Will Local Clients Flee Limbaugh

[therealjm12]

Then there's this...
http://defendrush.org/

This is why radio guys are great (except Rush).

 

[JustPastBuffalo]

Collateral damage?

• “It’s time for this to cool off and start going away”, says one radio operator. He doesn’t carry the Rush show, but he’s worried about the long-term damage to radio and specifically talk radio. One market manager who does have Rush says “If this sort of thing holds from the protests, the only home for political talk will be on Sirius XM – a discovery Dr. Laura made before the rest of us did.”

So the question is, will Limbaugh's comments and history have a negative effect on commercial talk radio as it's done today. In a radio conversation yesterday, a veteran AM broadcaster told me "AM has about five years, then it's done. Every AM talk operator wants an FM or a translator because they know the end is in sight."

• Some advertisers are now asking stations to submit Rush-free programming grids. That's to ensure that their spots don’t air inside the Limbaugh program. One TRI reader says “Safeway is among the clients now asking for such programming grids for every daypart. And it’s not just Rush, it’s other controversial programming.” Late last week, TRI reported the Premiere memo about keeping 98 clients away from controversial programming, and on Monday the story about the two-week “barter holiday” for all barter spots carried by Premiere’s news/talk affiliates.

The Safeway advisory is interesting, not only because of the policy, but because of the name, "safe way." Will Safeway's advertising restrictions spread to other female-based companies and advertisers, affecting morning shows in CHR, AOR and Active Rock? Is it time for talk radio programmers to wake up and smell the coffee, because the current brand and style of talk radio doesn't reach listeners under 45.

 

[SirRoxalot]

The AMers who want FMs think that being on the "better" band will reach younger listeners. Well, guess what. If the content doesn't change, it won't really make a difference. Look at 'BEN. The addition of The Lake means a net gain of ZERO. And a net loss of the Lake listeners. It ain't the band. It's the content that's not reaching younger demos.

 

[jas2525]

In a radio conversation yesterday, a veteran AM broadcaster told me "AM has about five years, then it's done. Every AM talk operator wants an FM or a translator because they know the end is in sight."

I always get a kick out of the "five year" predictors. Five years is long enough from now that things predicted may seem plausable, but close enough to make people nervous. The "five-year" predictors create many false-positives, shall we say.

Will there likely be less listeners to AM in 5 years? Absolutely, as more Limbaugh listeners die off, replaced by younger people who barely listen to radio at all (thanks to sparse quality content), no less listen to AM. Still, AM radio is still entrenched in many people's lives, so it's absurd to think it'll just be wiped away in half a decade. Seriously, I know it's fun to rattle people with statements like that, but it's silly.

Limbaugh has often been credited with "saving" AM radio. Maybe now he can be creditied with systematically ruining AM talk's reputation over the last 20 years and giving it quite a black eye recently.

Thanks for everything Rush!

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[BJC]

Can I change my previous post to "see me in April" AND 6 mos to " 3 weeks"