Jo Anne Wallace

Former General Manager KQED-FM

Ruth was a giant, a fierce provocateur, and a great friend and mentor for many of us.  Especially those of us who were women working and leading in public radio from the 60s and 70s on.

I first knew Ruth as the Director of Programming at KPFK in Los Angeles.  KPFK, then one of four major market Pacifica Foundation stations, was well known for its creative, risk-taking news, current affairs and music and cultural programming.  

Ruth and her boss Will Lewis were running KPFK when a communique arrived from the SLA, the terrorist kidnappers of Patty Hearst.  Will refused to turn over the cassette tape to the LAPD and was jailed for it.  Ruth wholeheartedly supported his position, and the station broadcast coverage of what had happened.  Did I say she was fierce?

Ruth left KPFK in 1976 and a year or so later was hired by Santa Monica College as General Manager of KCRW-FM.  The fledgling station took off with her in charge.  She had great talent for designing an eclectic program service with quality news and public affairs plus both serious and entertaining music and drama and other cultural programming.  LA listeners loved the station, KCRW’s audience numbers soared, and its reputation as the go-to LA public radio station was known all across the country.

I miss Ruth a lot.  Her courage.  Her talents.  Her toughness at times when it mattered.  And her occasional public criticisms about developments in public radio that she felt were going in the wrong direction.  In those moments, so many of us appreciated her thoughtfulness and her independent thinking.

Ruth, rest in peace.