The Civic Media Center’s annual “SpringBoard” fundraiser is set for Friday April 11th from 6pm to 10 pm. The location will be different this year–we will be moving the event to the Matheson Museum at 513 E. Univ Ave.

In addition to the usual vast spread of fine food from area restaurants, the art and services available for silent auction, and door prizes, we will have a very special guest speaker, Otton Solis, speaking on the topic of “Corporate Media and Resisting the Washington Consensus,” followed by a
Q & A.

Otton Solis is a visiting scholar at the University of Florida from his native Costa Rica. An outspoken critic of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and US-driven “neoliberal” policies of rampant privatization, Mr. Solis, an economist, is the founder, president and two-time presidential candidate of Costa Rica’s Citizen Action Party, which narrowly lost to President Oscar Arias in 2006 (by 1%). Mr. Solis is also a strong advocate for ethics in government. He is the author of two books on the subject, as well as many articles and opinion pieces.

WHEN: Friday, April 11 @ 6pm
WHERE: The Matheson Museum, 513 E. University Ave.
COST: $10 advance (tickets available at Omni Books and Wild Iris Books), $15 at the door

Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan will feature testimony from U.S. veterans who served in those occupations, giving an accurate account of what is really happening day in and day out, on the ground.

The four-day event will bring together veterans from across the country to testify about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan - and present video and photographic evidence. In addition, there will be panels of scholars, veterans, journalists, and other specialists to give context to the testimony. These panels will cover everything from the history of the GI resistance movement to the fight for veterans’ health benefits and support.

The Civic Media Center will be showing the hearing on Friday, March 14th from 10am to 6pm. For other places to watch the broadcast, visit http://ivaw.org/wintersoldier/howtowatch.

WHEN:  Friday, March 14 @ 10am to 6pm
WHERE: The Civic Media Center, 1021 W. University Ave.
COST: Donations Appreciated

The Civic Media Center will present a video followed by discussion on why what went on in 1980’s Nicaragua matters today. The video will be from a Bill Moyer’s special called “High Crimes and Misdemeanors” and guest speakers will include a panel of people who were politically active on Nicaraguan issues during that time, either in the states or in Nicaragua, working in solidarity with the Sandinista government.

When: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 @ 8PM
Where: The Civic Media Center, 1021 W. University Ave.
Admission: Donations appreciated.

David Barsamian, creator of the nationally syndicated program “Alternative Radio,” which is regularly heard on WUFT FM, and author of the recently published books “Targeting Iran” and “What We Say Goes” (with Noam Chomsky), will speak at the Civic Media Center on Thursday January 17th at 7:30 pm. Mr. Barsamian will address the topic “Iran, Pakistan & U.S. Foreign Policy.” He has just returned from travels to Pakistan and India, where he interviewed activist authors Vandana Shiva and Arundhati Roy. A $5 to $10 donation is requested to support the Civic Media Center. Seating will be limited for this event; doors will open at 6:45pm. Copies of Mr. Barsamian’s books will be available for purchase and signing by the author.

The Civic Media Center is proud to present an evening of top notch acoustic music on Friday, February 15th at the historic Spanish Court of the Thomas Center in downtown Gainesville. Performing will be St. Augustine’s Sam Pacetti and the Tallahassee based Aaron O’Rourke Trio.

Sam Pacetti astonishes devoted fans and newcomers alike with his dazzling command of the steel string guitar. His playing stands out for its spiritual depth and emotional intensity. Audiences are sure to be mesmerized and entranced by the fluid melodic styles given with ease and grace from a true master of the guitar. Be prepared for a splendid, awe inspiring musical journey!

In the hands of Aaron O’Rourke, the mountain dulcimer, essentially a three stringed instrument of folk obscurity, becomes a musical melting pot of traditions and innovations. In a short period of time O’Rourke has quickly become one of the headlining names at many dulcimer festivals including the Suwannee Dulcimer Retreat, Augusta Heritage Center (Davis and Elkins College), Western Carolina University’s Dulcimer Week, and Unicoi Dulcimer Fest.
O’Rourke is joined by Mike Snelling on upright bass and Mickey Abraham on guitar and
mandolin.

