Your Call 041808 Media Roundtable

On the next Your Call it's our Friday media roundtable. This week saw the worst series of suicide bombings in Iraq in months. We'll talk with the Independent's Iraq correspondent and author of the new book, Moqtada, Patrick Cockburn. This week also saw what is likely to be the final debate between Clinton and Obama. Anything of substance go on there? We'll talk with Danny Schechter of the News Dissector. What was the best reporting you saw this week? It's Your Call With Rose Aguilar and you.

Guests

Will Bunch in Philadelphia

Will is the Pulitzer Prize winning senior writer for the Philadelphia Daily News, its former political writer and the author of Daily News' blog, Attytood.

Patrick Cockburn in Great Britain

Author of Muqtada: Muqtada al-Sadr, the Shia Revival, and the Struggle for Iraq, and the UK Independent's correspondent, Cockburn has spent about half of the last five years reporting, unembedded, around Iraq, a country he's been visiting since 1977.

Danny Schechter

Founder and executive editor of MediaChannel. His work has been honored with Emmy awards, the IRIS award, the George Polk Award, the Major Armstrong Award, and honors from the National Association of Black Journalists.

Click to Listen: Media Roundtable

Your Call 041708 Disappearing World- Extraordinary and Endangered Places

Where are the most threatened cultural and ecological places on earth and how can they be protected? On the next Your Call, we welcome Alonzo Addison, author of Disappearing World: 101 of the Earth's Most Extraordinary and Endangered Places. World Heritages sites around the world are at risk from both natural and man-made causes, such as earthquakes in Peru, civil strife in the Congo, and unsustainable tourism in Cambodia. What's it going to take to preserve these remarkable places? Can tourism co-exist with preservation? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar.

Guests

Alonzo Addison in San Francisco

Special Advisor to the Director of the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) World Heritage Centre and author of Disappearing World: 101 of the Earth's Most Extraordinary and Endangered Places

Click to Listen: Disappearing World- Extraordinary and Endangered Places 

Your Call 041608 A People's History of American Empire

How do you teach America's true history to young people? On the next Your Call we discuss the new book, A People's History of American Empire, a graphic novelization of Howard Zinn's landmark book. 28 years ago, A People's History of the United States launched what Zinn called a quiet revolution in American history classrooms. But the battle is not over in the nation's history curriculum. What do you do to correct the story about America's history? It's Your call with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guests

James Konopacki in Madison, Wisconsin

Illustrator of A People's History of American Empire

Dr. Gayle Olson-Raymer from Humboldt

Adjunct professor of History at Humboldt State University and author of Teaching With Voices of a People's History of the United States.

Click to listen: A People's History of American Empire [04.16.08]

Your Call 041508 Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro

What is life like for returning soldiers? On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation with former talk show host Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro about their documentary, Body of War, the moving story of Tomas Young, a paralyzed veteran, dealing with the aftermath of occupation. Since the occupation of Iraq in March of 2003, nearly 30,000 soldiers have been wounded, some severely. How are Iraqi veterans being taken care of? And how do they cope with physiological and physical injuries of the war? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guests

Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro, co-directors of the documentary film Body of War

Click to Listen: Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro

Your Call 041408 Joe Burke and Alan Farley of KALW

Who are Joe Burke and Alan Farley? What makes them tick? On the next Your Call we speak with the voices of KALW, your local public radio, Joe "The Morning Guy Who Does the Almanac" Burke and Alan "He's Been Around for a Dog's Age" Farley. You've listened to them for years, maybe decades. What do you want to ask them? Now's your chance. It's Your Call with Rose, Alan and Joe.

Guests:

Joe Burke

Alan Farley

Click to Listen: Joe Burke and Alan Farley of KALW

Your Call 041108 The Reality-Based Community

On the next Your Call, it's a special edition of our Friday Media Roundtable. This week, a panel of progressive independent filmmakers join us to discuss how documentaries are changing the mainstream media conversation. We'll be joined by Jeffrey Springer, co-director of Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea, David Redmon, director of Mardi Gras: Made in China, and Laurie Walters, head of film acquisitions for Ironweed Films. What was the best documentary you saw this year? How much power do documentaries have to create social change? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar.

Guests

Jeffrey Springer in San Francisco

Co-Director, editor and photographer of Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea, one of the featured films in an Ironweed Film Release. 

Laurie Walters in Los Angeles

Head of film acquisitions for Ironweed Films, a progressive film distribution company that curates a monthly documentary film festival that it puts on DVD and mails out to its members. Ironweed was a project of Act Now in San Francisco, but is now an independent company.

To submit to Ironweed send DVDs to:
PO Box 636
Ojai, CA 92023 

David Redmon in New Jersey

Director of Mardi Gras: Made in China

Click to Listen: The Reality-Based Community

Your Call 041008 Bill McKibben, Environmentalist

What can we do to save the environment?  On the next Your Call, we welcome environmentalist Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future and The Bill McKibben Reader.  For nearly three decades, McKibben has written about our relationship with the natural world.  He wrote The End of Nature, the first book about climate change, back in 1989.  How much time do we have left, and what changes are necessary?  It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar.

