Political Correctness: Make a Judgment

I haven't seen, heard, or read one word from Al Sharpton on the subject. This story didn't need him to give it teeth. A blind deaf man, stranded on a desert island could predict Sharpton would have the loudest mouth about it, but that doesn't even make him relevant, let alone some kind of driving force.

There are a lot of folks whom I respect coming down on either side of this matter (and a lot of folks I don't much respect who are coming down on either side of it too). It's a tough one...the valuation of unfettered speech on the one hand and the unacceptable rejection of the dignity of blacks and women (and other earlier targets) on the other hand. But for me the scale here has tipped over such that my position is the same as snood's, and for the same reasons (a not uncommon occurence).

The injustice that rankles is that there are many others far more irresponsible than this guy. That doesn't let Imus off the hook in any sense but it is unfortunate that circumstances didn't target some other folks first.

I intend to start a thread about the responsibility and accountability (or lack of same) of the black community for policing itself. The rappers and rap moguls like Russell Simmons haven't been given a complete pass by all leaders, but there should be a more visible and consistent demand that they don't denigrate, IMO.

snood

That is an interesting matter too. I'm not sure what I might have to say about it in the same sense that I feel a bit like a third wheel when women discuss what is ok (or not) for women to say about women.

My mention in the previous post of 'others' more deserving of public approbation than Imus relates to people like Coulter, Savage and Limbaugh.

The Imus Ranch for sick (cancer & blood disorders) and bereaved kids is a 501c3 not for profit organization but is heavily subsidized by Don and Deidre Imus who spend most of their summers there working with the kids. From what I've read and seen, it is a good thing.

Don Imus said this morning that ironically, they had to send six kids home last year because they couldn't stop calling the girls bitches and ho's.

Information on the ranch:
http://www.americanprofile.com/article/4870.html
The picture accompanying the article changes scenes.
_________________
--Foxfyre

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I?-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

BBB
Has anyone else noticed the overload of gushing by media talking heads about how wonderful, smart and articulate the women basketball players are as if they were surprised? What is so unusual about smart, articulate, athletic African-American women? I'm annoyed about the patronizing prattle, mainly by men, that these women are an exception among women of color, implying that the others are somehow deficient.

BBB

The Rev. Al Sharpton said Imus should not be "let off the hook" for his racially charged comments about the team and should be fired no matter what he says to defend himself, as the talk jock appeared on his radio show Monday.
"I don''t know what''s in your heart and I''m not going to call you a name, I''m not going to call you a bigot. I''m going to say what you said was racist, I''m going to say what you said was abominable, I''m going to say you should be fired for saying it," Sharpton told Imus.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,264946,00.html

Imus, who has made a career of cranky insults in the morning, was fighting for his job following the joke that by his own admission went "way too far." He continued to apologize Monday, both on his show and on a syndicated radio program hosted by the Rev. Al Sharpton, who is among several black leaders demanding his ouster.
http://wwwimage.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/09/national/main2662385.shtml

Imus said he hoped to meet the Rutgers players and their parents and coaches, and that he was grateful for the appearance on Sharpton's nationally syndicated show.
"It's not going to be easy, but I'm not looking for it to be easy," Imus said.
Meanwhile, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and about 50 people marched Monday outside Chicago's NBC tower to protest Imus' comments, and an NAACP official called for the broadcaster's ouster.
Imus made the now infamous remark during his show Wednesday.
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2007/4/9/142120.shtml?s=en

SHARPTON VOWS MORE: 'It is our feeling that this is only the beginning. We must have a broad discussion on what is permitted and not permitted in terms the airwaves'... Developing...
http://www.drudgereport.com/

Despite apology, critics want Imus out - Yahoo! News
Al Sharpton. He promised to picket Imus' New York radio home, WFAN-AM, unless the veteran of nearly 40 years of anything-goes broadcasting is gone within a ...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070407/ap_on_en_ot/imus_apology

It's a classic case for the "Karl Rove Federal Commission for Diversity on Public Airwaves", which you argue for in other threads (under a different brand, admittedly).

