Alliance Moves to Fund Progressive Talk

[fred flintstone]

The following is NOT from Brian Maloney or some RW Blog but from The Washington Post. The Center for American Progress produces Bill Press' syndicated morning drive progressive talk show. The article says this group now wants to put money into Air America Radio. The question is whether progressive talk radio can be - and can be seen as - an independent voice with this kind of backing. Already, on the conservative side of talk radio, Rush and other hosts have been criticized as "mouthpieces" for the administration and/or the Republican Party, not as people who speak for grassroots conservatives. Could the same kind of thing happen to progressive talk?

Washington Post (Excerpts):

[EDIT]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/16/AR2006071600882.html

[EDIT=fair use issues, kept link]

 

[MightyFrenchman]

Already, on the conservative side of talk radio, Rush and other hosts have been criticized as "mouthpieces" for the administration and/or the Republican Party, not as people who speak for grassroots conservatives. Could the same kind of thing happen to progressive talk?

Boy, I hope not! If Rush were to speak for grassroots conservatives and actually had grassroots conservatives listening to his program instead of just the RNC & administration staff, he'd have decent ratings. Wait a minute....

 

[robbbc]

Mighty Frenchman has a point. The best conservative talkers occaisionally take issue with the party and/or administration. They do so very carefully. Case in point, Supreme court nominations. Anyone who truly does just spout administration BS won't last long on any radio format- left or right.

As for the funding issues:
The debate has already has people taking sides on the left and has been discussed to death. Can you compete with the republicans without playing their game? The AAR proponents, DailyKOS people, etc have all chimed in saying no. You have to follow the pattern conservatives have created. Folks at the DLC and the Party Leaders, all living in their 1960s menatality, say yes. We must rise above the conservatives, not lower ourselves to name calling, character assasination, what have you. I agree with the AAR/blogosphere people, but I am in the minority. Probably due to the fact that I was raised a Republican and converted. Any and all funds should be happily accepted.

 

[KeithE4]

Mighty Frenchman has a point. The best conservative talkers occaisionally take issue with the party and/or administration. They do so very carefully. Case in point, Supreme court nominations.

Rush has been known to take on both Bush administrations when they didn't act like true conservatives, especially on fiscal matters. Neither Dubya nor Daddy are fiscal conservatives, something Rush has noted frequently...at least until the last couple of years when Rush has sounded more like Hannity (just more civil) than ever before.

Anyone who truly does just spout administration BS won't last long on any radio format- left or right.

How long has Hannity been broadcasting? ;D He's been spouting the strict Republican Party line since Day One - far more-so than Rush until recently. Hannity rarely veers from the official talking points, and he's probably the #2 syndicated political talker after Limbaugh.

As for the funding issues:
The debate has already has people taking sides on the left and has been discussed to death. Can you compete with the republicans without playing their game? The AAR proponents, DailyKOS people, etc have all chimed in saying no. You have to follow the pattern conservatives have created. Folks at the DLC and the Party Leaders, all living in their 1960s menatality, say yes. We must rise above the conservatives, not lower ourselves to name calling, character assasination, what have you. I agree with the AAR/blogosphere people, but I am in the minority. Probably due to the fact that I was raised a Republican and converted. Any and all funds should be happily accepted.

Funding and attitude/entertainment value are apples and oranges. You have to be entertaining as well as political. Rush knows this. Franken does to, but it still doesn't show on the air. I've always thought Franken was a funnier guy than he shows on AAR (even though I rarely agree with him).

Those who just yell and scream (Rhodes, Savage) may get some ink, but does anybody important of either political stripe really take them seriously? The sanctimonious (sp?) dullards like Mike Newcombe in Phoenix or the entire Salem lineup just aren't entertaining and therefore not relevent.

But how AAR is funded is entirely their own business so long as it's legal (AFAIK it is). If they accept donations, then fine. If they sell ads, fine too.

 

[gr8oldies]

Somehow the left still doesn't get the fact that they can't buy an audience. A host either makes it or they don't.

 

[robbbc]

Somehow the left still doesn't get the fact that they can't buy an audience. A host either makes it or they don't.

Which comes the first, the chicken or the egg? You need the real estate first, then you need the host. The left gets it, it just hasn't got a good "Rush" personality right now and some rather dreary radio real estate. These things take time and money. But you are right- without the personality, advertisers and the audience then all is for naught (or just a reverse Salem operation).

