“…The accident did not occur within the nuclear reactor. The accident did not occur inside the reactor in the slightest. It was a feed pump connected to the turbine outside of the reactor area. Now, that was a failure of a piece of machinery and therefore it was an accident of a — with regard to — it wasn’t an accident. It was just a failure of a piece of machinery. There’s no relationship between that and what is thought of as a nuclear accident.”
~Don Curry, chief spokesman for Metropolitan Edison, working the media spin on the morning of March 28, 1979.

Twenty four hours later, under intense public pressure:
“We concede that it’s not just a little thing,” ~Don Curry

At 4:00 am on Wednesday, March 28, 1979, the worst commercial nuclear accident in the history of the United States began to unfold amidst the unsuspecting residents of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. As the event progressed over the days, it became clear that Americans had serious questions about the safety of nuclear power, the ability of the government to effectively regulate the nuclear industry, and the long term affects of nuclear energy on the enviroment. Fallout from this nuclear accident, both literally and figuratively, continues to radiate throughout political, environmental, and moral concerns to this day.

It all began when a single water pump failed in Three-Mile Island’s Unit 2, a malfunction that precipitated a catastrophic chain of events in which massive amounts of radioactive matter were released into the atmosphere surrounding the facility. The ensuing widespread public panic quickly turned to outrage as residents of the area and government officials demanded answers from within a dark of cloud of misinformation and confusion. The event itself witnessed a meltdown of its own: complete communications chaos.

This week on From the Vault, we’re featuring the chilling documentary Accidents Will Happen, an uncompromising look at the miasma created by Three-Mile Island nuclear facility. Produced by Alan Snitow and Aileen Alfandary, this incredible piece includes actuality on ground, statements by public relations staff for the utility company, physicists, politicians, President Carter, and consumer advocates — on what actually happened and what the effects were locally and nationally. Accidents Will Happen challenged the conventional nuclear wisdom of that day, and layed the foundation for a heated debate that is still very much a part of politics today.

We’ll also hear renowned nuclear activist and Dr. Helen Caldicott weigh in on the issues of nuclear energy and global warming. Dr. Caldicott co-founded the Physicians for Social Responsibility, an organization of 23,000 doctors committed to educating their colleagues about the dangers of nuclear power, nuclear weapons and nuclear war. While we do have many older recordings of Dr. Caldicott in our vault, we sought to record a fresh interview in April of 2006 because of the rapidly escalating environmental crisis, and Dr. Caldicott’s ability to speak so poignantly about such issues.

Click here to purchase a copy of this program or learn more about and purchase copies of the historic archival recordings used within this episode. To purchase a CD copy of this program by phone, please call Pacifica Radio Archives at 800.735.0230 x 262.

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“If there were in the world today any large number of people who desired their own happiness more than they desired the unhappiness of others, we could have paradise in a few years.”
~Bertrand Russell (1872–1970)

Bertrand Arthur William Russell was a British philosopher, logician, and mathematician, working mostly in the 20th century. A prolific writer, Bertrand Russell was also a champion of philosophy and a commentator on a large variety of topics, ranging from very serious issues to the mundane. Continuing a family tradition in political affairs, he was a prominent liberal as well as a socialist and anti-war activist for most of his long life. Millions looked up to Russell as a prophet of the creative and rational life; at the same time, his stances on many topics were extremely controversial.

As one of the world’s best-known intellectuals, Russell’s voice carried great moral authority, even into his early 90s. Among his political activities, Russell was a vigorous proponent of nuclear disarmament and an outspoken critic of the American war in Vietnam.

This week on From the Vault we’re listening to archival recordings focusing on the politics and pacifism of this famed logician, philosopher, essayist, Nobel Prize Winner for Literature, activist, social critic, and spirited protester. This guy’s even got his own society…

Click here to purchase a copy of this program or learn more about and purchase copies of the historic archival recordings used within this episode. To purchase a CD copy of this program by phone, please call Pacifica Radio Archives at 800.735.0230 x 262.