The issue isn't whether Imus's racist, homophobic, sexist, and a lot of other 'ist-ic' humor should be acceptable on the free public airways. In a country that values a sense of decency, it should not. Nor should anybody else's, black, white, or polka dot, be acceptable when they use racist, homophobic, sexist, and other 'ist-ic' humor or videos, music, drama, etc.

Should it be tolerable on cable or other controlled media where people can tune in or not? In a country that values free speech yes. People should be allowed to say whatever they wish short of inciting a riot or insurrection or threats of bodily harm or intentionally giving dangerous false information. In a country that values decency, such programming will be short lived however as it will be quickly ruled unprofitable.

The hypocrisy is that given the national tolerance for the crude, rude, obscene, and vulgar in movies, television, music, literature, etc., it seems that Imus is being used as a national scapegoat rather than acknowledge that he is no better or no worse that what we of all walks of life, races, etc. tolerate all the time and that we have made into a multi-billion dollar industry.

His apology should have been sufficient and Sharpton and Jackson and others demanding that he be fired is just wrong especially given that some have been forgiven for far worse offenses than Imus's 'nhh' gaffe.

It is also appropriate that advertisers pull their accounts from what they consider to be inappropriate or objectionable programming and that takes care of the problem.
_________________
--Foxfyre

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I?-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Top 10: Radio Shock Jocks
Top 10: Radio Shock Jocks
By Ryan Murphy

Whatever happened to political correctness? Nearly two decades after liberals tried to make the world a friendlier and more tolerant place to inhabit, our airwaves are still full of offensive rhetoric and rants. Try as it may, the Federal Communication Commission can do little to curb the tendencies of radio personalities like Howard Stern and Tom Leykis, two men who continue to make millions of dollars a year thanks to their ability to simultaneously provoke and entertain.

And they're not alone. With the advent of uncensored satellite radio, shock jocks are now more pervasive -- and perverse -- than ever. Turn down your dial as we take a look at the top 10 in the business.

Number 10 - Steve Dahl

The granddaddy of Chicago radio, Steve Dahl has been on the air for 30 years and can currently be heard on Chi-Town's WCKG. During that time, he's had marquee guests like John Belushi, Eric Idle and Jamie Kennedy in his studio, and he created a minor stir when he broadcast live from his hospital room during his vasectomy. More recently, Dahl managed to offend thousands of listeners in September 2005 when he talked about creating a cocktail from the floating corpses in New Orleans.

Most outrageous moment: Dahl and fellow DJ Garry Meier were responsible for creating Disco Demolition Night, a special promotion held at Chicago's Comiskey Park on July 12, 1979 following a game between the White Sox and the visiting Detroit Tigers. The resulting riot was so destructive that Dahl wasn't invited back to the park until two decades later.

Number 9 - Ron and Fez

The Ron and Fez Show is broadcast daily on XM Satellite Radio and stars Ron Bennington and Fez "Marie" Whatley. Known for their razor-sharp wit, they draw upon their backgrounds as professional comedians to create an entire universe of characters like Crazy Mary, Foul Mouth Elmo and Retard Martin. Although not as abrasive as some of their counterparts, Ron and Fez still manage to offend their own fair share of listeners thanks to their sophomoric pranks and frequently scatalogical humor.

Most outrageous moment: The show used to feature a regular caller named Joe Poo, a character who ate his own feces. Over time, Joe Poo inevitably spawned Joe Pee, a young child who drank his own urine.

Number 8 - Mike Church

Mention church and most people think of a quiet place to pray and reflect. Mention Mike Church, on the other hand, and most people think of the devil's spawn. Known as the "American Badass of Talk Radio," the abrasive good ol' boy can be heard on Sirius Satellite Radio (his was the network's first exclusive talk program), where he prides himself on giving his listeners a conservative jolt by ripping apart liberalism and those who uphold it. In January of 2006, Church released the CD unAmerican Idiots.