 

[Scribbler]

Somehow the left still doesn't get the fact that they can't buy an audience. A host either makes it or they don't.

What the right seems to forget is that the Fox News Channel lost money
for FIVE YEARS (from 1996 to 2001) and only survived because its right-wing owner (Rupert Murdoch) was determined to have it succeed and poured many tens of millions into the operation before it finally turned a profit. Or maybe he didn't really care if it made money or not, since he's owned the New York Post for much longer than that and it continues to lose tens of millions each year. But it "succeeds" in the sense that it serves as a vehicle for his conservative views.

 

[Scribbler]

The Center for American Progress produces Bill Press' syndicated morning drive progressive talk show. The article says this group now wants to put money into Air America Radio.

That's not what the article says. It says that some members of Democracy Alliance have put money into the Center for American Progress and that some members of Democracy Alliance are "negotiating" putting money into Air America. But Democracy Alliance and the Center for American Progess are different organizations.

 

[dampier]

I am not sure what they want to do with the money. Buy stations? Develop a real news department? Program development?

I think AAR is smart enough to build a firewall between content and funding. I don't fear we'll suddenly get love love kiss kiss programming from all of the AAR hosts, especially considering people like Randi and Mike Malloy, but they'd better be able to demonstrate such a firewall to protect the integrity of their programming.

 

[gr8oldies]

Rush had some pretty lousy real estate at the outset. He earned the good real estate. If someone had placed the current Salem lineup on even relatively good facilities, it would not have the success of Rush. As for FNC, maybe Murdoch did put tons of money into it, but eventually it found an audience by entertaining a portion of the audience ehich, rightly or wrongly, felt it was underserved. As has often been said here and elsewhere, AAR needs to decide if its a buisness or a mission. We can argue whether or not CBS, ABC, NBC, CNN et al are biased to the left. I've always contended that liberals are getting their views and values validated in lots of other places. Comedy. sitcoms, movies, pretty much you name it. Even AAR backers seem to have given up on the idea of liberal talk "winning converts".

 

[b344077]

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine

 

[MightyFrenchman]

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine

I don't know if that's such a good idea. CBS, NBC, ABC, AP and Reuters would then have to start presenting unbiased news coverage rather than merely continue to present it with a left-wing perspective. It might not be applied to CNN since it only has 28 viewers.

 

[RBA]

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine

I don't know if that's such a good idea. CBS, NBC, ABC, AP and Reuters would then have to start presenting unbiased news coverage rather than merely continue to present it with a left-wing perspective. It might not be applied to CNN since it only has 28 viewers.

Left wing perspective? I thought conservatives didn't take drugs?

 

[CWRUFan]

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine

I don't know if that's such a good idea. CBS, NBC, ABC, AP and Reuters would then have to start presenting unbiased news coverage rather than merely continue to present it with a left-wing perspective. It might not be applied to CNN since it only has 28 viewers.

Left wing perspective? I thought conservatives didn't take drugs?

<cough> Limbaugh <cough>

 

[MightyFrenchman]

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine

I don't know if that's such a good idea. CBS, NBC, ABC, AP and Reuters would then have to start presenting unbiased news coverage rather than merely continue to present it with a left-wing perspective. It might not be applied to CNN since it only has 28 viewers.

Left wing perspective? I thought conservatives didn't take drugs?

You seem astonished that there's a left-wing bias in the major networks' news presentations. You must not have watched the news in say, 38 years.

 

[RBA]

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine

I don't know if that's such a good idea. CBS, NBC, ABC, AP and Reuters would then have to start presenting unbiased news coverage rather than merely continue to present it with a left-wing perspective. It might not be applied to CNN since it only has 28 viewers.

Left wing perspective? I thought conservatives didn't take drugs?

You seem astonished that there's a left-wing bias in the major networks' news presentations. You must not have watched the news in say, 38 years.

Yup, that's it.

I think you should spend some time over at www.mediamatters.org to get educated. ;D

 

[gr8oldies]

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine? Ya gottta be kidding. We get all gardening and home repair shows. Sorry, you can't make anyone listen to what they don't want to. There are too many other options.