BREAKING NEWS: AAR Has Just Declared Chapter 11 - Staying On Air-Will Reorganize

[radiophiler]

Back to what works for liberal talk:

How about satire and a "I don't take myself as seriously as Rush" delivery? Stephanie Miller has made this work. I agree that in-your-face liberalism does not work.

My ideal liberal talk show host would have a great sense of humor, be a real entertainer as well as being knowledgable about current events, and would have plenty of interviews where the guests really get a chance to speak. Some short "bits" thrown in every once in a while would add to the entertainment value.

I don't think a liberal talk show needs to sound like NPR. But I agree (partially) with Mr. Flintstone that copying the commercial radio conservative hosts definitely isn't the correct way to go.

 

[evnlee]

Now we have some examples of the level of discourse practiced in the 'progressive' community.

Gloating when your candidate wins an election is one thing. Gloating over the problems of a radio format to which you don't listen and whose fortunes do not affect either you or the personalities to which you do listen is nasty, mean-spirited and petty. But those are the kind of people who tend to become ditto-heads and those are the qualities that Rush and the others play to and exploit.

awww....too many hurt feewings this weekend.

Guys like Al Franken are geting 'spoonful' of thier own medicine, and karma wins again.

Now, sure Franken is anything but 'mean spirited', right? I mean look at his own appearances. The book signing with O Liely? Yeah, that's nice, civil discourse there. Political rally's? He bodyslams protestors. He writes novels calling people 'fat'.

Now his ridiculous 'network' is a laughingstock, bankrupt, and he's not even getting paid.

Wallow in it. I'm laughing at those fools. Ha ha

and guys like FI cant take it. Like when he calls out the Zwerlings. Poor baby. Stephanie Miller will get AAR's gig and I like her, so I'm happy, he's sorry.

nothing you can say or do will change these facts: AAR is bankrupt. They failed. gloat away!!!

 

[FightingIrish]

Now we have some examples of the level of discourse practiced in the 'progressive' community.

Gloating when your candidate wins an election is one thing. Gloating over the problems of a radio format to which you don't listen and whose fortunes do not affect either you or the personalities to which you do listen is nasty, mean-spirited and petty. But those are the kind of people who tend to become ditto-heads and those are the qualities that Rush and the others play to and exploit.

awww....too many hurt feewings this weekend.

Guys like Al Franken are geting 'spoonful' of thier own medicine, and karma wins again.

Now, sure Franken is anything but 'mean spirited', right? I mean look at his own appearances. The book signing with O Liely? Yeah, that's nice, civil discourse there. Political rally's? He bodyslams protestors. He writes novels calling people 'fat'.

Now his ridiculous 'network' is a laughingstock, bankrupt, and he's not even getting paid.

Wallow in it. I'm laughing at those fools. Ha ha

and guys like FI cant take it. Like when he calls out the Zwerlings. Poor baby. Stephanie Miller will get AAR's gig and I like her, so I'm happy, he's sorry.

nothing you can say or do will change these facts: AAR is bankrupt. They failed. gloat away!!!

[EDIT]

As for AAR's bankruptcy, I honestly don't think anyone expected them not to file. No big deal there.

And for someone who thinks he's bulletproof from criticism, [EDIT]

And no, my feelings aren't hurt. I don't get affected much by [EDIT]

[EDITinflammatory]

 

[evnlee]

And no, my feelings aren't hurt. I don't get affected much by drive-by trolls.

aww, there there little man. buck up, now. tommorrow's another day, just keep thinking positive!

were all sure filing chapter 11 is a good thing. now, Err Amerika has a....plan to succeed. Now all they need is for a judge to sign off on it :

Meanwhile Ed Schultz cant run away fast enough from that trainwreck, and Stephanie Miller will pick up all the pieces of thier blown up affiliates.

Try to find your happy place!

 

[fred flintstone]

Back to what works for liberal talk:

How about satire and a "I don't take myself as seriously as Rush" delivery? Stephanie Miller has made this work. I agree that in-your-face liberalism does not work.

