Truth MIA In Schultz Gloating

EDDIE'S PHONY 'WAR'

Facts Lacking In Armed Forces Radio 'Victory'




Repeating unsubstantiated conspiracy theories often enough may win over some outside their tiny circle, liberal talk radio proponents are learning.

For more than two days, fans of Fargo-based lib talker Ed Schultz have celebrated their would-be "victory" over the military-industrial complex that supposedly conspired to keep his program off of Armed Forces Radio.


From our 18 October report:

Possibly in response to a Democrat-led push for greater ideological programming "balance" on global military broadcasts, the Ed Schultz show was, in theory at least, to begin Monday. Instead, his nationally syndicated program was halted before even a single airing.

Was it ever actually approved for the military radio network, however?

Sensing a publicity opportunity, Schultz immediately went on the offensive, accusing Armed Forces Radio of censorship. Not surprisingly, a number of liberal blogs picked up the story Monday night, having heard Eddie's on-air rantings.

At the time, a Pentagon spokesperson insisted it simply hadn't yet been cleared at every level. Rather than ideology, that suggested it was more an issue of military bureaucracy.

It suddenly became a leftist cause celebre, however, when the Washington Post and other mainstream media outlets got into the act.

Now that the program has been cleared for Armed Forces Radio, liberals still won't let go of the idea its delay was caused by Schultz's anti-war tirades. There have been hundreds of posts over the last month, here are two examples:

Armed Forces Radio has decided to include the Ed Schultz Show in overseas programming, RAW STORY has learned.

The show recently got into a fracas with the Defense Department after the liberal radio host called out Allison Barber, a deputy assistant secretary of defense, for staging a teleconference event between President Bush and U.S. soldiers in Iraq.

The Department had intended to begin carrying Schultz's show earlier, but that deal was put on hold after Schultz's remarks. Several Democratic senators then wrote to officials in the Defense Department.

At the Moderate Voice, an extra layer of blame is thrown into the mix:

Just weeks after nixing an agreement literally at the last minute in what seemed to be a fit of ire over one of his broadcasts critical of a rehearsed encounter between President George W. Bush and some members of the military, Armed Forces Radio has said it will in fact carry progressive talker Ed Schultz's increasingly popular radio talk show after all.

The news arrived here in the form of an email from Schultz producer James Holme and Schultz announced it on his program. The progressive talker — whose show was purchased some months ago by two high-powered broadcast executives instrumental in the success of Rush Limbaugh and Clear Channel Communications — thanked his listeners for their massive letter and email campaigns to their elected officials clamoring for the Pentagon to stick by the agreement in a letter The Ed Schultz Show received some months ago giving the green-light to the program as a countervailing voice to conservative talkers such as Rush Limbaugh and James Dobson.

On his show Schultz said there was only one sticking point in the effort to get him on Armed Forces Radio: Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman responded to people contacting his office by basically dissing Schultz's show, saying it didn't meet the requirements.

In Wednesday's Denver Post, however, Dick Kreck took a more moderate approach:

Chalk one up for the liberals. The voice of talk-show host Ed Schultz (1-4 p.m. weekdays, KKZN 760-AM) will make it to the troops after all. Schultz's show was yanked from Armed Forces Radio Network without warning the day it was to start, three weeks ago.

Last week, the Pentagon sent letters to a group of congressmen who went to bat for Schultz, saying it had changed its mind: Schultz's voice would be added to those of Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura Schlessinger and James Dobson on AFRN.

"I am advised that (American Forces Radio and Television Service) managers are updating the program mix and have decided to include additional programs, including the 'Ed Schultz Show' ...," said the letter from Lawrence DiRita, deputy assistant secretary of defense.

Schultz, whose politics are left of center, blamed his criticism of President Bush for his show being left off the armed-forces network.

The Denver Post at least pointed to Schultz as the source of the theory, but remember, he still hasn't provided even one piece of evidence to back up his claim. It's just his gut hunch.

If the conspiratorial rantings of Schultz's supporters had been confined to blogs and lefty websites, we might very well ignore this matter.


Yesterday, however, Eddie's unsubstantiated claim began to reach entertainment industry publications, such as Inside Radio. It's a widely-read daily fax delivered to radio station executives and others.

From their Wednesday edition (no public link available):







Remember, since there's no evidence Armed Forces Radio had previously approved the program, how can it "reverse itself again"?

And how can Schultz be "reinstated"?

As for the Democrat senators who pressured the Pentagon over this matter, one should ask: why Eddie? Why not Al Franken, Randi Rhodes, Janeane Garofalo, or other liberals? Who made the decision "balance" should be Schultz?

From Stars and Stripes:

WASHINGTON — Defense Department officials have promised that the Ed Schultz show will air on American Forces Radio, but no launch date has been set.

The liberal talk show host had been told by AFR programmers that his show would begin airing on the overseas network starting Oct. 17. Pentagon officials scuttled those plans that morning, saying the decision to add the show had not gone through the proper review.

Since then, a growing group of Democrats has decried the move, saying defense officials wanted political payback for anti-Bush statements made by Schultz the week before his AFR debut.

In a letter sent last week to Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Pentagon spokesman Larry Di Rita wrote that American Forces Radio and Television Service managers have decided to include Schultz’s show in their new programming plans. AFRTS director Mel Russell said officials were waiting on updated information on the show’s audience size and syndication arrangement before giving the go-ahead.

Several Democrats have demanded an independent investigation into how the American Forces Radio and Television Service is run, noting that conservative commentators like Rush Limbaugh and Laura Schlessinger vastly outnumber liberal offerings for the servicemembers.

And on Monday, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, announced plans to amend the 2006 Defense Authorization bill to include “fairness and balance” in AFR offerings.

Especially funny, but rarely mentioned: all this really means is that Ed Schultz is available on the satellite. However, regional military programmers stationed around the world actually make decisions about what shows air locally.

If they decide there's no room, he simply doesn't run in those regions and that's the end of it.

The big question, however, is this: why can a liberal like Ed Schultz make assertions with no basis in fact, while the mainstream media fails to question his clearly self-serving motives?


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