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Lionel Gets No Respect

D

dampier

As I suggested in earlier posts, the torches have been lit and the mobs are forming to protest the presence of Lionel on Air America Radio. Complaints and negative calls are continuing to come in to Air America about his replacement of Sam Seder. Although some on the right have thrown Lionel into the "liberal Democrat" camp, he certainly isn't, and he's being demonized into the number three most-hated "liberal host" (behind Alan Colmes and Ed Schultz).
 
A real tolerant bunch of listeners there, eh?
I like him and I like listenting to some of the AAR hosts and hosts such as Schultz and Miller as well as Mike Malloy.
 
Phillip Dampier said:
As I suggested in earlier posts, the torches have been lit and the mobs are forming to protest the presence of Lionel on Air America Radio. Complaints and negative calls are continuing to come in to Air America about his replacement of Sam Seder. Although some on the right have thrown Lionel into the "liberal Democrat" camp, he certainly isn't, and he's being demonized into the number three most-hated "liberal host" (behind Alan Colmes and Ed Schultz).
Click to expand...

Phillip, a question:

is the angry mob mad because Seder is gone, or mad because they don't like Lionel?

I'm confused. Ed Schultz is not a libtalkers? Is Lionel right wing now? Help me out here....
 
Lionel used to be somewhat of a libertarian. It's been awhile since I've heard his show so I don't know for sure where he's at these days.
 
Don62 said:
A real tolerant bunch of listeners there, eh?
I like him and I like listenting to some of the AAR hosts and hosts such as Schultz and Miller as well as Mike Malloy.
Click to expand...

Is this meant as a joke? Schultz, Miller, and Malloy have nothing to do with Air America.
 
evnlee said:
Phillip, a question:

is the angry mob mad because Seder is gone, or mad because they don't like Lionel?

I'm confused. Ed Schultz is not a libtalkers? Is Lionel right wing now? Help me out here....
Click to expand...

One of the complainers seemed to sum it up when he complained that the 48-year old Lionel is not "young" or "hip" enough. He sounds like a liberal to me, although he doesn't agree with most libs about gun laws.
 
NewsVet said:
He sounds like a liberal to me, although he doesn't agree with most libs about gun laws.
Click to expand...

And neither does Ed Schultz. Maybe this is part of the strategy. Strengthen liberal talk by moving to the right. :)
 
NewsVet said:
Don62 said:
A real tolerant bunch of listeners there, eh?
I like him and I like listenting to some of the AAR hosts and hosts such as Schultz and Miller as well as Mike Malloy.
Click to expand...

Is this meant as a joke? Schultz, Miller, and Malloy have nothing to do with Air America.
Click to expand...
Read the post. I said AAR hosts and hosts such as.
I know those three aren't a part of AAR.
 
NewsVet said:
One of the complainers seemed to sum it up when he complained that the 48-year old Lionel is not "young" or "hip" enough. He sounds like a liberal to me, although he doesn't agree with most libs about gun laws.
Click to expand...

Trouble is, most "young, hip" people don't listen to AM radio, much less AM talk radio. Trying to appeal to them with AM talk, whether right or left wing is a losing battle.
 
Who cares anyway? Stephanie Miller owns the time period for libtalk.

If Lionel is funny in an empty forest does anybody laugh?
 
Al Johnson said:
Who cares anyway? Stephanie Miller owns the time period for libtalk.

If Lionel is funny in an empty forest does anybody laugh?
Click to expand...

The thinking seems to be that Lionel appeals to a different demographic than Miller, while Seder was trying (and failing) to appeal to the same crowd that enjoys Miller's brand of humor.
 
Going down the list of current and former hosts over there at AAR, the common denominator is a lack of radio experience and/or background. Their historical roster is littered with writers, comedians, musicians, actors, TV people. The few people who I did read about having radio history mostly did so in the community format. They're not professionals.

Lionel is a professional. He's been doing talk for 19 years now--and getting a paycheck from it. This is what is needed in order for AAR to succeed.

