CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE THE SPATIAL PRACTICES OF SOUL REBEL RADIO IN LOS ANGELES’ THIRD WORLD LEFT A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Master of Arts Chicano and Chicana Studies By Miguel Paredes August 2012 The thesis of Miguel Paredes is approved: _________________________ ______________________ Professor Yreina D. Cervántez Date _________________________ ______________________ Dr. Gabriel Gutierrez Date _________________________ _______________________ Dr. David Rodriguez, Chair Date ii Dedication To the young people in Los Angeles, to the working class communities in the Third World Left throughout Southern California especially Elysian Valley aka “Frogtown” in Northeast LA, to the over 50 members of the Soul Rebel Radio collective especially the founding members Eduardo, Laura, Javier, Jose, Tito, Teresa, Hasmik, Jorge, XL, Travis, Oriel, and Lex, to the KPFK staff and audience, to the staff of the CSUN Chican@ Studies Department especially Dr. Rudy Acuña, Dr. Alberto Garcia, Harry Gamboa, Fermin Herrera, Dr. Mary Pardo, Dr. Gabriel Gutierrez, Yreina D. Cervántez, Dr. Jorge Garcia, Ruben Mendoza, and posthumously dedicated to Roberto Sifuentes , Dr. Shirlene Soto, and “Toppy” Flores. To my family especially my mother Lucila Paredes, my father Miguel Paredes Sr., my brother Adrian Paredes, my sister Gabriela Paredes and her daughter Dahlila and son Ivan, my brother Daniel Paredes, and his son Diego, to my best friends Mike and Guzman, to my godchildren Juliette, Justin, Isaac, Elia, and Ehecatl, and to the Fe@s including Pascual, Mixpe, and Chris, but particularly to Ixya Herrera for giving me the motivation and support to complete my Master’s Degree in Chican@ Studies. I Love You. Aho Metaquiasen- To All My Relations In Lak Ech- You are the Other I Zapata Vive y La Lucha Sigue I Love LA “Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.” -Arundhati Roy iii Table of Contents Signature Page ii Dedication iii List of Tables iv List of Illustrations v Abstract vi Introduction 1 Chapter 1- Soul Rebel Radio: Alternative Media for Non Commercial Radio 4 Subheading- The Challenges to Mainstream Media 7 Subheading- The Third World Left in Los Angeles 11 Subheading- The Intersection of Soul and Revolution 15 Subheading- Soul Rebel Radio and Gender Equity 18 Subheading- The Revolution in Prime Time 21 Subheading- Youth Radio in California 27 Chapter 2- Soul Rebel Radio Themes: The Good, the Great, and the Legendary Shows 29 Subheading- Youth Themes 30 Subheading- Gender Themes 34 Subheading- Environmental Themes 38 Subheading- Years as Themes 43 Subheading- People Themes 48 Subheading- Concepts as Themes 54 Chapter/Section 3: Voices of Soul Rebel Radio 68 Subheading- The Ladies of Soul Rebel Radio 69 Subheading- The Fellas of Soul Rebel Radio 79 Conclusions of Soul Rebels Radio Voices 91 Final Thoughts on Soul Rebel Radio 94 References/Bibliography/Works Cited 98 Appendix A: Soul Rebel Radio Terms 100 Appendix B: Results of Quantitative Questions 101 Appendix C: Index of Shows #1-73 102 iv List of Illustrations (A) Soul Rebel Radio Logo (B) Soul Rebel Radio KPFK Banner v ABSTRACT THE SPATIAL PRACTICES OF SOUL REBEL RADIO IN LOS ANGELES’ THIRD WORLD LEFT By Miguel Paredes For the degree of Master of Arts Chicano and Chicana Studies The study examines the results of the case study analysis of Soul Rebel Radio and the use of space and location by the Chican@ community in the Third World Left in Los Angeles. The term Chican@ is used interchangeably for Chicanas and Chicanos, and the community makes up a part of what the study identifies as the Third World Left in Los Angeles. The concept of the Third World Left in Los Angeles is used to refer to non-majority groups instead of using the term “minority,” and it is used interchangeably with Chican@s and other communities. Soul Rebel Radio transforms the sound of KPFK and redefines the meaning of Chican@ radio to produce cultural citizenship. The collective seizes the listener sponsored community space of the Pacifica Network and reclaims ownership of the public airwaves. The study demonstrates that Chican@s and the Third World Left in Los Angeles challenge the mainstream productions of media, negotiate the limits of the structure and format of radio, and create alternative spaces for themselves and the community. By producing alternative media, Soul Rebel Radio builds community, develops the self-identity of the collective members, and finds new and young voices. Soul Rebel Radio does this through an engagement with radio and a spatial practice that is collective, vibrant, original, and based on the experiences of the Chican@s and members of the Third World Left in Los Angeles. KPFK forms part of the Pacifica Network, the oldest public radio association in the United States, and it remains the only independent media outlet in Los Angeles. “Independent Media” is defined as listener sponsored radio, and the program can be accessed at KPFK 90.7 FM in Los Angeles and at www.kpfk.org. According