RIP, Progressive Talk 1360

Rest in peace...you were probably doomed from the start!

I have interrupted my hiatus due to the news I received yesterday morning. Unbeknownst to me, Friday was WSAI’s last day for carrying Air America Radio and other syndicated progressive talk programming. According to press accounts, the station’s parent company, Clear Channel Communications (CCC), decided that liberal commentary just doesn’t sell in the greater Cincinnati/tri-state (Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana) area and they pulled the plug on such programming as midnight last night.

If I had been more ‘media savvy’, I would’ve seen the handwriting on the wall when Clear Channel announced back in November that it was merging with a private equity group and selling off nearly 400 of its radio stations. Actually, the first indicator would’ve been the swapping of Air America programming from 50,000 watt WCKY (1530AM) to its final (and now former) destination (WSAI’s weaker 5,000 transmitter) back in July of this year (here's my blog entry which covered that event).

As I sit back and reflect on this sad news, I really can’t blame Clear Channel for this particular action. Due to AAR’s early programming success at one of CCC’s outlets in Portland, Oregon (KPOJ), they decided to take a risk and subsequently provided the struggling network with radio outlets in markets they thought impossible to enter (which included the three Ohio stations in Akron/Canton, Columbus and Cincinnati). Air America’s affiliate total swelled to over 80 stations at its apex because of these assets; however, most were low-powered outlets that sometimes didn’t even reach the intended metropolitan markets they thought they could target (Philadelphia and Atlanta were good examples). Ratings over time at many of them (including Cincinnati) dwindled to near 1.0 shares (and some fell below that). Since Clear Channel and other affiliates are in the money-making business (and with the November merger news), now seems to be a good a time as any to declared this nearly 2-year experiment a failure and dump the stations or switch to more commercially viable programming.

When I read what WSAI’s new format would be and looked at their daily lineup, I was shocked. In a market with FIVE other conservative-leaning talk stations, ‘1360thesource.com’ will be featuring right-leaning shows by Clark Howard, Dr. Laura Schlessinger, Neil Boortz, Dr. Joy Brown, Joey Reynolds, and the Wall Street Journal report. The Boortz program grabbed my attention because it will be a rebroadcast of his 9-12AM show--originally aired by a rival talk station--at the later 7-10PM timeframe. The station will also rerun the 4-7PM Clark Howard show the following mornings from 7-10AM. Even the local media is scratching its collective head on this decision to broadcast conservative-centric 'self-help' and 'rerun' programming that is already well-covered with similar offerings in this middle-sized market (#28 in the country--estimated 1.7 million listeners aged 12+).

Why did this progressive talk effort fail? Although Ohio is slowly turning 'bluer', it is doing so by crawling from the northern and eastern parts (Cleveland/Akron/Canton/Youngstown areas) towards the south and west--and the greater Cincinnati area. This can be seen in the voting patterns from the last two federal general elections (the yellow arrow in the graphic below points to the Fairborn area). Although adjacent to two Democratic 'pockets' (Dayton and Springfield), my county (aptly with the colorful name of Greene) still trended 'red' this past November and overwhelmingly elected/re-elected Republicans to US and state legislature seats (Mike DeWine garnered nearly 60 percent of the votes for US Senate). With these kinds of communities sitting within the radio 'footprints' of both WCKY and WSAI, it was rather obvious that Clear Channel would have a tough product to sell.

A nice transformation in two years...but not fast enough in MY area

Facing this absence of progressive talk from my local radio choices, I still have other resources available to me. I can still listen to AAR at work or home via their streaming audio service or from streams of their affiliates--as long as that network remains on the air. I can (and probably will) purchase an XM satellite radio so I will be able to listen in during my commute time or when I'm away from a computer (with their exclusive contract with Major League Baseball, I won't feel too put out financially for going XM if AAR goes away). Earlier today, I found an online petition to save progressive talk radio in Cincinnati but it was canceled once the CCC announcement was made (I signed it anyway just to lend support and make myself heard).