Most outrageous moment: Church has been targeted by the Southern Anti-Defamation League since 1999 when he referred to the South as the "land of the free, mobile home of the brave."

Number 7 - Bubba the Love Sponge

Born Todd Clem, Bubba the Love Sponge is a 20-year radio veteran whose eponymous show can be heard on Sirius Radio. Listeners of the program can look forward to his no-nonsense take on federal politics, as well as regular lowbrow features like "No Panties Thursday." Not surprisingly, the edgy, brash and frequently controversial DJ was dropped by Clear Channel Communications on February 24, 2004 after the FCC issued a Notice of Apparent Liability of $755,000 for complaints about the titillating and shocking nature of his broadcasts.

Most outrageous moment: Bubba was arrested in 2001 on charges of animal cruelty after he and two hunters slaughtered a live pig on air.

Number 6 - Liz Wilde

Considered by some to be the female Howard Stern, Liz Wilde's brash, uncensored views can be heard daily on WRXK in Fort Myers, Florida. The big-breasted bottle blonde is especially known for being unabashedly raunchy, as evidenced by her "Blow It Out Yer Ass" Fridays, during which graphic sexual content is discussed and dissected. Over the past number of years, her program has also featured a notoriously insensitive character named Mickey the Irish Prick, as well as the odd instance of men vomiting on interns.

Most outrageous moment: One of Wilde's regulars is Shecky "Bates" Greene, a guest who routinely gets sex workers to perform degrading acts on air.

Number 5 - Alan Jones

Alan Jones isn't just Australia's most popular talk-show host, he's also its reigning bad boy. This former national rugby team coach can be heard spewing his often harsh and ill-tempered views daily on radio station 2GB. Much to the delight of his detractors, those views -- as well as his personal actions -- have gotten him into a heap of trouble over the years. He has been fined for defaming local politicians, charged with racism for insulting aboriginals and accused of accepting bribes in the country's "Cash for Comment" scandal.

Most outrageous moment: Jones was widely denounced last year for reading an inflammatory text message promoting vigilantism. Many believe the message, as well as his comments, were factors in the bloody race riot that followed.

Number 4 - Opie and Anthony

To their mothers, they're Gregg Hughes and Anthony Cumia, but to the world, they're Opie and Anthony -- the hosts of the phenomenally popular XM Satellite Radio program, The Opie and Anthony Show. The pair has been spinning its unique brand of humor and spot-on impressions since 1994 when Cumia became a regular guest on Hughes' show after winning a song contest.

Over the years, the top-ranked show has also featured regular celebrity guests such as Colin Quinn, Jay Mohr and Jim Norton. Despite their massive following, they were cancelled in August of 2002 after promoting a contest called "Sex For Sam 3," in which listeners were encouraged to have sex in well-known landmarks. Since their employer didn't have enough evidence to fire them, Hughes and Cumia were forced to wait an excruciating two years for their contract to expire before they could return to the airwaves.

Most outrageous moment: Opie and Anthony were unceremoniously booted off the air in 1998 after orchestrating an elborate April Fool's Day joke in which they claimed Boston mayor Thomas Menino had been killed in a fiery car crash.

Number 3 - Howard Stern

For well over a decade, Howard Stern has been the nation's leading shock jock. Over that span of time, the self-proclaimed "King of All Media" has offended nearly every racial, religious and ethnic group on the planet with his scatological, misogynistic and often mean-spirited rants. He's been fined for graphically discussing his sexual practices, he got yanked off the air in Canada for his anti-French comments and he had porn star Mary Carey clean his toilet with her hair after failing an IQ test.

And yet, there's no denying his appeal. Despite the fact that advocacy groups like the American Decency Association routinely send 1,000 letters a month to local, regional and national advertisers of his show, his daily broadcasts still draw in millions of listeners. In fact, he was rewarded with a five-year, $500 million deal by Sirius Radio on October 6, 2004.

Most outrageous moment: The FCC fined Infinity Broadcasting $600,000 in 1992 after Stern talked about pleasuring himself to a picture of Aunt Jemima. Stern claimed at the time it was the closest he had ever come to having sex with a black woman.

