Employment Development Department Has Their Own Problems

The EDD is meant to provide employment assistance to people in need, but it looks like they could use some assistance themselves right now.

Today, EDD employees picketed in front of the state capitol to protest the mandatory furloughs imposed on them by the governor. The furloughs reduce employee salaries by almost 14%, but none of those savings are passed on to the state because EDD is a federally-funded agency.

It is hard to believe that the agencies meant to help those in need are now in such dire need of help themselves to stay staffed and running. How are state furloughs affecting you and your community? Write to us at news@kalw.org, or leave us a message at 415-264-7106.

The Joy of Less

When I talk to people about how the recession has changed their lives, I am surprised by how many people end up having positive things to say.

Today we aired a positive profile of a cafe in Oakland reported by one of our Street Team members, Robert Vergas. The message from the cafe owner and customers is one of appreciation for what they have, rather than focusing on what they lack, and on making do with less.

It reminds me of an article I came across that was titled exactly that, "The Joy of Less," about a man who lived extravagantly in New York, but always dreamt of living a stoic life in Japan. One day he went for it, and he never looked back.

It is comforting to see that hard times can inspire people to leap for their dreams, or can push people to discover reserves of positive thinking and creative problem-solving to live their best life, today, regardless of the circumstances that might otherwise stand in their way.

Future of News: Nichepapers

Umair Haique's latest blog on the Harvard Business Publishing website (coincidentally called "Edge Economy") contains some pretty savvy economic advice for people in the business of selling newspapers: stop, and start over.

Many organizations are struggling to find new distribution strategies, ways to get people to pay for the same old product. Haique says this is the era of what he calls "nichepapers", that are making a product with their audience in mind. Here is an excerpt where he explains:

To reinvent the buying and selling of news, it's necessary first to reconceive the making of news. The AP's latest attempt at business model innovation, for example, is a heavyweight "rights management" system for the same old stuff. But protecting yesterday's "product" is exactly what prevented the music industry and Hollywood from rediscovering the art of value creation.

Nichepapers are, above all, "M" organizations. Today's radical innovators are confronting the truth that, because it failed the fundamental test of being meaningful, yesterday's news is, well, yesterday's news.

Nichepapers, in contrast, do meaningful stuff that matters the most. The great failing of 20th century news is that monopoly power became a substitute for meaningful value creation. At root, that's the lesson that newspapers are learning the hard way.

Dealing with Furloughs

Who doesn't love a three-day weekend, especially when you get a paid holiday to scamper off for a short vacation getaway?

Well, now many state employees are facing a YEAR'S WORTH of three-day weekends: without pay, ifs, ands or buts.

It's the famed furlough, now imposed on state agencies for three Fridays a month for the next 11 months as a part of the Governor's plan to close the state's multibillion dollar budget deficit. You can read more about how this significant pay cut is affecting state employees in today's SF Chronicle.

Furloughed state agencies include the DMV, so budget even more time than you normally would on your next visit. But for now, you can count on these agencies to remain OPEN on Fridays :

-- State hospitals

-- State prisons

-- State parks

-- Parole offices

-- California Highway Patrol

-- California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection stations

-- Constitutional offices (e.g. the governor's office)

-- Franchise Tax Board

Hip Local Fundraiser with a Global Cause: Women!

Normally for our Friday posts we feature free events happening in the Bay Area. However, we are making an exception for the WorldofGood fundraiser ($5) this Saturday and Sunday in their Emeryville warehouse. WorldofGood is a non-profit organization with the mission to improve the lives of women from around the world. Half the proceeds will go towards WorldofGood. Find everything from fair trade accessories, jewelry, fabrics, and more from our beautiful world neighbors. Hope to see you there!

Citizen Journalists at Work on the Economic Edge

Our Economic Edge Project is KALW's first venture into the world of user-generated content, where we ask our community to help us report on the massive impact of this recession. We have already gotten an amazing response from our listeners and our Economic Edge Street Team, and you can hear some of their contributions here and here.

As we struggle to keep our industry alive and relevant, most media organizations are coming to see the amazing potential of citizen journalists.

One such organization is Pro Publica, a non-profit newsroom that "produces investigative journalism in the public interest. " Pro Publica has recently asked citizen journalists to help them guage the impact of the stimulus package, an opportunity you can take advantage of from your own home. They are calling it "Stimulus Spot Check" and you can get more information on it here.

Never before has the potential impact of citizen contributors been so great. If you are interested in contributing to Pro Publica's "Stimulus Spot Check" project, you can click here or email us at news@kalw.org to join our Street Team, we are currently recruiting new members!

Next Door Millionaire?

According to a World Health Report report by Merill Lynch and Claritas, the bad economy has brought more.. millionaires to the Bay Area. Strange right? Over the Bay Areas nine-county region, the study showed that 2007's (toy dog/golf/organic food) population of  approximately 123,621 millionaires grew 10.2 percent in 2008. So what does that mean? Hopefully there's some generous tycoon out there who would love to support KALW Public Radio! No hint...