Guest:

Bill McKibben in Ripton, Vermont

Bill McKibben is an American environmentalist and writer who frequently writes about global warming, alternative energy, and the risks associated with human genetic engineering. He is the author of The Bill McKibben Reader, a collection of 44 essays written for various publications over the past 25 years.

Click to Listen: Bill McKibben, Environmentalist

Your Call 040908 Women's Health

What is state of women's health today? On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation with Judy Norsigian, executive director of Our Bodies Ourselves and co-author of Our Bodies, Ourselves. Women make up the largest segment of health workers, health consumers, and health decision-makers for their families and communities. So how have women's health care issues been transformed in the past four decades? How much attention is being paid to women's health issues today? And what should women do today to sustain good health for themselves and their communities? It's Your Call, with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guest:

Judy Norsigian, Executive Director, Our Bodies Ourselves and co-author of Our Bodies, Ourselves

Click to Listen: Women's Health

Your Call 040808 David Cay Johnston

How are America's richest being subsidized by the rest of us? On the next Your Call we welcome back the New York Times' Pulitzer Prize winning investigative reporter, David Cay Johnston. Johnston's beat is the inscrutable world of the federal tax system and his new book is called Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense and Stick You With The Bill. How do the wealthiest Americans direct subsidies and rig markets in their favor and what can we do about it? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guest:

David Cay Johnston in Rochester

Pulitzer Prize winning New York Times investigative reporter; author of several books including Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense (and Stick You with the Bill).

Click to Listen: David Cay Johnston

Your Call 040708 Freeing Tibet

Will the actions around the Olympic torch have any impact on the issue of Tibet? On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation about the recent protests taking place in Tibet and around the world. The Olympic torch's odyssey has been met by large actions against China's recent crack down in Tibet and its wider human rights records. The torch will reach San Francisco on Wednesday, April 9. Where do you stand on this issue? What does it mean to free Tibet? It's Your Call, with Sandip Roy and you.

Guests:

John Ackerley, director of the International Campaign for Tibet.

Josh Kurlantzick, the author of Charm Offensive.

Pico Iyer, a longtime essayist and author of The Open Road: The Global Journey of the Fourteenth Dalai Lama.

Click to Listen: Freeing Tibet

Your Call 040408 When did America lose the war in Iraq?

When did America lose the war in Iraq? On the next Your call we welcome Guardian Senior Foreign Correspondent Jonathan Steele, author of Defeat: Why America and Britain Lost Iraq. Unlike critics who pin the failure on a lousy counter-insurgency plan or faulty intelligence, Steele traces America's failure to a single decision. The Bush Administration's arrogance and ignorance led to the disastrous plan to occupy Iraq. From that moment the failure was sealed. Could the invasion have worked if america had immediately withdrawn? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guest:
Jonathan Steele is a senior foreign correspondent for the Guardian. His most recent book is Defeat: Why America and Britain Lost Iraq

Click to Listen: When did America lose the war in Iraq?

Your Call 040308 The Commons Series; Animal Migrations

What impact has human activity had on migration patterns? On the next Your Call, we continue our series on the commons with David Wilcove, author of "No Way Home: The Decline of the World's Great Animal Migrations." The Redfish Lake in Idaho is named for the thousands of Sockeye Salmon that once retuned to the lake after a 900-mile long journey from the Pacific Ocean. This year, only four sockeye reached the lake. What is destroying migratory routes? What's being done to preserve them? And what's our role? It's Your Call, with me, Rose Aguilar, and you.

Guest:
David S. Wilcove, author of No Way Home: The Decline of the World's Great Animal Migrations, is professor of ecology, evolutionary biology, and public affairs at Princeton University.

Click to Listen: The Commons Series; Animal Migrations

Your Call 040208 Matt Gonzalez

Why is Matt Gonzalez running for vice president? On the next Your Call we speak with the former president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and current Independent Party running mate of Ralph Nader. Since leaving the Democratic Party in the middle of an election in 2000, Gonzalez has charted his own path through electoral politics. Why has he come back now, and what does he hope to accomplish? Is this a model for how you make peace with your idealism and your practicality? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guest:
Matt Gonzalez in San Francisco
Ralph Nader's running mate on the Independent Party presidential ticket. Former President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

Click to Listen: Matt Gonzalez [04.02.08]

Your Call 040108 How did Barbara Seaman launch the women's health movement?

How did Barbara Seaman's groundbreaking work affect the women's health movement? On the next Your Call, we'll pay tribute to writer and health activist Barbara Seaman. Her 1969 book that warned against the dangers of the birth control pill is credited with launching the modern women's health movement. According to National Women's Health Network Executive Director Cynthia Pearson, "the kind of journalism that Barbara started doing back in the 1960s affected most of the women in this country." Barbara Seaman died of lung cancer earlier this month. She was 72. Who's continuing Seaman's work? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar, and you.