Number 2 - Tom Leykis

Acerbic Bronx native Tom Leykis is the "brains" behind The Tom Leykis Show, a nationally syndicated radio program broadcast daily from the Westwood One studios in Culver City. Heavily skewed toward a male audience, the show has regular segments such as "Flash Fridays," in which female listeners are encouraged to flash their breasts at passing motorists, and "Leykis 101," in which "The Professor" shares his generally chauvinistic views on dating and male-female relations. A four-time divorcee, Leykis adamantly believes young men should hold onto their freedom at all costs, even if it means having to stay uncommited. Not surprisingly, "Dump that bitch" has become one of the show's most popular catchphrases.

Most outrageous moment: Leykis caused considerable controversy in 2003 when he revealed the name of the woman who had accused basketball star Kobe Bryant of rape. Until that time, media outlets had been withholding details out of respect for the vicitim.

Number 1 - Mancow

Chicago radio personality Mathew Erich "Mancow" Muller is among the FCC's worst nightmares. The flippant shock jock has been ruffling the Fed's feathers for nearly 15 years with his over-the-top drug- and alcohol-themed humor. During that time, he and cohorts like "Turd" and "Prison B*tch" have led listeners through a humiliating array of stunts such as eating cat food on the air. He also memorably faked his own death in 1996 in a bewildering incident that left many listeners confused and feeling betrayed. Mancow is currently engaged in a heated rivalry with Howard Stern after the "King of All Media" made disparaging remarks about Mancow's father immediately following his death.

Most outrageous moment: Mancow made headlines in 1993 when he used vans to block the westbound lanes of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge during rush hour while his sidekick had his hair cut. Mancow was later given three years probation and was ordered to perform 100 hours of community service. You can read more about that and other sordid tales in his 2003 semi-autobiographical book Dad, Dames, Demons, and a Dwarf.

Pump up the volume

How low can you go? From slaughtering pigs on air to subjecting guests to degrading acts, shock jocks have broken nearly every taboo imaginable. Will the time come when, in a quest for higher ratings and bigger advertisers, someone finally goes too far? Tune in and find out. The FCC certainly plans to.

Resources:
www.en.wikipedia.org
www.dahl.com
www.ronfez.net

Not really, you boisterous ninny.

In Canada, we have federal legislation which restricts certain sorts of speech ("hate speech") and it is legislation which I support. Free speech is an important value and goal, but it isn't an absolute. I believe such instances prevail over there in wrong-language-land too.

Further, as you know, I'll very happily recommend and support legislation which works serious hardships on any corporate entity who might seek to control significant portions of media in any jurisdiction.

Corporate approaches to radio-TV formats
Approaches to Radio Formats

Although appealing to audience segments by programming specific formats may have worked well in midsize markets, in the larger cities there were more radio stations than music formats. The question then became how to make your station ?- regardless of its format ?- stand out from the rest.

First, station program managers looked for ways of developing unique music and personality mixes. (Their jobs, like those of football coaches, depend on a winning season. In radio this means high station ratings.)

To further specialize, the major formats were subdivided; "rock" became "soft rock," "hard rock," "contemporary hits," etc.

Tapping into the power of nostalgia and associations with past memories, some stations specialized in hits of the 50s, or hits from the 70s, or the 80s. Some stations boasted of having a "perfect mix" of various kinds of music.

The chart below lists the most popular formats that have developed. The larger the slice of the "pie," the more listeners.

http://www.internetcampus.com/frtv/frtv022b.htm

You will note that this graph differs in some ways from the listening patterns reported by car radio listeners (below). This is particularly evident when it comes to religious radio stations. These stations ?- particularly the evangelical stations ?- have been steadily growing in number in the U.S., especially after some FCC content requirements were relaxed on frequencies reserved for "educational" stations.

Interestingly, there are some big differences between the popularity of specific formats (as shown above) and the number of stations in the United States that use these formats. This is particularly evident when it comes to country music.

