Help RAISE EcoTalk's volume!

January 2007

Dear Friend of the Planet (and Program EcoTalk):

I have just returned from an extraordinary three days in Nashville, TN. with Al Gore and 200 activists from around the country, training to help educate our own communities about the “planetary emergency” of climate change. This is also a time of urgency and decision for EcoTalk as we seek your support to continue broadcasting at this crucial juncture, to expand our distribution and to bring in new partners and sponsors.

EcoTalk's “Inconvenient Truth”

The nearly three years of broadcasting our groundbreaking program on Air America have come with nearly constant turbulence. As the nation's first progressive network with ambitious expansion plans experienced growing pains, EcoTalk weathered them all – but not without significant cost. Although selling advertising was difficult for many reasons, we're proud to have secured sponsors and partners along the way that helped to offset our expenses, but not completely. EcoTalk is an independently owned program not paid by the network to provide this critical public service program. It has been supported by our wonderful advertisers, partner organizations, and EcoTalk's host and exec. producer. 

The Period of Consequences is here

A deal is reported to be near for new owners to take over Air America, but they will not be in place to make programming decisions until mid to late February. Unless EcoTalk has strong financial backing and listener support, they will likely bump us back to a  weekend slot that we have to pay for! The only way we can continue broadcasting through this period, and fight to retain our hard-won daily spot, is with outside donations and a groundswell of audience demand. Strategically, it is important to retain our national platform to jump off to new distribution outlets. We have always had our sights set beyond  Air America. New avenues of syndication have opened up on satellite and internet podcasting, and even the traditional radio programmers are seeing green writing on the wall. We want to be on all available outlets, and can be, since EcoTalk is independently owned. But in order to do that we absolutely must continue our operations – producing a high-quality show, working to expand distribution and bringing in new sources of financial support.

 

Please take a moment to consider the caliber of guests and range of hot-off-the-press  topics EcoTalk is uniquely bringing to the airwaves. Perhaps you, or an individual, company or organization you know, can make a donation at this critical time. If you want this programming to continue, and expand across America, then please join us in greening the red and blue states one show at a time by using the PayPal option on our website (click Make a donation a the top on the right side) or sending checks and/or hot funding leads to:

EcoTalk
P.O. 29025
San Francisco, Ca. 94129

 

With deep gratitude and commitment to carry on, and to turn UP the volume if the support is there,

 

Betsy Rosenberg
Host/Ex. Prod. EcoTalk
www.ecotalk.net   [email protected] or (415) 561-2165 (for questions, testimonials, moral support)

 

What our listeners are saying...

 

I have begun listening to EcoTalk recently; extraordinarily intelligent interviewing; ironic sense of humor, especially appreciated along with the tempered tone...never imagined the subject could be this interesting on a night-after-night basis. THANKS!
Avi Stachenfeld, S.F. Ca.

 

“EcoTalk has been broadcasting five days a week, interviewing the most knowledgeable and creative people from the US and elsewhere about global warming and the many available solutions...The program is the only really professional and entertaining voice the environment has in media today.
Hear for yourself what a treasure this program is to those of us who want to help wake the country up from its deep denial about global warming. Betsy always talks to people with real solutions to offer. Every voice for the environment you've ever heard of, from local to global, has appeared on the program.”
Michael Dietrick, Mill Valley, Ca.

 

“I've personally been listening to these podcasts for over a month and, in a word (or two), I'm addicted. Bringing green issues alive, adding a passion that the written word can't express, is just one of the vital effects of this show. Even a media buff like myself learns something new everyday thanks to Betsy's interactions with key ecoplayers. Her years of experience and natural talent on the microphone brings our entire movement alive in just an hour a day.”
Victoria Everman, S.F.

 

“Betsy and EcoTalk provide a valuable forum for exploring pressing environmental issues in a constructive way that can almost border on fun, while always proving illuminating”.
Andrew Revkin, New York Times Correspondent

 

“As important as I think politics are, and as concerned as I am about the future of our country, I believe environmental issues are even more important. You and your guests are informative, timely, and discuss the most important concerns of our planet and its inhabitants. If your show were to go off the air, it would be a huge loss for those of us who are paying attention and trying to get the word out”.
Maxine Kushner, FL.

 

“EcoTalk is dedicated to covering a critical discourse (the greatest crisis of our time) which is not being tackled by any of the political-commentary focused shows at Air America, or anywhere else. The show is a public service, and it very much goes against AirAmerica's core mission of progressive commentary to scale back the one forum they have that is tackling this issue full-time”
Brian Turner, Fukuoka, Japan (listens via podcast)

 

“I want to commend you on the quality of your show. I look forward to downloading it onto my IPod on a daily basis and frequently play segments for friends. I find it remarkable that you're able to conduct so many interesting interviews every week. Through your show, I feel I'm able to keep up to date on the latest on climate change without having to do extensive research on line. You provide society with a great service on what is perhaps the most critical issue our society has ever faced.”

 

Tim Stout

Betsy Rosenberg (Zimmerman)

 

 

Treat the Earth as if it were the only One we have.