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“We have been turned into emotional and aesthetic imbeciles when we hear ourselves humming the sickly, goody-goody songs.” ~Pauline Kael (1919 - 2001), reviewing The Sound of Music

Born in 1919 in California, renowned film critic and columnist Pauline Kael began her illustrious career by writing movie reviews for the now-defunct Cinema Guild Theatre in San Francisco. By the 1950’s, Kael had taken her reviews to the airwaves of KPFA in Berkeley, where, engrossed in the new and unique spirit of community radio, she honed and developed her invigorating style of film critique. Kael’s reviews were meticulously detailed and incredibly opinionated, and lent themselves well to a new kind of audience that appreciated the eclectic mix of programming generated at KPFA, the first community-funded radio station in the world. She developed a passionate following for her reviews– not only for her opinions, but also because of the wonderful sociological examinations woven throughout her work.

Pauline Kael went on from KPFA to write several books and contribute to many publications, but as a writer is probably best known for her stint at The New Yorker, where she was given plenty room to breathe and be herself. Twenty five years after beginning her long and prolific career at The New Yorker, she retired in 1991. Pauline Kael died at her home in Massachusetts in 2001.

Today, Pauline Kael is widely considered one of the best film critics to have ever taken up a pen (or microphone!). Kael delivered her best work when both challenging and entertaining her listeners and readers. Her dynamic is finely represented in the historic recordings of the Pacifica Radio Archives, which honors this unique and respected voice with this episode of From the Vault entitled “Pauline Kael.”

Click here to purchase a copy of this program or learn more about and purchase copies of the historic archival recordings used within this episode. To purchase a CD copy of this program by phone, please call Pacifica Radio Archives at 800.735.0230 x 262.

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“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” ~Margaret Mead (1901-1978)

This week on From the Vault, we’ll hear from the renowned cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead. That is to say, we’ll hear her musings on a generous swath of subjects, such as the family in America, the roles of men and women in society, marriage, raising children, sex, free-love, hetero, homo, and bi-sexuality, marijuana legalization, college students, Indonesia, Samoa, cancer, the Generation Gap, and so on and so on and so on…

Once called a “dirty old lady” by the governor of Florida, Mead lived her life in a way so that generations of women came to know her as a “feminist,” although, in the end, she always preferred to think of herself as just “feminine.”

From her views on free-love to her life-long affair with another woman despite her multiple marriages, Mead practiced what she preached—living your life in the NOW.

It was this commitment to her ideals that made Margaret Meade so special, and such an appeal to community radio listeners… it should be no surprise, then, that Pacifica Radio Archives has preserved nearly thirty hours of Margaret Mead in her own voice. This episode of From the Vault excerpts some of the most compelling of that audio…

Click here to purchase a copy of this program or learn more about and purchase copies of the historic archival recordings used within this episode. To purchase a CD copy of this program by phone, please call Pacifica Radio Archives at 800.735.0230 x 262.

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“How do you ask a man to be the last soldier to die in Vietnam? How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?” ~ John Kerry

Pacifica Radio Archives presents the From the Vault Soldier Memorial, a special review of the recordings that helped define the legacy of Pacifica Radio’s coverage of war throughout the decades.

This week we’ll hear Dale Minor reporting from a battle zone in Vietnam for Pacifica Radio, John Kerry testifying before members of Congress during the Winter Soldier Investigations, and excerpts from an archival recording entitled War, Peace and Pacifica.

We’ll also listen to late Congressman William Fitts Ryan, a New York Democrat, interviewing retired USMC Four-star General David M. Shoup about Shoup’s outspoken views on American foreign policy in Southeast Asia. This interview, originally broadcast on WBAI in December 1967, finds its relevance once again in this new time of war.

Click here to purchase a copy of this program or learn more about and purchase copies of the historic archival recordings used within this episode. To purchase a CD copy of this program by phone, please call Pacifica Radio Archives at 800.735.0230 x 262.

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