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Nuz

And the Beat Goes On

Just as things were starting to look bright for local public radio station KUSP after the ugly station board of directors/Marcia Kraus mudfest, it looks like it's time to put on the galoshes again. The latest salvo is being fired by former volunteer Barry Boland, who has filed a $25,000 lawsuit in Santa Cruz Municipal Court against KUSP's Pataphysical Foundation for defamation, slander and libel.

According to Boland, who began volunteering at KUSP in 1990, he left the station during the trying times of former manager Marcia Kraus, who was eventually fired and then sued the station for wrongful termination. When he tried to return after Kraus' departure, he was urged to find other outlets for his creativity. Boland says KUSP staffers waged a campaign of slander, gossip and defamation against him behind his back.

Although KUSP station manager Peter Troxell declined to comment, KUSP attorney Gordon Salisbury sighed, "A station like KUSP that is volunteer-driven has to open its door to a wide range of the community. However, once the volunteers come in, it's the responsibility of the staff and the board to determine people's skills and limitations and I think Mr. Boland had a difficult time accepting the fact that he had limitations."

Or, as another anonymous source concludes, "Places like KUSP attract people with a lot of time on their hands and self-interest to promote. You connect the dots."

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