There are more radio stations in the United States specializing in country music than any other format. Most are in rural areas. On the other hand, there are a limited number of news/talk stations; but, since they are in urban areas, they have many more listeners.

Note that in the graph on the right that, despite this disparity, country and news/talk have similar audiences ?- at least when it comes to audiences that listen on their car radios.

http://www.internetcampus.com/frtv/frtv022b.htm

News/Talk

Since the largest share of the overall radio audience today listens to news/talk stations (see previous graph), we'll conclude this module with information on this format.

Most major radio markets have local talk shows. Only a few are broadcast nationally. Almost all of these are conservative, highly opinionated and popular ?- primarily with white, male audiences.

Leading the list is Rush Limbaugh. Limbaugh came from a conservative Republican family, started as a radio announcer at an early age, and eventually worked his way to New York City. In 2003, Limbaugh's show was being heard on almost 600 radio stations and he was the highest paid radio talk show host in the U.S.

Limbaugh often uses humor to charm audiences and get his points across. By making fun of or mocking women's liberation, gays, environmentalists, and the former President Clinton and his family, he won over millions of faithful followers.

Although Limbaugh isn't considered an example of "hate radio," many talk show hosts who regularly deride Jews, blacks, Hispanics, and almost any group that "isn't American," have clearly moved in this direction.

Possibly not entirely unrelated, according to a 2001 FBI report, hate murders (on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability) have reached a five-year high in the United States.

Even though most talk radio personalities are conservative, there are two well-known radio personalities that might be considered on the other side of the ledger: Don Imus, and Howard Stern.

"Shock jock" Howard Stern is the more impertinent of the two. His irreverent abandon during his syndicated morning talk show manages to fascinate and stir listeners ?- as well as stir the retribution of the FCC, which has fined him (or, more specifically, the stations that carry his programs) more than $1-million. However, since the revenue his show generated far exceeded the fines levied against him, there seemed to be little motivation to tone down his antics.

In 2006, Stern moved his show to Sirius Satellite Radio, where he doesn't have to deal with FCC content limitations.

Pushing the Envelope to the Max

We've noted that film, radio and TV attract audiences by constantly pushing the envelope of what society sees as acceptable.

The questions arises as to what extent we can deride segments of our population, including our religious leaders and elected leadership, without undermining our social order.

Net Radio

In the last few years we've seen the emergence of a new radio medium: the Internet. Today, more than 5,000 traditional (terrestrial) radio stations also broadcast their signals over the Internet. The graph below shows the rapid growth of "net radio."

http://www.internetcampus.com/frtv/frtv022b.htm

Many listeners are people displaced from their hometowns who listen to net radio to keep up with events "back home." (Most on-air radio stations can only reliably broadcast over a 50 to 100 mile area, and net radio is worldwide.)

There are tens of thousands of Internet-only radio stations. Since there are no laws governing Internet radio, anyone with a computer, the right hardware, software, and know-how can start an Internet radio station.

Satellite Radio

In November 2001, a new digital service was launched in the United States that offers more than 100 programming choices and doesn't suffer from some of the reception problems of terrestrial AM and FM radio stations. At the same time, heavy rain, thick trees with high moisture content, tunnels, etc., can momentarily block the satellite signal.

The first fee-based service to transmit digital signals from a satellite was called XM Radio. In the first two months of operation XM Radio signed up more than 25,000 subscribers. A similar service from Sirius Satellite Radio began in 2002. In 2004, the latter also became a part of the DISH TV music channels.

In addition to far fewer (or no) commercials (depending on the service), the new services offer a much wider choice of digital-quality programming.

Many people feel that the decline in radio listening in the United States in recent years is due in large part to "commercial clutter." Some radio stations now devote more than one-third of their broadcast time to commercials.

Depending on the supplier, the monthly fee for the new satellite radio services ranges from $10 to $15. In addition to a wide variety of music and original programming, the new services include familiar programs from radio networks and programming services

Radio and Media Conglomerates

Like most of the mass media, a large percentage of U.S. radio stations are owned by media conglomerates. For example, Clear Channel Communications now owns 1,225 radio stations in 50 states. The Los Angeles area has at least 14 radio stations controlled by this one company. Other media conglomerates own large numbers of radio stations, but not as many as CCC.

