Imagine that the company founded by the frontrunning Republican presidential candidate also owned a massive radio company–say, the largest one in the country.
And imagine that said company announced, right as the election season started, that it was ditching its progressive talk format in a major city for a mostly conservative lineup.
Stop imagining–Brad Friedman reports that this is reality:
The only progressive AM radio talk station, Green960-KKGN, in one of the nation’s most liberal cities, San Francisco, is being taken off the AM dial by radio behemoth Clear Channel Communications, Inc.–a media conglomerate now owned by Mitt Romney‘s Bain Capital, LLC–at the beginning of the 2012 presidential election year.
Left-of-center hosts Stephanie Miller and Thom Hartmann will be replaced by the likes of Glenn Beck, John Gibson and right-leaning financial/money guy Dave Ramsey. The Clear Channel press release announcing the changes speaks of an effort to “expand our footprint… as we head into an election year and a population increasingly engaged in local, state and national events and activism.” Well, some kinds of activism.
Has anyone started a campaign against this blatant censorship move ? If enough voices complain these ego maniac’s tend to back down. Let’s get this bastion of static and propaganda to think twice !
For some reason, this tune floated up from the bottom of my brainpan:
http://www.lyricsdepot.com/elvis-costello/radio-radio.html
This media empire ownership worked very well for Silvio Berlusconi. He could get anything he wanted without any accountability; at least, until recently.
Have a happy Bunga Bunga, Mit.
There is Free Speech but only certain views get heard.
Corporatists (fascists) need to be stopped!
I hope that this trend will be stopped or someone steps up to found a station so that those of us who want to listen to these funny (in Stephanie’s case) and astute Stephanie, Hartmann, Mike Malloy and moe, pundits that voice the other side of insanity can be heard.
I am absolutely incensed by Clear Channel’s blatant political timing with their shutdown shenanigans with Green 960. I have been listening to 960 (formerly the “Quake”) since 2004, and find its hosts intelligent, well-read, and funny. (esp. Stephanie Miller) I don’t have an “HD Tuner” in my car, and don’t know if ‘HD’ is something you can get for “free” if you have a tuner, or if you have to pay a monthly fee to some entity. I think that we should start a boycott of Clear Channel, which also was apparently behind the deep-sixing of the only classical on-air radio station in the Bay Area, KDFC, at the beginning of the year. They replaced that station with yet another rock station, as if we need more. Of course, “boycotting” Clear Channel means simply turning off the local broadcast radio, which is, quite frankly, self-defeating.
Clear Channel sucks! Not intelligent but accurate.
Don’t be surprised. We in DC used to listen to Steph and all the others on a station here called Progressive Talk 960. Owned by punk assed bitch Daniel M Snyder (also Redskins trash owner) he switched it over to canned news radio the day after Obama got elected. I haven’t heard a moderate to liberal radio personality since that day.
What are we gonna do? This is happening at the same time that the new owners of KGO fired the liberal or at least independent and local talk show hosts. No place compares to SF for radio but we are losing it bit by bit. I couldn’t find anything to listen to in DC and NY. We also have KPFA here but that is also under siege and not as good as it used to be.
Talking heads on both sides.Propaghanda!-A chance to hate more people.
Is this what we want-My dad can beat up yours! If anything we should be debating our problems face to face,instead of saying I Agree to some communtator who is only on to sell what the sponser wants.. Yes, I dislike Limbaugh and the other puppets. Yet how will me listening to the otherside solve anything. We should be where the 99% are(at least the ones who are out there trying to help the rest of us.
Hey, if the people that listen to Limbaugh,really got what he souts Nazi Germany would be us.Maybe we are luckey most of the Limbaughites just curse,spite and sputter a lot.The Liberals We are like Mo Udall’s circle firing squad. The why has escaped me many years. Could it be we are even more timid then the right to actually agree on anything to the point of doing something together about it.