Life will go on--with or (unfortunately) without a local affiliate (several other US markets are also going through similar Clear Channel withdrawals). Listening in over the past 23 months was an educational experience in terms of getting 'pointers' of what were the important issues affecting me personally and our country in general. The tone of the programming was generally optimistic, sometimes humorous, occasionally vitriolic yet always aggressive. The lineup of Maron, Springer, Franken, Shultz, Rhodes and Maddow kept me company throughout my workday and during my commutes to or from the office. While most of these 'soldiers' continue to wage war on the national radio scene, the battle for southwest Ohio has now been lost. I and many former listeners simply want to thank you for the 'good fight' you helped us wage over the last two years by leveling the talk radio playing field and providing an alternative to the Limbaughs, Hannitys, O'Reillys, Boortzs and other bloviators that dominate the talk radio market. While you are now gone, you will never be forgotten!

On Hiatus

To ANYONE who actually reads my entries and might be anticipating more 'regular' updates or postings, I will be disappointing you now with my announcement that I am taking a hiatus from blogging for a while. Is it because there isn't anything to comment on? No, in fact, there are things happening that are registering on my consciousness but since the mid-term elections, NOTHING HAS REALLY BEEN BOTHERING ME!!! Some in the blogosphere are referring to this phenomenon as 'DemoGlad'...and I've got it BAD!!!

Click on the graphic above to see if you are ALSO afflicted...

I had several topics I was going to discuss (an analytical overview of the mid-term results, my thoughts on Veterans' Day) and was trying to complete them but this euphoric feeling is not allowing me to do so (I did post my tribute to Ed Bradley). I recently threw out (actually recycled) a whole bunch of newspapers I was going to review from my October business/personal trip to provide readers some outside perspective on the local paper here in Dayton. I also recycled copies of the DDN I was keeping as 'samples' over the past 4-5 months (one week's worth per month) to review and try to demonstrate in an objective way that their op/ed pages are more bipartisan than some of its conservative readers believe. I was going to coin a new award--The Libra--to symbolically 'present' to the paper when they met that challenge. But that's not going to happen now--it's just not that significant a task.

The 'Libra' Award...
never presented but no longer necessary

I still feel the need to 'discuss' more contentious issues with others and routinely utilize the DDN's 'Speak Up!' venue for that reason--probably more than I should. But the matter of blogging--the methodical documenting of my particular takes on issues--just doesn't seem that important now. I will keep this site intact and periodically look it over to see if I can (or need to) get the 'juices' flowing again. Right now, I have other things on my plate that need my more immediate attention right now...like life!

RIP, Ed Bradley

Ed Bradley
1941-2006

I was shocked to hear earlier this afternoon about the untimely passing of CBS News' and '60 Minutes' reporter Ed Bradley. A Philadelphia native, Bradley died of pneumonia as a indirect result of leukemia (he was diagnosed two years ago but was currently in remission). He is survived by his wife Phyllis and leaves a gaping hole in the fabric of that Sunday night news-magazine staple.

Although I've fallen away from this show over the past several years (its time slot conflicts with the end of football games when CBS wasn't broadcasting them, Fox animated shows and other weekend-ending things happening at the 7PM hour), I used to like the way our Armed Forces affiliate used to show it in Japan. Because of the 13-hour time difference between our local standard time and Eastern Standard Time (14 with daylight savings), '60 Minutes' aired on Mondays at 8AM (9AM in the DST months) on the network's news channel. Since most of the base's working folks were away from home during that time, the local affiliate reran it at 7PM that evening so it never experienced any sports 'delays' (like US West Coast viewers). If that seems strange, remind me to tell you about watching 'Monday Night Football' on Tuesdays some time.