My ideal liberal talk show host would have a great sense of humor, be a real entertainer as well as being knowledgable about current events, and would have plenty of interviews where the guests really get a chance to speak. Some short "bits" thrown in every once in a while would add to the entertainment value.

I don't think a liberal talk show needs to sound like NPR. But I agree (partially) with Mr. Flintstone that copying the commercial radio conservative hosts definitely isn't the correct way to go.

I agree. I wouldn't make commercial progressive talk sound like "Fresh Air" or "Talk of the Nation." But I think public radio comes a lot closer to the mark than AAR ever has. The ideal mood for me would be sitting in a bar with Scott Simon after he's had a couple of beers. Still knowledgeable and thoughtful but he's lightened up and loosened his tie.

I'd stay away from comedians (maybe some very selective use of produced bits). Al Franken could be funny on Saturday Night Live because his stuff, along with everybody else's, was written, re-written, edited, re-written again and then most of it was thrown out. Only the good stuff made it to air. Nobody - nobody - is consistently funny, especially for 15 hours a week of live radio, even really funny comedians, let alone Franken.

And the only people who do really funny political humor are those who are equal opportunity - anybody is a potential target. Their only agenda is humor (and maybe deflating egos). Nobody has ever made advocacy political humor work. The only broadcasters who ever - ever - influence anybody are non-advocacy comedians. Letterman can do Bush is an idiot jokes and people laugh and start thinking Bush IS an idiot. Letterman can do it because (1) He's funny and (2) Because he will also do Clinton is a lech jokes.

 

[FightingIrish]

And no, my feelings aren't hurt. I don't get affected much by drive-by trolls.

aww, there there little man. buck up, now. tommorrow's another day, just keep thinking positive!

were all sure filing chapter 11 is a good thing. now, Err Amerika has a....plan to succeed. Now all they need is for a judge to sign off on it :

Meanwhile Ed Schultz cant run away fast enough from that trainwreck, and Stephanie Miller will pick up all the pieces of thier blown up affiliates.

Try to find your happy place!

What the hell is your point?

 

[HHH]

Herb999:

I just read your post. You illustrate exactly why I can't stand this garbage dump called "talk radio" in 2006.

Callers and hosts on the right and callers and hosts on the left just keep trotting out a bunch of grade-school insults and comic-book stereotypes (like you just did) and all they do is spread misinformation and hatred. Both sides are guilty. Pacifica is just as demonizing as Rush. I have no idea why any rational human being with 2 ounces of brains posts "hurray for our side" messages regarding Liberal OR Conservative talk radio. Each advocates a political party who are equally corrupt, equally self-righteous, and equally ineffective.

But these days, sports mentality has taken over our political process completely. Pick a team, and root for them. Crush the opposition.
Beat up anyone wearing the opposing team's jersey. Slash the tires of out-of-state cars in the parking lot of the stadium.

Talk radio (and you) sound like those callers on Sports-talk that you hear around World Series time. You know what I am talking about.
Tune in WFAN New York a couple of falls ago and you heard how everybody in Boston is a moron, can't talk, screws their daughters, you name it. Tune in WEEI in Boston, and everyone in New York is a fool, a dumbell, an uneducated idiot, etc.

Talk radio, the last few years, has been reduced to this level.

Meantime the country is going to hell in a handbag, and everyone is too busy playing a game and trying to get points on the board for their team.

OK, Herb, congratulations. Your "team" is "ahead". Now what?

 

[e-menace]

No kidding, they are a syndicated company? I would have never guessed having worked in radio since 1994 that caught me totally by surprise!

And that fact that KPTK won't go off the air doesn't matter much either since there is KUOW or KPLU to replace them if they did.

When I did listen I noticed they spent a lot of time complaining, insulting, pandering, screeching, etc., like liberals do instead of suggesting ANY ideas, alternatives, or good things of any note.

 

[Ultimajock]

Meanwhile, Big Ed Schultz is taking pains to remind listeners and the industry that AAR has "nothing to do" with The Ed Schultz Show.

