Pacifica Radio Turns Sixty

On April 15th, 1949, Pacifica station KPFA 94.1 FM in Berkeley went on the air, introducing public sponsored community radio to America, and cementing its place in history as the steadfast anchor of the Pacifica Radio Network. Founded by Lewis Hill - a Quaker, World War II conscientious objector, and former commercial radio news broadcaster - Pacifica Radio was a new concept for listeners. It was to be supported solely by listener-sponsors, owing nothing to corporate interests or advertisers, and adhere to a mission of providing an uncensored outlet for creative expression, a forum for unpopular viewpoints, and a safe haven for artistic experiments with the radio medium. The grand experiment continues today, with five ’sister’ stations in San Francisco (KPFA 94.1 FM), Los Angeles (KPFK 90.7 FM), Houston (KPFT 90.1 FM), Washington DC (WPFW 89.3 FM), and New York (WBAI 99.5 FM), plus over 100 affiliate radio stations across the globe. From the storied depths of the Pacifica Radio Archives, which curates over 50,000 recordings representing sixty years of Pacifica’s broadcast history, From the Vault presents an audio celebration of Pacifica’s sixtieth birthday, featuring classic recordings of Dylan Thomas, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Allen Ginsberg, Lewis Hill, Alan Watts, Decca Treuhaft, Tennessee Williams, John Trudel, Harvey Milk, Edward Said, and Frank Zappa, and many more.