Back to Ed...although he wasn't one of the original hosts (Mike Wallace and Harry Reasoner kicked things off back in September 1968), he joined the ensemble for its 14th season and stuck around for 25 renewals until this most recent one. He reported on a wide variety of stories but cut his journalistic 'teeth' during the Vietnam War (he was wounded during a mortar attack in the conduct of his duties). He served as CBS News' White House correspondent during the early years of the Carter administration and gravitated towards television news documentaries prior to joining the '60 Minutes' team in 1981.

Ed's death will most likely be another blow to hardcore viewership numbers for this investigative reporting icon. The recent departures of both Mike Wallace and 'relative' newcomer Dan Rather (mostly confined to 'moonlighting' segments on the canceled '60 Minutes II' spin-off) removes almost all of the personnel (Morley Safer the sole exception) from the show's 'glory days' period when they were a 'must-see' item--enjoyed a 5-year streak as television's highest rated program. The network has brought in some 'new' blood over the years (Steve Croft, Bob Simon, Leslie Stahl, Scott Pelley) and, in just the past two years, added chief foreign correspondent Lara Logan, the new 'CBS Evening News' anchor Katie Couric, and CNN's Anderson Cooper for periodic contributions. Andy Rooney, who started out in 1978 and will turn 87 this coming January, rounds out their team.

A 2003 photo of the '60 Minutes' cast

In this day and age of 24/7 news coverage on television and the internet, the uniqueness of this pioneering program has been diluted among the multitude of other 'knock-offs'. Programs such as '20/20' and 'Dateline NBC' tend to focus more on the sensational or reality-based subjects which garner a larger share of the higher-prized demographics (18-54 year olds). The average age of '60 Minutes' viewers is outside that range and that can be readily seen by the types of advertising seen during their broadcasts (spots for prescription medications and 'E.D.' products abound--no iPods or 'Hummers' to be seen). After nearly 40 years on the air, the show is still going strong (currently #16 in total households for primetime series in the most recent Nielsen ratings for the 2006-2007 season), no doubt fueled by the exploits of the current administration and Congress.

The eventual departure of Safer will remove all vestiges from the program's more formative years and put me smack dab into their target audience. Maybe then I will be able to discipline myself to either be watching or recording for a later viewing--that is if I'm still awake!

Election Eve

Hard to believe that it's only been two years...click on the image above to take a nostalgic look at what we were facing back in 2004--the 'good old days' (pre-Katrina, pre-Foleygate, pre-warrantless wiretaps)!

I'm not in the habit of predicting things but I see the Democrats picking up 20+ seats in the House and attaining a 50-50 split in the Senate. Those gains would eliminate the constraints that the GOP have placed on their rivals in terms of investigating the actions of this administration in those chambers since Bush took office nearly six years ago. Let us hope, for our democracy's sake, that everything goes relatively smooth tomorrow...

If my House prediction comes true, a conservative friend of mine will be treating me for dinner at the restaurant of my choice...hmmm...he IS a member of the Dayton Racquet Club!

Sunday 'Shotgun' Blast

"I'm Dick Cheney and I approve this torture...I mean BLOGGING method!"

It’s been a few days since I’ve posted anything to my blog (I’ve ‘relapsed’ back to ‘Speak Up!’ after a 2-week absence and have been discussing a variety of issues in that forum). I don’t want to have this initiative stall again, so I want to try something different. Instead of taking just ONE issue and giving my opinion about it, I’m going to try the method that some of the more popular blogs (Booman Tribune, Eschaton, etc.) use—the ‘shotgun’ approach. This is where you bring up a lot of topics and give them a few lines (or just hyperlink to other sites) before moving on to the next one. I’ll take a shot at this so if anyone actually reads this blog, please feel free to comment…

- I promised my wife that I’d mention the DDN’s habit of putting a fold-out on the front page of their Sunday comics. Instead of just opening and closing it for that short period of reading ‘Blondie’, ‘Closer to Home’, ‘Zits’, ‘The Family Circus’ and ‘FoxTrot’, she has to audibly express her displeasure (a weekly occurrence) and physically tear this tab off from the main part of that page. I noticed that today’s edition did not have a flap…could they have read her mind?

