Leftists React To Air America's Troubles

THE REAL 'STOOGES'?

'Progressives' Use Attacks To Spin AAR's Failures





Aware that their publicity- rich, yet money- wasting experiment with "progressive" talk radio is failing badly, excuse- making liberals are increasingly looking to spin Air America Radio's grand failure. And in doing so, they're on the attack against those who have exposed the network's many shortcomings.

Like marxists who believe the Soviet Union failed only because it didn't fully implement comrade Karl's teachings, Air America is now being portrayed as a failure not because liberal talk is unpopular, but due to poor internal programming decisions. That's despite a great number of "progressive" talkers who have now come and gone, including some with substantial backgrounds in leftist politics.


Until now, the Radio Equalizer has generally ignored these lefty critics, for the following reasons:


More often than not, they're commenting on stories that originated at the Radio Equalizer, but dishonestly refuse to give this site credit for breaking them. Instead, they'll cite others who picked up a story secondhand, as a result of reading it here. When we're mentioned, it's merely to engage in childish name- calling.


Next, they'll attack this site by nitpicking at our pieces, looking for tiny elements of our exclusive reports that didn't pan out when reviewing them months later. To them, it doesn't matter that our main points have an impeccable accuracy record over the last year, we're held to a far higher standard than so- called "progressives" expect from even the Washington Post or New York Times.


While the Radio Equalizer has given critics incredibly wide leeway in our comments section (below each post), their sites routinely block dissenting voices. Case in point: the Majority Report's website, which has been quick to eliminate opposing viewpoints. Here, we're sometimes even accused by readers of letting our detractors have too much freedom to engage in downright abusive online behavior. Yet we've let them attack at will.


One of the more annoying recent examples of this supposedly enlightened "progressive" behavior comes from the blog of WFMU-FM / New York City, where Michelle Malkin and your Radio Equalizer are dismissed as "stooges".

Yet in this lengthy "analysis" of Air America's situation, there's simply no getting around the fact that without our reporting, much of what's being discussed never would have come to light. Name- calling is merely a deflection away from that "reality".

Need some examples?


News that Air America would lose New York flagship WLIB-AM first broke here. Even if at the time we didn't have a firm date (noted in the story) on when this major hit to the network would take place, the report did in fact originate here. In addition, until the eleventh hour, Randy Michaels was the primary bidder to take over WLIB's operations. In the end, it doesn't really matter who takes over WLIB, the point is that Air America lost their mothership, resulting in tremendous damage to the operation.


Details of Al Franken's bloated contract were first exposed here, as were elements of the crazy Randi Rhodes deal signed earlier this summer.


News of Janeane Garofalo's departure from the "Majority Report" first broke here as well and was later confirmed by trade publications.

Several corporate executive exits have also first been revealed here, including that of programming head Carl Ginsburg.


In addition, the first report of Jerry Springer's likely removal from Air America's New York City lineup originated here.


The big enchilada, of course, was our original reporting on Air America's Gloria Wise Boys & Girls Club scandal, where taxpayer grants for the inner- city charity were instead diverted to the liberal radio network. Michelle Malkin and yours truly worked for months on that project and the city investigation continues to this day.


In the end, so- called "progressives" can hate the Radio Equalizer and Michelle Malkin all they want, but the truth remains that without this reporting, they would know relatively little about this shadowy outfit's inner workings. To say otherwise is simply dishonest.

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Images by Pete at IHillary and David A Lunde