Showtime will be 8pm, with doors opening at 7:30pm. Advance tickets will be $15, , and $18 at the door. Advance tickets will be available at Omni Books and Wild Iris Books. Proceeds of the concert will benefit the Civic Media Center, a non-profit reading room and library of the non-corporate
press. For more info call 352-378-5655, or call the Civic Media Center at 373-0010.

WHEN: Friday, February 15th @ 8pm

WHERE: Thomas Center, 302 NE 6th Ave

COST: Advance tickets $15; Door $18

The CMC is holding a garage sale to help raise money for the new year. Clothes, books, household items, and many other things will be sold. Come out and see what we have!

If you would like to donate some items, either email coordinators@civicmediacenter.org or call the CMC at (352) 373-0010.

WHEN: SUNDAY, JANUARY 20th @ 7am (Sat. sale cancelled due to weather)

WHERE: 806 NE 7th st

David Barsamian is the founder and director of Alternative Radio, an independent, award-winning, weekly radio program produced in Boulder, Colorado. AR presents information and perspectives that are ignored or distorted in the corporate-controlled media. David regularly published interviews and articles in The Progressive, The Nation, Z and other journals and magazines. He is also the author of numerous books, the most recent of which are Propaganda & the Public Mind: Conversations with Noam Chomsky and The Decline & Fall of Public Broadcasting.

WHEN: Thursday, January 17 @ 7:30 PM

WHERE: The Civic Media Center,1021 W. University Ave.

COST: Donations Appreciated

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL (352) 373-0010

Dear Friends and Members of the CMC,
On behalf of the volunteers, board members and coordinators, I’m pleased to invite you to the Civic Media Center’s 14th Anniversary celebration and dinner extraordinaire on the evening of Wednesday, October 17th at the Thomas Center, located at 302 NE 6th Avenue. Thanks to the continued support of CMC and community members, this year has been one of our most successful ever. We wish to honor our history and recent successes with a party at the Historic Thomas Center in Downtown Gainesville. I hope you will attend.

WHEN: Wednesday, October 17th @ 7PM
WHERE: Thomas Center, 302 NE 6th Avenue

Learn about Alachua County history from local author Liz Jenkins Wednesday evening, July 25th at 8pm at the Civic Media Center. Born to an Archer, Florida family who have lived in Alachua County since the late 1800’s, Ms Jenkins is a lifelong historian, and for this book interviewed and collected many family histories to
assemble a picture of the evolution and development of Alachua County and the life and role of its Black citizens. She will have copies of her new book “Alachua County Florida” there at the CMC. The event is free and open to the public, a donation will be requested to support the non-profit Civic Media Center.

For more info on Liz Jenkins’ previous books and information on Rosewood, visit www.rosewoodflorida.com

An interview with Liz Jenkins, author of “Alachua County Florida”

(more…)

Singer-songwriter, travelling journalist, bum, and junkyard anarchist folk musician, Lars Din will perform with primarily self-taught guitarists Hamhock (Glenn Moody) and Slide (Matt Dewein) Living in Gainesville, Florida,

Lars Din is dreaming an insurrection, using a suspicion of a melody and an eavesdropping of lyric… A recent Gainesville Sun review said, ” Lars Din Song Riot comes across as entirely American. Listening is a comfortable and familiar experience, despite all the twists and turns. That’s not an insult to their anarcho ways. Rather, it’s a credit to them…Lars Din Song Riot is artful, poignant, technically impressive and smooth music. I really don’t know what more to ask for.”

Hamhock, a skilled banjo picker and acoustic guitarist deeply influenced by such greats as Earl Scruggs and Brownie McGhee, creates a driving, rhythmic foundation for H&S’s trademark “delta-style cracker blues” sound. Slide developed his melodic and intuitive style through immersing himself in the music of Stevie Ray Vaughn, Son House, and particularly Duane Allman, who Slide states as his primary influence. Robert Johnson has been another major musical inspiration for the duo.

Over the last few years, Hamhock and Slide have been keeping their fingers on the pulse of the local music scene in and around Gainesville, Florida, performing, entering and winning national music contests, and generally having a wonderful time keeping the greasy side up.

So don’t miss Howl at the Moon!
When: Tuesday, August 28th @ 8 PM
Where: the Spanish Court of the Thomas Center
Cost: $5 in advance, $7 at the door (call the CMC for more information)
Benefits the CMC !