The whole CCC enterprise is run by one man: Texas billionaire L. Lowry Mays (whose profits went from $74 million to about $8 billion ?- a 100-fold increase ?- in ten years.)

When a few media companies get too much power, allegations of unfair or biased content control often emerge. For example, according to The Los Angeles Times, (Feb. 25, 2002) Britney Spears alleges that CCC stations have refused to play her records because her company didn't hire CCC as their tour promoter. When more than 1,000 stations refuse to play an artist's records it represents a major blow to their success.

Public Attitudes
Public Attitudes
By the Project for Excellence in Journalism

The public's relationship with radio has moved a fair distance since the medium's debut in the 1920's. Gone are the days when it was a stationary sound box that the family gathered around. Today, radio is a portable audio device that may carry music or news from a variety of different sources, not bound to broadcasting a traditional AM or FM signal.

Yet even though the traditional AM/FM dial has lost some of its clout and audience, the quick embrace of portable audio platforms signals the enduring appeal of the power of listening ?- its intimacy, mobility and adaptability to different styles of content.

According to the 2006 Pew People and the Press biennial news consumption survey, people turn to radio primarily for information. Three quarters of radio listeners cited that as a reason, just as respondents did for newspapers, Internet and television. But radio was also rated highly ?- more than any other medium ?- as a place to "pass the time."1 That seems to reflect another quality that is vital to radio's appeal: people can do other things while listening, whether driving, walking, cooking, or surfing the Internet.

What type of news do people look to radio for? The data suggest that it's a medium with no particular specialty. Of the nine types of news that Pew surveyed in 2006, radio was not a top-three preference for any. It fared the best for political news, but even there came in fourth of seven information media at 5%, ahead of only magazines, talking with people and "other."2 Radio seems a medium for general information and for talk, a jack of all subjects.

News Media That People Turn To - 2006

Design Your Own Chart
http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.org/2007/narrative_radio_talk_radio.asp?cat=8&media=9

Source: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press biennial consumption survey, "Online Papers Modestly Boost Newspaper Readership," July 30, 2006.

Measuring a different way, a survey by the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation found that local radio news programs came in fourth on a list of seven news sources, ordered by the percentage of people who identify their major source of news.3

Most Popular News Destinations - 2006

News Source Percentage of People
Local TV News 65.5%
Local Newspaper 28.4%
National Network TV News 28.3%
Local Radio News Programs 14.7%
Internet 11.2%
National Newspaper 3.8%
Someplace Else 1.3%

Source: Bob Papper, RTNDf/Ball State University Annual News Director Survey, "Future of News Survey," October 2006
Note: Percentage of respondents citing the news source as their major source of news

One measure of the public's attitudes is the level of trust in certain news outlets. Such numbers are not as readily supplied for radio as for other media. National Public Radio is the only radio outlet about which the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press survey asks respondents to rate believability. Compared with many outlets, NPR ranks pretty well on the believability scale. Since 1998, NPR's believability among the public has been growing, albeit slightly, while other major news sources' rankings have been sinking. What was once a 24-percentage-point spread between top-ranked CNN and NPR has now closed to eight percentage points, though CNN still leads.4

News Source Believability - 1998 - 2006

Design Your Own Chart
http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.org/2007/narrative_radio_talk_radio.asp?cat=8&media=9

Source: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press biennial consumption survey, "Online Papers Modestly Boost Newspaper Readership," July 30, 2006.

