- Author
- Axel Stanovsky, The BCC Voice (Berkeley City College student newspaper)
- Published
- 24 November 2016
- Kind
- Student newspaper feature, with one visit, one interview and named background sources
- Original
- bccvoice.wordpress.com/2016/11/24/the-bay-area-alternative-press/
- Subject
- Society and technology
- Themes
- Who holds the power
What it is
A short feature in The BCC Voice, written by a Berkeley City College student. It looks at the Bay Area Alternative Press in Berkeley. The author links the press to a national group, the National Labor Federation.
What it says
- The article says the press fronts for the National Labor Federation. It calls that group a communist network.
- The article says its background comes from a cult-watch group. Other sources are an FBI file and a 2009 SF Weekly piece.
- The article says the group faced abuse allegations. It says a raid found $42,000 cash and 49 antique firearms, with no charges filed.
- The article relays a counselor's secondhand account of a friend drawn into near full-time volunteering.
- The author calls a Halloween volunteer visit slow and pointless. The article still ends on a warning.
What evidence it gives
The evidence is one visit by two student writers and one interview. It also names three outside sources. The article does not reproduce those sources in detail. No reply from the group is quoted.
Interests and limits
This is a student feature with a strong tone. The article states that names of private citizens were changed. It reports allegations, not findings. Two reader comments dispute it, one calling it red-baiting.