Ed Schultz, Liberal Talk Radio, Madison

THE BLAME GAME

Schultz Thinks Managers Doomed Madison Libtalk







As "progressive" talk radio continues to lose stations, one after another, we're seeing an increase in finger- pointing, as hosts and their defenders refuse to take the hit for the format's increasingly dire position.

Today, it's libtalker Ed Schultz jumping into the act, faulting local management for the failure of a FM outlet in Madison. Claiming the sales and programming departments didn't do their jobs, Eddie seems to be on the warpath in this Capital Times piece:

Big Ed: Ad sellers failed 'The Mic'

By Rob Thomas


When he first heard the news that Clear Channel was dropping the progressive talk format in Madison, radio host Ed Schultz assumed the station wasn't really serious.

"When I heard about this, I thought it was a radio stunt," Schultz, known as "Big Ed," said in a phone interview from his office in Fargo, N.D. "I thought that maybe the management was trying to figure out how much passion there is in the community for the format, and bring visibility to the format."

Now that he knows that it's not a stunt and that WXXM/FM 92.1 "The Mic" will switch to Fox Sports Radio affiliation at the end of the month, taking him off the air in Madison, Schultz is blasting station management for the decision.

"Our job is to get ratings," he says. "Not only our show, but other shows did what was expected of us. It was poor sales management and poor market management, in my opinion. It makes no business sense, and it makes no operational sense either.

"The Mic is not a heritage station," Schultz says. "The Mic has no tradition other than to continually fail with different formats. The Mic was given a pulse. The Mic was given some life and a heartbeat. And they killed it."

But Clear Channel managers have their own take on the situation, as the piece continues:

Jeff Tyler, Clear Channel Madison vice president, said that progressive talk outlets around the country have been struggling with advertising issues, and that the financial status of Air America, which filed for bankruptcy, is also a factor.

"There are many advertisers, local and national, who have been at conflict with the programming or stay away from controversial programming that has led to less than reasonable results," Tyler said in an e-mail Friday. "Our sales team successfully sells the overall top talk station in the market (WIBA AM 1310) and it ranks in the top 5 in market in revenue. There are obviously similar sales struggles with other progressive talk outlets in the country, including what the base network Air America Radio is currently going through with their bankruptcy. This is leading to other stations and ownerships dropping the format or modifying the lineup."

And here, there's more to the story, it turns out:

WTDY-AM/1670 "The Pulse" originally broadcast Schultz's show when he debuted in 2004, but station manager Glen Gardner says that station is unlikely to take Schultz or any other nationally syndicated radio shows back.

Gardner says the station is happy with focusing on live, Madison-based talent and is reluctant to carry syndicated hosts like Schultz that larger radio companies can lure away.

"What ends up happening with syndicated programming, because we're the small guys, we're the local guys, we don't have the clout of 1,300 radio stations," Gardner says. "We put a show on, we popularize it, we spend money promoting it and then a company like Clear Channel comes in and uses its corporate power to take the show."

Regarding the move from The Pulse to The Mic, Schultz says Clear Channel led him to believe that if he moved his show to a Clear Channel station, the company would be able to deliver other markets for him.

"We moved the show away from the AM station over to The Mic, and now Clear Channel drops the format," Schultz says. "I think that's dirty pool. Now, the station that we left, I don't blame them a bit for telling us to take a hike. If it were me, I would give them a long-term commitment. I definitely want to be in the Madison market."

Beyond Eddie's lack of diplomacy in dealing with a company that still carries his show on many of its stations, he just isn't doing himself any favors with this public ranting and raving.

That's because The Mic gave libtalk ample time to catch on in a market where it should have been readily embraced, by local advertisers as much as listeners. If "progressive" radio could make it anywhere, Madison should be at the top of the list.

There's no conspiracy against "progressives" here: if it were showing promise, there's no doubt The Mic would have remained a libtalk outlet far into the future.


The Mic image: David A Lunde

Looking for gift ideas? Your Amazon orders that begin with clicks here, regardless of what you ultimately purchase, greatly help to support this site's efforts. Thanks again!

Also: Have a business or product to advertise? Our BlogAds Premium slot is now open! Click "Crank Up Your Own Levels" for more information.

Technorati tags: the mic madison liberal talk radio ed schultz air america al franken wisconsin clear channel