Compared with other information sources, the public also views local radio newscasts as "newslike." In a survey by Bob Papper and the RTNDF, respondents were asked to score 13 media programs based on a 1-5 scale of how "newslike" they were. Local radio newscasts came in fourth (4.0 on the scale), after local TV news, cable newscasts, and network evening newscasts, each at 4.4. Talk radio programs like Rush Limbaugh and Al Franken scored ninth (2.4), just above Entertainment Tonight and the Daily Show (tenth and eleventh, respectively, with scores of 2.3 and 2.1).5

Media consumption choices are also influenced by a person's overall interest in the news. The vast majority of people who "enjoy the news a lot" (52% of the population) turn to newspapers for their regular news diet (66%).6 Rush Limbaugh's talk radio show regularly attracts only 6% of such news junkies. Radio over all has a similar problem. In general, radio (whether NPR, religious radio or Rush Limbaugh) is the least likely to attract the attention of those who enjoy the news a lot. Even NPR only regularly attracts 23% of that category of people.

Media That News Junkies Turn To - 2006

Design Your Own Chart
http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.org/2007/narrative_radio_talk_radio.asp?cat=8&media=9

Source: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press biennial consumption survey, "Online Papers Modestly Boost Newspaper Readership," July 30, 2006.

Political news junkies show a similar trend, seeking out their political news from newspapers. Slightly more than a quarter of such people, 28%, say they are regular listeners to NPR. Ten percent of them listen to Rush Limbaugh.7

Media That People Turn To For Political News - 2006

Design Your Own Chart
http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.org/2007/narrative_radio_talk_radio.asp?cat=8&media=9

Source: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press biennial consumption survey, "Online Papers Modestly Boost Newspaper Readership," July 30, 2006.

Footnotes

1. Pew Research Center for the People and the Press biennial media consumption survey, "Online Papers Modestly Boost Newspaper Readership," July 30, 2006.

2. Ibid.

3. Bob Papper, RTNDF/Ball State University Annual News Director Survey, "Future of News Survey"

4. Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, News Interest and Believability Index, June, 2006.

5. Bob Papper, RTNDF/Ball State University, "Future of News Survey," October 2006.

6. Pew Research Center for the People and the Press biennial news consumption survey, "Online Papers Modestly Boost Newspaper Readership," July 30, 2006.

7. Ibid.

Talk radio in the United States
Talk radio in the United States

In the United States, talk radio is dominated by right-leaning political commentators; according to A.C. Nielsen, the top five programs are those of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, Neal Boortz, and Glenn Beck.

Politically oriented talk radio

The United States saw dramatic growth in the popularity of talk radio during the 1940s. The repeal of the FCC "fairness doctrine" in 1987?-which had required that stations provide free air time for responses to any controversial opinions that were broadcast?-provided an opportunity for a kind of flatly partisan programming that had not previously existed. Talk radio provided an immediacy and a high degree of emotionalism that seldom is reached on television or in magazines. Pew researchers found in 2004 that 17% of the public regularly listens to talk radio. This audience is mostly male, middle-aged and conservative. Among those who regularly listen to talk radio, 41% are Republican and 28% are Democrats. Furthermore, 45% describe themselves as conservatives, compared with 18% who say they are liberal.[1].

The most successful pioneer in the 1990s talk radio movement was the politically conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh. Limbaugh's success demonstrated that there was a nation-wide market for passionately-delivered conservative (and in many cases, Republican) commentary on contemporary news, events, and social trends. Other radio talk show hosts (who describe themselves as either conservative or libertarian) have also had success as nationally-syndicated hosts, including: Ben Ferguson, Lars Larson, Sean Hannity, G. Gordon Liddy, Laura Ingraham, Neal Boortz, Michael Savage, Bill O'Reilly, Glenn Beck, Larry Elder, Mark Levin, Michael Reagan (adopted son of former President Ronald Reagan), Ken Hamblin and Anthony Harper. The Salem Radio Network syndicates a group of religiously-oriented Republican activists, including evangelical Christian Hugh Hewitt and Jewish conservatives Dennis Prager and Michael Medved.

Libertarians such as Free Talk Live (based in New Hampshire), Penn Jillette (based in Las Vegas), and Mark Davis (based in Ft. Worth and Dallas, Texas) have also achieved some success. Many of these hosts also publish books, write newspaper columns, appear on television, and give public lectures (Limbaugh, again, was a pioneer of this model of multi-media punditry).