...that's hardly news -- Schultz has been doing that since the first day AAR went on and the networks were asking him for sound bites about it...

 

[fred flintstone]

Finally, a blogger gets it.

When the news hit on Friday that Air America, the “Liberal-Talk Radio Network” that was comedian Al Frankin’s brainchild, had filed for bankruptcy, most of the mainstream radio hosts chortled with glee. They all knew that the Air America experiment was destined to fail but not, as some would have you believe, because no one wanted to listen to the Liberal viewpoint. Air America failed (and will probably, eventually, go off the air unless it makes some drastic changes) because it was not really a radio network — it was simply a radio show with a network wrapped around it; a radio show dedicated to one political point of view. You can’t say that about the vast majority of other radio networks or about any of the successful radio networks.
Read Full Article

Good article. Worth reading.

Whymrhymer observes that AAR has been losing money since it launched, yet never changed its format and did nothing more than a "superficial rearrangment" of the program schedule. He says this is because their only purpose has been to send the liberal message. This has been the root of their problems.

He also points that the conservative hosts are "cogs in the greater gear" of large broadcasting organizations (Clear Channel, ABC, CBS/Westwood One, etc.). If audience numbers fade, they are gone. Because, "A radio network . . . a real radio network . . . is a business and like any other business it lives on profit and will reorganize its staff, schedule and format if that profit dwindles." Real radio networks, but not AAR. However, Whymrhymer mentions the greater success of Jones Radio in progressive talk radio - noting they DO operate as a real radio network.

Note: Real radio networks are not to be confused with Real Networks. ;D

 

[dampier]

Folks... politics do -not- belong here. There is a board here called Off the Air which many of you already know about which is a fine place to take Democrat this and Republican that. It does not belong on this board. I write just as much in OTA as I do here, and I am reading the same kinds of discussions in both and I shouldn't have to.

Let's get some control over ourselves.

 

[fred flintstone]

Folks... politics do -not- belong here. There is a board here called Off the Air which many of you already know about which is a fine place to take Democrat this and Republican that. It does not belong on this board. I write just as much in OTA as I do here, and I am reading the same kinds of discussions in both and I shouldn't have to.

Let's get some control over ourselves.

Phil, there are handful of people whose only purpose in posting seems to be to stir up shit, disrupt the conversation and derail a thread. Their posts are not political (which I agree don't belong). They are cheap shot insults and juvenile taunts under the guise of politics. If this is politics, it's the kind associated with a race for 4th grade class president.

I say, ignore them. I've gotten hooked and responded in kind to them. And then they win their childish game.
If a post offers nothing substantive or worthwhile, don't reply, don't get sucked in. If a post really crosses the line, report it. They clearly don't want to talk about radio. And they want to keep us from talking about it, too. If we keep talking about radio, they'll get bored and go away.

 

[fred flintstone]

The New York Daily News (mostly) excellent radio writer, David Hinckley, reports observations on AAR's bankruptcy:
Air America future? Radio watchers split

Some sample comments:

Michael Harrison, Talkers Magazine.

"They don't seem to understand this is a business. If you can't pay your bills, none of the rest matters. I have nothing against Air America, but when you seem to think you don't have to pay your creditors because you're on a higher mission that's more important, you lose my sympathy."

Rush Limbaugh, Premiere Radio Networks

"It's not that they're not funny enough or anything else. They just aren't any good. You can't just put idiots on the radio and expect 20 million listeners."

Phil Boyce, program director, WABC Talkradio 77

"They don't take any of our listeners and they serve people who want their kind of talk They also provide us cover. When people complain that talk radio just bashes liberals, I can say, look, here's this whole other side."

Tom Taylor, Inside Radio (owned by Clear Channel)

"People like Rush or Howard Stern spent years learning radio before they became who they are today. Air America's whole existence has been like taking a shower in a glass house. In several cities where Air America has a station with a strong signal, like Portland, San Diego and Miami, it's done well. The market is there."