How long this lasts, who knows. Lionel's views tend to shift left to right depending on who is in the White House. He seems to distrust those at the top, regardless of whether a D or R is next to the name. What I'm saying is, if a Democrat gets elected in 08, he may become even more unpopular with AAR's listeners. For now, he's a good addition.
 
SG78 said:
Going down the list of current and former hosts over there at AAR, the common denominator is a lack of radio experience and/or background. Their historical roster is littered with writers, comedians, musicians, actors, TV people. The few people who I did read about having radio history mostly did so in the community format. They're not professionals.

Lionel is a professional. He's been doing talk for 19 years now--and getting a paycheck from it. This is what is needed in order for AAR to succeed.

How long this lasts, who knows. Lionel's views tend to shift left to right depending on who is in the White House. He seems to distrust those at the top, regardless of whether a D or R is next to the name. What I'm saying is, if a Democrat gets elected in 08, he may become even more unpopular with AAR's listeners. For now, he's a good addition.
Click to expand...

Thom Hartmann, Randi Rhodes, and Mark Riley (who will be hosting a four-hour evening show beginning on Monday) all have many years of radio experience.

And Lionel is strongly opposed to the Iraq misadventure, against torture, for abortion rights, against the "war on drugs," etc., etc. -- all "liberal" positions. In fact, I find him to be more "liberal" than most mainstream Dems, including Bill and Hillary Clinton. And Lionel may be unpopular with Sam Seder's fans (who don't think Lionel is "young" or "hip" enough), but they're a relatively tiny (although vocal) group.
 
The age difference between Lionel and Seder is what -- nine years? That's a generation gap? We're not talking Johnny Carson versus Arsenio Hall territory here.
 
smedge2006 said:
The age difference between Lionel and Seder is what -- nine years? That's a generation gap? We're not talking Johnny Carson versus Arsenio Hall territory here.
Click to expand...

Johnny Carson b. 1925
Arsenio Hall b. 1955

Lionel (Michael William LeBron) b. 1958
Sam Seder b. 1966

Lionel, Randi Rhodes and Thom Hartmann are radio careerists. The rest of Air America's line-up is light on prior experience and at best dabbled in radio previously.
 
smedge2006 said:
The age difference between Lionel and Seder is what -- nine years? That's a generation gap? We're not talking Johnny Carson versus Arsenio Hall territory here.
Click to expand...

I suspect that many of Seder's fans would be surprised to learn that he's (shudder) 40. But he did feature a lot of young bloggers, and it is possible to be much "hipper" than somebody who's nine years older (or even nine years younger). Certainly Jon Stewart (44) is hipper than a lot of people in their 30s.
 
Al Johnson said:
Lionel, Randi Rhodes and Thom Hartmann are radio careerists. The rest of Air America's line-up is light on prior experience and at best dabbled in radio previously.
Click to expand...

Mark Riley (who will be hosting a new program from 8pm to Midnight, ET) has been a "radio careerist" for longer than any of those people.
 
NewsVet said:
Al Johnson said:
Lionel, Randi Rhodes and Thom Hartmann are radio careerists. The rest of Air America's line-up is light on prior experience and at best dabbled in radio previously.
Click to expand...

Mark Riley (who will be hosting a new program from 8pm to Midnight, ET) has been a "radio careerist" for longer than any of those people.
Click to expand...

To work at that level, experience and talent are required. Yes, Riley does have experience. And Air America's "core constituency" have been complaining about the lack of "diversity" in their on-air staff since day one. They can't keep their liberal credentials polished by firing the only non-White on the air full time, no matter how untalented he is.
 
Al Johnson said:
To work at that level, experience and talent are required. Yes, Riley does have experience. And Air America's "core constituency" have been complaining about the lack of "diversity" in their on-air staff since day one. They can't keep their liberal credentials polished by firing the only non-White on the air full time, no matter how untalented he is.
Click to expand...

Air America's "core constituency?" Do you mean the couple of people who have been raising this issue over and over again on some liberal message boards? I could repeatedly post under a couple of screen names on several conservative message boards and push one of my pet issues, but that wouldn't mean that I was speaking for the conservative movement's "core constituency."

And as for "diversity" on Air America, Lionel is Hispanic.
 
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