Packed House - Amy Goodman in Everett

EvCC Campus

It's one thing to have the nerve and stamina to set up a tour of 100 cities in 100 days.  But imagine doing it without missing work!?

Amy Goodman's Election 2012 Silenced Majority Tour rolled into Everett this weekend and the KSER listeners packed Jackson Conference Center at Everett Community College loved every minute of it.

Amy Goodman at Jackson Center  by Christophoto

 Amy and Denis Moynihan, co-authors of The Silenced Majority, both spoke to the sold out crowd and Amy spent more than an hour going beyond the mainstream media’s obsessive focus on the latest poll numbers and candidate gaffes. She told great stories about how people are organizing; how the massive influx of campaign cash following the Citizens United decision is changing how our democracy works and she campaigned for support of independent public radio stations around the country.  She reminded the crowd how lucky we are to live in a community that does have an independent station....because many cities and towns do not have a KSER.

Amy Goodman; Denis Moynihan  by Christophoto

Amy and Denis started this whirlwind tour at the political conventions and not only have they not missed a scheduled event, but, as regular KSER listeners know, Amy has figured out a way to not miss a single one of her daily radio shows.  Not just her regular daily shows, but she's also done special coverage from the conventions and special coverage of each of the four political debates including her own Democracy Now "Expand the Debate" coverage which included third-party candidates.

Amy Goodman signing books at EvCC  by Christophoto

During her talk, Amy told the crowd of KSER listeners “There is no longer a mainstream media, it’s an extreme media.”  She said balanced reporting of topics is no longer the norm, pointing out that of nearly 400 newscasts by four major broadcast stations about the run-up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003 logged only three reports with anti-war leaders.

And she talked about some of the people she knows in the television news world, who she referred to as 'personalities' and not journalists, drawing laughter and applause from the crowd. "Television tends to quote the same pundits who are talking in a circle, It is a waste of precious airwaves."



She reminded the audience that when Occupy Wall St. started, in the media capitol of the world, right under the noses of mainstream media, it was ignored for nearly a week by the major networks even thought the reporters, anchors, producers and executives had to fight their way through the thousands of protesters just to get to work.

“What we need is media to cover power, not cover for the power,” she said. “It’s the Fourth Estate, not for the estate.”

Amy's inspiring message and tireless efforts are a good reminder of  the importance of KSER and the hundreds of other independent radio voices in the U.S.  We can't thank Amy Goodman, Denis Moynihan and their staff enough for making this visit to Everett and helping to support KSER.

Thanks also to KSER's Sondra Santos for being on hand to introduce Denis and Amy; and thanks to the KSER volunteers and board members who helped with tickets and seating for the event.

But mostly, thanks to our listeners and contributors who support KSER and help make sure the North Puget Sound has an important independent voice.

If Amy's views inspire you to help in that effort, whether you made it to her talk yesterday or not, you can always help support KSER here.

We learned two important things this weekend: Next time Amy comes to Everett, we need to rent a bigger auditorium. And don't get in Amy Goodman's way when she has a plane to catch for her next stop in supporting public radio!