Rush and Howard spent years in the bush leagues of the radio business before they tried to go national. Except for Randy and Malloy, AAR hired radio newbies. And the guys in suits behind Rush and Howard (Ed McLaughlin, Randy Michaels, Mel Karmazin) also spent years climbing the radio totem pole before they tried to manage national operations. AAR didn't hire anybody like them either. And in the three markets mentioned those progressive talk stations (all stations owned and operated by Clear Channel Radio) get the majority of the weekday program elsewhere than Air America Radio. They provide evidence progressive talk can do well; not that AAR has done well.

 

[Herb999]

Yes Baroosk, Everyone who doesn't think promos that imply Bush being shot are funny and the reality of it happening a good thing need right wing rehab, yes all of us who go by facts and not hate based emotions and lies need to enter, well let's get the real name right from historical figures and events that match people like you and your ideology today, re-education camps.

 

[raccoonradio]

Limbaugh: "You can't just put idiots on the radio and expect 20 million listeners."

Franken's book called Rush a big fat idiot, but that "idiot" has about 19,900,000 more listeners than
Franken. Back to SNL, Stuart. "Talent on loan from Oxy Contin!"

 

[raccoonradio]

Schulz (syndie by Jones) distancing himself from AAR (and rightly so, as AAR does not prod. his program):
"The Ed Schultz Show, today assured his listeners and fans that his show is independently owned, operated and in no danger of bankruptcy or other financial obstacles."

again, don't be too surprised if you see that AAR logo disappearing (or shrinking in size) on the sites of many prog-talk stations who air a blend of AAR and other shows.

 

[radioplayer]

Amen to that! The folks here who like the way Limbaugh's doing his show (all entertainment-not factual mind you) ought to be the first ones to say it's okay for liberals and Air America to do the same. If you don't like what's going on, better campaign to the FCC for section 315 to be reinstated.

 

[fred flintstone]

Drobny: AAR a "Failure"

Sheldon Drobny has posted "Dr" Mike Newcomb's announcement of the start of Nova M's one-show, one-station "network" to the Huffington Post, with the following preamble:

Going Forward with Progressive Talk

As I reported to you in my 10/14 post, the Drobnys are dedicated to building upon the wide open market that has been established in liberal talk radio. The failure of AAR was a business failure caused by terrible managerial decisions, but that does not mean that liberal talk radio is finished. On the contrary, the dream I had 4 years ago is a reality in that there now is a lot of interest in syndicating liberal talk show hosts. And there are many radio station owners who have committed themselves to a full 24/7 liberal format including XM Satellite and Sirius Satellite. In that regard, I am posting a letter from our CEO, Dr. Mike Newcombe (sic).

Translation: Up yours, Rob!

 

[bossforever]

It's already being discussed in news-talk. They are not going off the air. All programming will continue as normal while they reorganize their financing.

stations such as KLSD in San Diego should just admit things aren't working and dump them and do their own thing probably a tax right off for clear channel in san diego or stacy taylor an dhis group are in denial


Continue as normal? Oh lovely. More screams, screeches, whining, and crying.

 

[fred flintstone]

Re: BREAKING NEWS: AAR Has Just Declared Chapter 11 - Staying On Air-Will Reorga

Folks... politics do -not- belong here. There is a board here called Off the Air which many of you already know about which is a fine place to take Democrat this and Republican that. It does not belong on this board. I write just as much in OTA as I do here, and I am reading the same kinds of discussions in both and I shouldn't have to.

Let's get some control over ourselves.

The "Managing Editor" sent me a PM threatening to move this entire thread to Off-Air. 14 pages and 138 posts. Most of them on point contributions to the topic. But the usual suspects still try to throw a monkey wrench into the works with their usual attacks and insults (given unwitting help by those who reply and give the disruptors an excuse to continue). Now, the moderators have decided it's too much trouble to deal with this problem directly. So they are saying they will kick this thread over to the p___fest board, and let those who revel in childish political argument have their way.