to the KPFK website, the Mission of the Pacifica Network is to “promote full distribution of public information and to employ such varied sources in public presentation of accurate, objective, and comprehensive news on all matters vitally affecting the community.” By not relying on outside funding, the vi station and the show are free to present a number of different topics to the community. Soul Rebel Radio liberated a space for youth in Los Angeles, and placed themselves at the core of the narrative to create media that is culturally, politically, socially, historically, and aesthetically relevant. By employing an auto- ethnographic method of analysis, the author utilizes qualitative and quantitative studies of media and other examples of radio to demonstrate that Soul Rebel Radio creates culturally relevant, politically active, and reconceptualized concepts of space, media, audience, community, and radio production in Los Angeles. The author demonstrates that youth need to have spaces to exercise their creativity in order to develop a powerful voice, and the data utilized in this study is drawn from original programs created by Soul Rebel Radio. Interviews with members of the collective substantiate my claim that participation in the program was beneficial to individuals and the community. My goal for this study is to demonstrate the significance of the new knowledge created by radio programs produced by Chican@s and other youth in Los Angeles. The experimental program does not adhere to traditional radio formats, and Chapter One details how Soul Rebel Radio presents a challenge to mainstream media. The Third World Left in Los Angeles represents a challenge to social hierarchy while helping contextualize the space occupied by the community that makes up most of the Soul Rebel Radio collective. The Intersection of Soul and Revolution explains one of the goals of the group as the expansion of the definition of uprising to embrace all forms of dissent including spiritual challenges, philosophical differences, and revolutionary nationalism that could benefit the community. Another important contribution in this chapter involves Soul Rebel Radio and Gender Equity. The responsibility for the collective is to ensure the participation of women in every aspect of the program, develop new voices, and unlearn gender norms that the men in the group can take for granted. Soul Rebel Radio created the Revolution in Prime Time as an effort to demonstrate how media shuns the actions of poor, minority, and Chican@ youth in particular, and we confront this by seeking out individuals to participate in the production of collective forms of knowledge. Finally, the section called Youth Radio in California is a case study of the Oakland organization that most resembles the focus on youth produced media established autonomously by the Soul Rebel Radio collective in Los Angeles. Chapter Two expands on the original work produced by Soul Rebel Radio proving that when given an opportunity, youth create original programs that help challenge the mainstream representation of Chican@s and other communities in what Laura Pulido defines as the Third World Left. The purpose of vii Soul Rebel Radio is to highlight, profile, and present young people on the air, and the section highlights shows related to the core concept of youth. Another key factor for the group is the inclusion of women and a focus on gender equity, and the section presents programs related to historical challenges to patriarchy led by the young women in the collective. One of the most pressing issues for Soul Rebel Radio is the environment, and the Kilo Watts and Tiny Energy Segment provides a platform to advocate for sustainability and respect for Mother Earth. In the seven plus years that Soul Rebel Radio has aired, the collective has profiled a number of specific years and individuals. Parts of the chapter demonstrate how the program connects historical moments and central figures that transform our reality. Perhaps Soul Rebel Radio’s best radio productions revolve around abstract concepts, and the last section of the chapter displays the power of youth to employ creativity and present critical media capable of educating and entertaining the community. The purpose of the program is to present youth on the air, but the goal is to recruit young people to help craft social justice. Soul Rebel Radio, like Chican@ Studies, is a multi-disciplined approach to understanding the contradictions in society related to race, class, gender, and sexual orientation. The final chapter of the study includes interviews with the individuals who participated in the program throughout the years. In general, most members of the collective benefited from the development of their voice with Soul Rebel Radio. Each member volunteered and participated fully in the production of original content, and Soul Rebel Radio provided the stage for Chican@s and other members of the Third World Left to take ownership of the airwaves and create a space for youth on the radio.