Talk Radio - Credibility Issues

[Bill-in-CT]

Conservative talkers this week spent a lot of time pushing Christine O'Donnell's candidacy for the U.S. Senate from DE. Hannity and Levin on primary day and the day before basically did wall-to-wall infomercials for her. It appears these hosts are more interested in hawking a candidate from a small state than they are in conducting real issue-oriented talk shows for their nationwide audiences. I feel this kind of agenda-driven radio adversely affects the the credibility of the hosts and the stations that carry their shows.

 

[Talk_Dude]

Conservative talkers this week spent a lot of time pushing Christine O'Donnell's candidacy for the U.S. Senate from DE. Hannity and Levin on primary day and the day before basically did wall-to-wall infomercials for her. It appears these hosts are more interested in hawking a candidate from a small state than they are in conducting real issue-oriented talk shows for their nationwide audiences. I feel this kind of agenda-driven radio adversely affects the the credibility of the hosts and the stations that carry their shows.

I fear you have it wrong. Radio talk show hosts are more interested in doing an entertaining show that attracts a large audience than anything else. Credibility isn't an issue for news/talk radio -- ratings are an issue. That's true for hosts and it's true for stations. Worrying about credibility stopped sometime in the 1980's. All that matters now is a certain amount of truthiness.

 

[quadraphonic]

Maybe getting O'Donnell elected was their issue orientation this week?

 

[SeanMGilbow]

Conservative talkers this week spent a lot of time pushing Christine O'Donnell's candidacy for the U.S. Senate from DE. Hannity and Levin on primary day and the day before basically did wall-to-wall infomercials for her. It appears these hosts are more interested in hawking a candidate from a small state than they are in conducting real issue-oriented talk shows for their nationwide audiences. I feel this kind of agenda-driven radio adversely affects the the credibility of the hosts and the stations that carry their shows.

I fear you have it wrong. Radio talk show hosts are more interested in doing an entertaining show that attracts a large audience than anything else. Credibility isn't an issue for news/talk radio -- ratings are an issue. That's true for hosts and it's true for stations. Worrying about credibility stopped sometime in the 1980's. All that matters now is a certain amount of truthiness.

Which means we should expect more masturbation jokes in the coming weeks.

Much as I was tempted, I avoided deliberately misspelling a certain word since it would likely be edited.

 

[livingfruitvirus]

I fear you have it wrong. Radio talk show hosts are more interested in doing an entertaining show that attracts a large audience than anything else. Credibility isn't an issue for news/talk radio -- ratings are an issue. That's true for hosts and it's true for stations. Worrying about credibility stopped sometime in the 1980's. All that matters now is a certain amount of truthiness.

Personality driven talk radio shows are first and foremost entertainment programs, and shouldn't be looked to as facts dispensers. However it sometimes feels they want to be taken seriously, but still keep the entertainment defense around in case someone takes their word for something that turns out to be false.

 

[pellmell]

Personality driven talk radio shows are first and foremost entertainment programs, and shouldn't be looked to as facts dispensers.

The same is true for network TV "news" shows. They've been in the bag for liberals since the sixties. No one could accuse Katie Couric of being a journalist.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Credibility isn't an issue for news/talk radio -- ratings are an issue. That's true for hosts and it's true for stations. Worrying about credibility stopped sometime in the 1980's. All that matters now is a certain amount of truthiness.

Restated, "All that matters now is to be just a little bit pregnant."

We have some variation of this conversation over and over and over again. The "entertainers" who spend a significant amount of their time and energy bashing those politicians who lack intregrity, are exempt from any requirement or expectation of integrity.

And then they garb themselves in the image of "Family Values" and "We need to take this country back for God!"

We always have the possibility that one of these days that God may get pissed at all this and the results may not be pretty.

Come to think of it, if enough American citizens finally have had it "up to here" as the saying goes, that may not be pretty either.

And the day the pastor at my church stands to explain the Ten Commandments and retranslates it: "Thou shalt not bear false witness except when doing a radio talk show".... will be a pretty nasty day too.

With all the heat and debate over illegal immigrants, and becoming citizens the legal way, someone who has been through the naturalization process tell me something: Is there a section of the training for new citizens that covers when having integrity is expected, and when integrity may be dismissed without a second thought. I don't remember that section being taught during my years of education. Where can I get a copy of those rules and expectations?