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Pres. Candidate Joe Walsh loses radio show

raccoonradio

raccoonradio

Nationally syndicated conservative talk host Joe Walsh announced he's running for President in the Republican Party against incumbent Pres. Donald Trump. Now Walsh says his radio show has been pulled from syndication by Salem Media (may still air in Chicago).
Equal time rule? Syndication ends Sept 26.

80 to 90 per cent of his listeners support the President, it's said. By the way his full name is William Joseph Walsh. He is not the rock singer.
https://dailycaller.com/2019/08/26/joe-walsh-radio-show-canceled/
 
Salem had no choice. Had they continued to air him, they could've been required to give a ton of time to other candidates. Walsh had to know this was coming. It is no secret that Salem is a fan of the President, but this is a completely defensible position on Salem's part.
 
raccoonradio said:
Nationally syndicated conservative talk host Joe Walsh announced he's running for President in the Republican Party against incumbent Pres. Donald Trump. Now Walsh says his radio show has been pulled from syndication by Salem Media (may still air in Chicago).
Equal time rule? Syndication ends Sept 26.

80 to 90 per cent of his listeners support the President, it's said. By the way his full name is William Joseph Walsh. He is not the rock singer.
https://dailycaller.com/2019/08/26/joe-walsh-radio-show-canceled/
Click to expand...
Wouldn't the situation be controlled by the Fairness Doctrine, which isn't a factor since it has been repealed?
 
I'm not so sure the Fairness Doctrine would negate the Equal Time rule if it were returned.Wasn't the equal time rule in effect even when Fairness Doctrine had yet to be repealed?

Wikipedia:"There are four exceptions to the equal-time rule. If the airing was within a documentary, bona fide news interview, scheduled newscast or an on-the-spot news event, the equal-time rule does not apply. Since 1983, political debates not hosted by the media station are considered "news events," and as a result, are not subject to the rule. Consequently, these debates may include only major-party candidates without having to offer air time to minor-party or independent candidates. Talk shows and other regular news programming from syndicators, such as Entertainment Tonight, are also declared exempt from the rule by the FCC on a case-by-case basis"

In Walsh's case he has/had a show hosted by him for three hours.
If the rule DID apply here the President, running as Walsh's opponent, could demand airtime for several hours a day.

Some recent articles I've seen do say that Salem pulled the show due to the equal time rule.He could continue his show on his flagship Chicago station perhaps, but Salem is stopping syndication. Though...he will lose the Chicago show too, it seems.

RadioInk:"This announcement does not affect Walsh’s local program airing on AM 560 The Answer in Chicago, however Walsh’s program will have to be removed as soon as he becomes a viable and legal candidate for President."
 
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umfan said:
Salem had no choice. Had they continued to air him, they could've been required to give a ton of time to other candidates. Walsh had to know this was coming. It is no secret that Salem is a fan of the President, but this is a completely defensible position on Salem's part.
Click to expand...

Barring the removal from office, resignation, illness or death of Trump, I can't see Walsh's campaign lasting very long. Would Salem welcome him back or will his turning against the president -- while still remaining a very conservative Republican -- make him persona non grata there?
 
umfan said:
Salem had no choice. Had they continued to air him, they could've been required to give a ton of time to other candidates. Walsh had to know this was coming. It is no secret that Salem is a fan of the President, but this is a completely defensible position on Salem's part.
Click to expand...

Correct. I remember when Reagan was running TV stations would not show his old movies
out of fear of generating equal time requests.
 
raccoonradio said:
WKBG 56 Cambridge/Boston MA had Reagan marathon Ron Till Dawn after polls closed
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LOL! I guess that makes it unlikely that any celebrity like Oprah Winfrey would ever run.
They would literally have to wipe away her media presence to avoid this kind of issue.
And frankly that's so lucrative it probably means more to people like that than getting elected.
 
FreddyE1977 said:
And frankly that's so lucrative it probably means more to people like that than getting elected.
Click to expand...

Oprah's so rich it probably wouldn't bother her. But she's very protective of her privacy, and I think she'd be unwilling to undergo that much scrutiny.

Also, as we've seen, the minute you get into this, you become a target for half of the population. That can be a tough thing to take, as we see now.

The celebrities I talk to (on both sides of the spectrum) stay out of politics for that reason.
 
raccoonradio said:
Nationally syndicated conservative talk host Joe Walsh announced he's running for President in the Republican Party against incumbent Pres. Donald Trump. Now Walsh says his radio show has been pulled from syndication by Salem Media (may still air in Chicago).
Equal time rule? Syndication ends Sept 26.

80 to 90 per cent of his listeners support the President, it's said. By the way his full name is William Joseph Walsh. He is not the rock singer.
https://dailycaller.com/2019/08/26/joe-walsh-radio-show-canceled/
Click to expand...


What he he sounds like that he no longer wanted to host a radio show, as he has been doing it since 2013 first in Chicago and a few times in sydincation
 
justgladtobehere said:
My understanding is that 'equal time' is about selling time and the Fairness Doctrine was about providing the same forum on broadcasts.
Click to expand...

Absolutely correct. These things are getting conflated, as they are prone to do on such boards. Once someone is a qualified candidate, certain rules (with carve-outs for bonafide news) come into play that can be invoked by other qualified candidates in the same race. Most often that's going to be ad sales time, but airing other appearances by the individuals can trigger such requirements.

A great real-world example of this in action is summarized here:https://www.multichannel.com/news/trump-snl-hosting-triggers-fcc-time-requirements-394529
 
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