Daily Telegraph Ranks Conservative, Liberal Influence

LOST OPPORTUNITY

In Ranking Conservatives, Telegraph Stumbles Badly







From a list already already derided by many on the American right, talk radio fared reasonably well in the Daily Telegraph's new list of the 100 Most Influential Conservatives. Hosts including Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Michael Savage, Laura Ingraham and Bill O'Reilly were all included.

Meanwhile, "progressive" talk radio was completely shut out of paper's companion survey, the 100 Most Influential Liberals. Oddly, the left wing list seemed more thoughtfully put together, while the conservative version came across as bizarre.


On today's show, Rush Limbaugh indicated he felt he should have been ranked number one, echoing the sentiment of a caller and many other conservatives (see the comments section). Limbaugh came in fifth, behind Rudy Giuliani, General David Petraeus, non-conservative Matt Drudge and Newt Gingrich.

The talk titan also said he felt there were some "really strange placements" on the list. "These lists are silly," added Limbaugh, "but at least it's not from Time Magazine, or Vanity Fair."

As curious as some of the selections were the rankings. Despite remaining cable talk's ratings king, Bill O'Reilly was positioned at a mere 82, while fireball Ann Coulter lagged behind even that at 84.

Even more peculiar, O'Reilly fill-in host and syndicated talker Laura Ingraham ranked a solid fifteenth. While highly regarded, is she more influential than Bill himself?

From here, it just grows more bizarre: cable and radio talk leader Sean Hannity takes a mere 44, while syndicated evening host Mark Levin (below left) beats him to take 31.

Meanwhile, the sometimes erratic Michael Savage came in at number 63.


Looking at the list beyond just talk radio, we could spend a month debating the merits of who made the cut and who did not. But it takes a mere moment to recognize that on his worst day, Rush Limbaugh is 1000 times more influential than Rudy Giuliani, who may or may not win the GOP nomination next year.

Need proof? Look no further than the recent letter authored by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and signed by 41 Senate Democrats: the fact that liberal elected officials felt the need to denounce Limbaugh from the congressional floor demonstrates beyond any doubt that the talk titan leads the conservative movement.

And the subsequent auction of the letter for more than $2m only cements Limbaugh's position. Is there even any doubt?


In addition, there's a larger issue: the fact that talk radio absolutely, without question, heads up today's conservative movement. The GOP is still a mess, with a necessary rebuilding of the party still well down the road. And while bloggers would like to believe they are running the show, the right side of the blogosphere still lags significantly behind talk radio's audience reach.


While still one of Britain's leading quality broadsheets, a paper generally known as the "Torygraph" ought to have a better read on conservatives both here and in the UK. This represents a lost opportunity to track the state of our movement.

Better luck next year.


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Technorati tags: talk radio telegraph conservatives survey telegraph liberals survey rush limbaugh mark levin sean hannity michael savage bill o\'reilly laura ingraham