There had been some precursors for talk radio, such as the Los Angeles-area controversialist Joe Pyne, who would attack callers on his program in the early 1960s - one of his famous insults was "gargle with razor blades!"; the similar Bob Grant in New York City; and Wally George in Southern California [2]

Politically liberal talk radio aimed at a national audience has also emerged, although it has resulted in low ratings, and business failure. Air America Radio, a network featuring The Al Franken Show, was founded in 2004; it billed itself as a "progressive alternative" to the conservative talk radio shows. Some prominent examples of liberal talk radio shows currently in national syndication include: The Ed Schultz Show, Alan Colmes, Lionel, Thom Hartmann, Bill Press, and Stephanie Miller. In some markets, local liberal hosts have existed for years, such as Bernie Ward in San Francisco, Jack Ellery in New Jersey and Tampa, Dave Ross in Seattle, and Marc Germain in Los Angeles. A few earlier syndicated programs were hosted by prominent Democrats who were not experienced broadcasters, such as Jim Hightower, Jerry Brown, Mario Cuomo and Alan Dershowitz; these met with limited success, and Air America has been faced with various legal and financial problems.

Air America was sold to a new owner in March of 07, hired well known programmer David Bernstein, and began its 're-birth'.

Left-wing opinion radio has long existed on the Pacifica network, though only available in a small number of cities, and in formats that more often act as a volunteer-run community forum than as a platform for charismatic hosts who would be likely to attract a large audience. Conservatives long complained that the long-format news programming on National Public Radio shows liberal bias, although the network denies any partisan agenda, and is actually under influence from Republican leadership at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

The Clear Channel organization, with nearly 1,300 radio stations under its ownership - along with other owners - has in recent years added more liberal talk stations to their portfolio. These have primarily come from the conversion of AM facilities, most of which formerly had adult standards formats. Many complaints (all radio stations are required by the FCC to maintain, in their public files, copies of all correspondence from the public relating to station operations - for a period of three years from receipt) have been received from fans of this musical genre (Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, big band music," etc.) - but the left-leaning talk programming leans toward a much younger demographic, a group that advertisers covet.

"The greatest hypocrisy of the Imus controversy is that Imus's description of the Rutgers teams was just a mistake. No. This is who Don Imus is?-at least as a radio personality. For more than 30 years, he has been part of comedy skits on his radio show that are in bad taste and often racist. Imus himself said as much on the "Today" show on Monday: "This program has been, for 30 or 35 years, a program that makes fun of everybody." The media establishment figures who appear on Imus know this." http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18062462/site/newsweek/

BBB wrote: Has anyone else noticed the overload of gushing by media talking heads about how wonderful, smart and articulate the women basketball players are as if they were surprised? What is so unusual about smart, articulate, athletic African-American women? I'm annoyed about the patronizing prattle, mainly by men, that these women are an exception among women of color, implying that the others are somehow deficient.
BBB

I noticed this afternoon that some African-American women are beginning to speak up about this.

BBB

"Nappy-headed ho" is hate speech? I feel tempted to call you one right now -- just to see if someone will report my post, if the A2K community will pressure Jespah to shîtcan my account, and if she will submit to this pressure. I predict none of this would happen, and rightly so. The Imus affair is a tempest in a teapot during a slow phase of the news cycle.

I think the both of you are a couple of ignorant sluts. That's not hate speech, though, because i relish the company of an educated slut.

Thomas
Thomas, I can visualize Blatham with a big smile on his face as he pollishes his lapel pin, "I love a nappy headed ho." Lola giggles, but tries not to encourage him in his madness.

BBB :wink:

It isn't hate speech, but it is insulting. 'Ho' is short for 'whore,' after all, and while you and I don't mind too much being called a whore I suspect that there are some women who would be upset at this.

I don't think the racial element is anything to get upset about, seeing as these same girls will go right on buying CDs full of the same statements for the rest of their lives.

Cycloptichorn