/2024

With a NY day like this...and a Supreme Court ruling that...it was important to step away for a full bike lap around Central Park...for the first time in weeks.

I was able to cycle through the realization that when Gorsuch predicted...modestly.. a" ruling for the ages", he meant the Age of Trump..
and when the" supermajority six" claim to be "originalists"...the original they're talking about is King George.
And now, back to work.

22/06/2024

if you're lucky enough to have a journalism career...you get to be there for a lot of stories...but even if you have a regular beat...it's usually one story after another.... and if you managed to do the story well, you captured a moment.

Reminded of that today at a gathering to remember Jim Murphy ( No, NOT CBS News, Jim Murphy.... a Vietnam Vet named Jim Murphy.

Met him and Don Carrico more than half a century ago...when they and a few other vets....Vietnam Veterans Against The War...took over and occupied The Statue of Liberty as a protest.

It was entirely peaceful, there was no damage...they knew their civil disobedience could result in arrest...but the authorities opted not to bring charges.

I was the reporter from WBAI who covered their protest from the inside.

I had the good fortune to reconnect with Jim and Don decades later....hear about their lives in the decades since.

Jim died a while back.

He was remembered today at St. Michael's and what a life he lived.

One after another...people rose from the pews...went to the mic...and one after another...told the story of how Jim saved their lives...turned their lives around...is the reason they graduated West Side high, stayed out of trouble...went to college....got a good job...had families...one even named a son after Jim.

I covered Jim's story half a century ago. It was my privilege to hear about the rest of it today.

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Each program is 59 minutes and devoted to the news of the week mixed with music. Episodes air and stream on various Pacifica stations, The Public Radio Exchange (prx.org) and other non commercial outlets. This program is produced/hosted by Paul Fischer... former writer (24 years) for Dan Rather on the CBS Evening News and former News Director of 2 Pacifica Radio stations (WBAI NY and KPFA Berkeley). After retiring from CBS News, I have returned to my roots in public radio.