- A story in the Friday edition of the DDN mentioned that a union representing 120 reporters, copy editors and photographers urged the paper to begin negotiations on a contract to replace a 20-year-old pact the union says is outdated. After I saw that piece, I was going through the weekend entertainment section and noticed that they gave the new Helen Mirren movie 'The Queen' a rating of 'X+'...I didn't think it would be THAT graphic. I believe it was supposed to be a 'C+' (the 'X' and 'C' keys are adjacent on our 'QWERTY' keyboards). If I were the DDN, I would suggest that these journalism professionals review the simple process of editing their copy before sending it to print.

The DDN gave this movie an 'X+'...
this erroneous review just might improve local ticket sales!

- The DDN also mentioned a story about the latest 'fantasy' game to pique the interest of political junkies--Fantasy Congress! The Chicago Tribune's October 26th story describes how instead of athletes, each player gets to choose from the 535 legislators on Capitol Hill to form their own 'dream teams'. Points are awarded based upon their real legislative accomplishments. The game is schedule to go live after the Tuesday elections.

- I did notice in the Sunday DDN (and on other occasions over the past several months) where advertisements are 'popping' up in some mighty peculiar places on their pages. Back in the days before 'cold type' printing plate preparation, the pagesetters had to fit advertisements into square or rectangular spaces to fit on the page and keep them in line with the publication's columnar scheme. In today's publishing arsenal, ads can be placed ANYWHERE inside the boundaries of the entire page. For example, a Kroger spot was placed as a large diamond centered in the middle of the page. Around it, four news/feature stories were inserted to take up the remaining white space. As a 'traditionalist', I find this practice somewhat distracting but my opinions don't pay the bills. If the advertisers want it, the paper will give it to them.


- In a recent editorial by Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer, I saw that he used the most peculiar phrase (highlighted below):

According to the pollsters, pundits and pols -- Democratic and nervous Republican -- a great anti-Republican wave is a-coming. Well, let's assume major Democratic gains: 20 to 25 House seats and four to six Senate seats. The House goes Democratic for the first time in 12 years. The Senate probably stays Republican, but by such an excruciatingly small margin that there is no governing majority.

In many of my on-line duels with the 'red' tribe members on the DDN's 'Speak Up!' forum, they always alude to the fact that when the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 was passed in the US Senate in October of that year, that body was controlled by the Democrats (Senator Jim Jeffords/R-VT opted for 'independent' status in May 2001 which turned a 50-50 split of that body into a 50-49-1 on paper advantage for the Dems). In my frequent rebuttals on this issue, I would try to explain that since Dems normally can't even agree on the most basic of things, (like what to have for lunch), this 'majority' status is pretty much in name only. Since my GOP colleagues believe ALL political parties must behave just like theirs (think lockstep), this is a very foreign concept for many of them to grasp. Now that I have the words of an avowed RW conservative on record, maybe they'll stop their fringe complaints and focus on the issues...yeah, right!

Finally, something meaningful from 'Sir Charles'...

- Speaking of 'war games', a read an online article about a 1999 Pentagon war scenario with the primary subject being the overthrow of Iraq. While details can be found at the National Security Archive website, the posting's bottom line was that even with 400,000 troops, removing Saddam Hussein would still put that country in the same condition it is in today. These findings make it seem that even if former Army Chief of Staff Eric Shinseki had his way, it might not have made a difference...but just tell that to the families of the troops who have lost their lives when Rumsfeld only deployed one-third the total of that scenio's recommended total.

I had more on my list of things to 'spray' (Joe Paterno's unfortunate injuries, traffic at the Nutter Center, Air America 'blackout' memo) but I don't want to delay this any longer than I have. Fire in the hole!