“...the dominance of corporations in mainstream media and also the role of
how corporations often get most of their wealth is through the exploitation of the working class, so in terms of balancing the narrative you need labor news, you need working class news, you need to focus on labor issues...
“I come from a historian and archivist perspective so when I think of labor news I think about the importance of labor history. I think about the importance of the historical record. I think about the archival record and I think about how the voices and perspectives of working-class people; labor unions of course, too, but working-class people, the people that aren't organized, people that aren't union members but are still very much a part of the working class; those are the voices and perspectives that need
agency, that need to be documented.”
Alan Wierdak produces Cool Things in the Meany Archive as a contributor to Labor History Today. Alan is also an Archivist Specialist at University of Maryland George Meany Memorial AFL-CIO Archive consisting of approximately 40 million documents and other archival material that help researchers better understand pivotal social movements in this country, including those to gain rights for women, children and minorities.
About the Labor Radio Podcast Network
Launched in April 2020, the Labor Radio Podcast Network focuses on working class issues that are often overlooked in the corporate-controlled media. The goal of the network is to help raise the voices of working people and strengthen organized labor to demand and achieve better treatment from workplaces and elected officials.
The Labor Radio Podcast Network is both a one-stop shop for audiences looking for labor content and a resource for labor broadcasters and podcasters. Resources include a weekly podcast summarizing shows produced by network members, marketing on social media, a website listing network shows and how audiences can find them, a database for contacting expert guests, access to a private listserv for Network members, and a weekly video call to increase solidarity and support amongst members.
If you are a journalist interested in learning more or if you’re a labor radio or podcast producer and want to join the network, contact us at info@laborradionetwork.org.
Follow the conversation on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram using the hashtag #LaborRadioPod or visit the website at: https://www.laborradionetwork.org/.
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LaborRadioNet/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/laborradionet
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/laborradionet/
WEEKLY PODCAST NETWORK SUMMARY: https://laborradiopodcastweekly.podbean.com/
Video and audio was produced by Evan Matthew Papp of Empathy Media Lab.