THE SHOW

WASHINGTON, DC, the belly of the beast of international military and corporate power, is also a place of activism. It is where we come to speak truth to power in the streets and in the halls and assemblies of power. But you won’t hear these voices on corporate media. Even so-called progressive cable news outlets focus instead on the jockeying of electoral politics with a distinct neoliberal bias.

“On the Ground: Voices of Resistance from the Nation’s Capital” counters this trend by giving a voice to the voiceless 99 percent at the heart of American empire. The award-winning, weekly hour, produced and hosted by Esther Iverem, covers social justice activism about local, national and international issues, with a special emphasis on militarization and war, the police state, the corporate state, environmental justice and the left edge of culture and media. “On the Ground” premiered on May Day, May 1, 2014 on WPFW 89.3 Pacifica Radio in Washington, DC and is heard now on more than two dozen non-commercial stations across the United States, as well as on all podcast platforms under “On the Ground w Esther Iverem.”

The show airs Fridays 10-11am EST on 89.3 FM, WPFW Pacifica Radio, in the Washington, D.C. DMV area and the broadcast signal also reaches into portions of Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The Friday time slot began on April 8, 2016 but the show first aired as the Thursday edition of “Community Watch and Comment,” 11 am-noon. In addition, this site, www.onthegroundshow.org, includes the podcast and permanent audio archive of the show.

The show is made possible only by our volunteer energy, our resolve to keep the people’s voices on the air, and by support from our listeners. In this new era of fake corporate news, we have to be and support our own media! Please click here or click on the Support-Donate tab on this website to subscribe for as little as $3 a month. We are so grateful for this small but growing amount of monthly crowdsource funding on Patreon. You can also give a one-time or recurring donation on PayPal. Thank you!

Thank you to these stations for airing “On the Ground”:

WPFW 89.3 Washington, DC – Friday 10 AM

WBAI 99.5 New York, NY – Most Fridays 10 AM

WKEM 98.5 Montgomery, AL – Saturday 10 AM

WRFI 88.1 Ithica, NY; 91.9 Watkins Glen, NY 

KODX 96.9 Seattle, WA 

WXIR 100.9 Rochester, NY

KSOW 106.7 Cottage Grove, OR

WPPM 106.5 Philadelphia, PA. phillycam.org

PRN.FM – Progressive Radio Network

WEFT 90.1 Champaign, IL 

KMSW-LP 101.5 San Antonio, TX 

WESU 88.1, Wesleyan University, Middleton, CT

KCPB 95.5 Modesto, CA                                            

KCEI 90.1 Taos, NM 

WRFG 89.3 Atlanta, GA 

WLLP Palenville, NY

WXOJ, Florence, MA

KWRK Fairbanks, AK

WRWK Richmond, VA

Also stations in
Corvalis, Oregon and Workforce Rising Radio

Awards
On the Ground is grateful for these grant awards:

2015-2024
The Diverse City Fund

2017, 2018, 2024
The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities for the
five-part series “Black Power at 50 in DC: 1966-2016” and the 2018 series “DC in the Era of Climate Change” Esther Iverem is also a three-time fellow in the arts and humanities.

2017
The Puffin Foundation for our monthly segment, “The F-Word,” which explores fascism today.

We we are also grateful for our small but growing number of subscribers on Patreon. Please consider supporting our grassroots media effort for as little as $3 a month here.             

Thank you!