Guests:
Barbara Brenner, Executive Director of Breast Cancer Research

Norma Swenson, one of the founders of Our Bodies Our Selves. She has been teaching women's health at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Click to Listen: How did Barbara Seaman launch the women's health movement?

Your Call Archive: Women's Health Pioneer Barbara Seaman

Tomorrow's show pays tribute to writer and health activist Barbara Seaman whose groundbreaking work launched the women's health movement. Listen to Rose Aguilar's interview of Seaman for Your Call on July 23, 2003.

Your Call 033108 Solar Rising

Why is solar rising over the Bay Area? On the next Your Call, we're rebroadcasting a conversation we recently had with a panel of stakeholders in the solar boom. Cities are making it easier to install panels on residences and offices, local companies are spearheading research into new technologies, and local contractors and non-profits are making it practical. What policies are happening in your neighborhood to make solar's present as bright as its future? It's Your Call with Sandip Roy.

Guests:
David Hochschild in San Francisco
Vice-President of Solaria, a start-up; he is a commissioner on the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and a founder of the non-profit Vote Solar. He joins us in our San Francisco studio.

Johanna Partin in San Francisco
Renewable Energy Program Manager in the San Francisco Department of the Environment. She joins us from San Francisco.

Cisco Devries in Berkeley
Spokesperson for the City of Berkeley.

Click to Listen: Solar Rising (rebroadcast)

Your Call 032808 Media Roundtable

On the next Your Call it's our Friday Media Roundtable where we analyze the news and the way it was delivered. This week violence in Iraq returned to front pages after a months-long hiatus. As American news media awaken to the ongoing war between Sunni and Shia and the deepening split within Shia Iraqis, which reporters told it like it was and who simply sold the surge? We'll also be talking with NPR economics reporter Adam Davidson about explaining the important but dense story of the economic crisis. What was the best reported story you heard this week? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guests:
Gareth Porter in Arlington, VA
Investigative historian and journalist. Writes regularly for Inter Press Service and Asia Times.

Saleem Khalaf in Baghdad
Managing Editor of Aswat al Iraq, an English language newspaper written and reported from Iraq.

Adam Davidson in New York
Economics reporter for NPR.

Click to Listen: Friday Media Roundtable

Your Call 032708 How will this summer's aerial spraying impact people in the Bay Area?

How concerned should we be about this summer's aerial spraying in the Bay Area? On the next Your Call, we'll discuss the state's controversial $75 million plan to spray pesticides over 12 Bay Area counties to help destroy the light brown apple moth. The state says the moth must be eradicated to avert billions of dollars in crop losses. Critics say the chemicals haven't been tested. Four bills have been introduced in the state legislature to slow or prohibit the spraying. What do you think of the plan? It's Your Call, with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guests:
Dr. James Carey, professor of entomology at the University of California at Davis.

Daniel Harder, executive director of UCSC's arboretum. He conducted a study in New Zealand in January focused on the country's two major agricultural regions, which haven't been treated with moth-controlling pesticides since the mid-1990s.

Caroline Cox, Research Director at Center for Environmental Health based in Oakland

Click to Listen: How will this summer's aerial spraying impact people in the Bay Area?

Your Call 032608 What is the state of our economy?

What is the true state of U.S. economy and how did we get here? On the next Your Call, we'll take a look at the current U.S. economic crisis. By the end of this year, 20 million Americans could have mortgages worth more than the value of their homes. 63,000 jobs were lost last month, the biggest drop since July 2003. And the U.S. dollar continues to weaken. Has the economy slipped into recession? How are you being impacted by the economic crisis? And what are the solutions? It's Your Call, with me, Rose Aguilar, and you.

Guests:
Rep. Barbara Lee

Dean Baker is co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

Robert Pollin, professor of economics and founding co-director of the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.

Click to Listen: What is the state of our economy?

Your Call 032508 Unmarketable

What does integrity mean when everything is for sale? On the next Your Call we welcome Anne Elizabeth Moore, author of Unmarketable: Brandalism, Copyfighting, Mocketing, and the Erosion of Integrity. Moore writes that even advertisers know the Internet generation is impervious to traditional ad campaigns. So now they're out to infiltrate your friendships, invade your passions and own your love. And it's working. If all the world's an advertisement and we are merely players, how do you find space to track your own loves and interests? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guest:
Anne Elizabeth Moore in Chicago
Author of Unmarketable: Brandalism, Copyfighting, Mocketing, and the Erosion of Integrity. She is the co-editor of Punk Planet, The Best American Comics series editor and the author of Hey Kidz! Buy This Book: A Radical Primer on Corporate and Governmental Propaganda and Artistic Activism for Short People.

Click to Listen: Unmarketable