Yes the Limbaughs have cause hate your brother to be a national sport,but What use to be Liberal love thy neighbor has also gone the way of the DODO. If we want leaders to get out of this mess.They will have to start with us.Your latest Example Presiident Obama(CHANGE) Didn’t work out did it?Now with the 99ers That is us TOGETHER ? WE The People would be back. To start why not take this Liberal radio station and make a real disscussion point with the otherside?Asked them if there were not 2 sides to every question,how could they be happy? what form of government would it be? Certainly not a Democracy,but quite close to a Dictatorship. You can’t do this on the airways. Face to face is the way.
Imagine a world where the term “tough noogies”is truly understood.The bay area produced Nancy P ladys and germs.It has been a cauldron for liberal speak and vomit that has truly covered the world.Now a business opportunity appears to a man who sees things very differently.And he (being in a free country)will run his business as he damn well sees fit.How dare they open a steak house in the vegan restaurant area?It took us so long to train people not to eat meat.How dare they give diversity a chance?Well here comes a different viewpoint squatting like a diseased yak in the hot tub of liberalism.Don’t like it?Get out ,or turn the dial.To the good people of the bay area I say diversity is truly …..the spice of life.It will be nice to hear a different viewpoint than what has been drummed into your head all these years.I think he will try his best to keep, or bring in things people like.That after all is good business.As far as his leanings….here is another term.OH WELL
Richard k… same here in Jersey-NYC. Clear Channel is the Gannett of radio. They buy everything. Our radio is really depressing. You would think we would have a more diverse choice here. Instead it is terrible in New York. There is one decent station and that’s Pacifica’s WBAI. WBAI broadcasts some good news shows, like Democracy Now, but it also broadcasts shows that seem to be produced by angry middle school students…
Clear Channel is a monopoly, where is the Sherman Anti-trust Act when you need it. This is a move to
purchase the presidency and to quiet the progressive voices of America. We better start working to protect
the Internet you know that’s what “they” are working on now. This is depressing.
Time to Occupy Media!
Janice didn’t Joseph Goebbels say… “that is the necessary step to conquering and subjugating a nation”?Thanx for that liberal input.
I saw this trend coming a long time ago, and now get most of my progressive news and programming via podcasts. Many of my favorite programs can be accessed (often for free) via iTunes: Thom Hartman , Mike Malloy, Ring of Fire, Democracy Now, etc. I also like the podcasts of Peter B. Collins, Boiling Frogs, Truthout, Rob Kall “Bottom Up” (not great quality sound but good interviews and topics), and the occasional BBC documentary. Put ’em on your mp3 player. Fortunately, I live in Seattle where AM 1090 still carries progressive talk, at least for now.
Seattle huh?????And what is a PROGRESSIVE to you Su?
Hey San Francisco! Some dude just walked up to you in the bar and sucker punched you. You’re on the floor groaning and he’s out on the dance floor with your date. Now what are you gonna do about it? Judging by these comments, er, nothing. Guess what? He’s been bribing congressmen to bend the FCC to his will and now that the people’s airwaves are completely controlled by this sunnavabitch, he’s broadcasting that YOU’RE the villain and HE’S the victim. Next he’s gonna take that election you thought was in the bag for your guy. And you’re just gonna sit there and take it. Cuz he plays for keeps and you’re just playin’. Have a nice day.
I went on vacation during the holidays and when I returned home I tuned in the morning to 960, my favorite radio station. I was stunned with disbelief when I heard Glenn Beck’s voice! What on earth happened? I don’t know how they have the nerve to stifle the progressive voices in this community and put in right-wing zealots like Glenn Beck, etc. I am shocked, chagrined, outraged, and will never ever buy any products touted by that station. Clear Channel’s behavior is just one of the signs that our country is no longer a democracy and that only the voices of corporate America will be heard. I am so outraged! Can anything be done?
Bain Clear Channel has just axed progressive channels KPOJ and KPTK in Portland and Seattle, respectively. Both were doing well. I guess it’s a trend.