Posted on 01/12/2014 8:41:19 PM PST by DoughtyOne
A Commentary by DoughtyOne based on an article appearing in the Los Angeles Times.
For quite some time we have been aware of efforts to reduce the impact of Rush Limbaugh on the psyche of the American Public. It was rumored that an effort was underway to remove Rush from many stations so that local programming could take center stage As of the first of the years, it has quietly taken place. Clear channel has moved Rush off superstations across this nation, placing him on third rate stations.
Why is this a big deal, you may ask. Well lets use Los Angeles for an example. Radio Station KFI in Los Angeles is what is known as a super-station. AM 640 can be heard from roughly Santa Monica on the West to San Bernardino on the East, close to San Diego on the South, and north close to Santa Barabara. I believe it's a 50,000 watt station. Moving Rush over to the KTLK affiliate has probably reduced his on air audience to perhaps 1/10th to 1/20th of it's former size. I believe it is rated at 10,000 watts. Referencing the call letters KLTK is in a sense misleading, because a Clear Channel nod to Rush in Los Angeles has the call letters revised to KEIB, the normal radio "K" plus Rush's Exellence In Broadcasting title.
I haven't been listening to Rush much as of late. I don't know if he has addressed this or not. What I do know, is that this is a massive slap in the face to a guy who made his slot the number one slot across the nation. Someone should take Clear Channel's exectuives in the the back room, and bitch slap them for weeks, or however long it takes for them to realize what an insulting thing they have just done. It's suicidal in a business sense too.
Here is a short list of other stations Rush has been bumped from. Some of them are super-stations too. I'd imagine a majority of them are.
In San Francisco he is leaving KKSF for KNEW. He has been shifted off his normal station in Minneapolis, Houston, New Orleans, and New York.
Here's the way it's being sold in Los Angeles:
“The Patriot will be home to well-known hosts sharing the same conservative philosophical views and values, while KFI will be live and local all day long focusing mainly on the issues that affect Southern Californians,” Greg Ashlock, Clear Channel's market president for Los Angeles, said in a statement.
Evidently Greg Ashlock hasn't pulled his head out of his posterior long enough over the last twenty years to know that Rush's program covers information important to every citizen, not just the 5 to 10% of those he used to reach.
It's also unclear how this is going to improve local probramming in the greater Los Angeles region, since two stations already provide pretty much live local coverage. Now there are three of them, and Rush is relegated to basically using a CB Channel for his future broadcasts.
You have to know that the FCC under the direction of King Obama was behind this.
I hope the stations Rush got kicked off of fall flat on their faces.
In Los Angeles the KFI hosts just went from Right Wing to Flaming Liberal. Local programming IS NOT going to be the only thing these programs talk about either. This was only a masterful way to eliminate Rush as a mover and a shaker across this nation on live radio broadcasts.
Imagine if the reverse had been done, the best Leftist shows in the nation all at once relegated to 5 to 10% of their former audiences.
This was not a sound business decision. That leaves only one reason why it's taking place.
Check the photo of Rush out at the link. Good grief! No axe to grind here... /s
LINK to Los Angeles Times information
I travel from Hollywood to farther counties and can easily reach the new station you mentioned. Normally do “not” listen to Rush because I’m already so far right there’s nothing he could say to sway me me any further.
It would be interesting to know what percentage of his current 10 to 15,000 square miles will be covered, now that he’s relegated to about 400 square miles on KEIB.
Rush should go satellite. He’d be pretty much untouchable and could do what he wants.
Terrestrial radio is its own worst enemy. The KFI signal in Los Angeles is weak as is the new Patriot KEIB at 1150am on the dial.
I stream Rush for the higher fidelity offered through iHeartRadio anywhere in the world. A lot of the local stations will break away from Rush for a local news event or Obama speeches and that makes streaming even a better choice. WLS 890am in Chicago will always interrupt Rush for Obama speeches.
I will never go satellite.
I am never going to give my money to support all those leftwing channels, all those smut channels, Howard Stern and crap just to hear Rush, sorry.
I am sure there are small stations in those areas that would do it
Max American, you’re right. I just went over to the KEIB Wikipedia page and IT IS a 50,000 watt station.
For years I have been under the impression that KFI was the only 50,000 watt super-station in the area. KFI is the station of record for national disasters and the like because of it’s 50,000 watt status.
This is the first time I have heard of another 50,000 watt station in Los Angeles.
I appreciate you mentioning this.
My theory has been that Savage was moved into Hannity’s slots on these stations NOT b/c he is as popular as the heavyweights, but b/c 25% of the time Savage is downright goofy or nuts. Another 25% of the time he is dull. He is there BECAUSE he is not as persuasive as the others.
I guarantee you that Clear Channel execs are being handsomely paid by the Marxist cretins to dampen the effectiveness of those who present arguments cogently and clearly. Bob
As smart phones develop, radio simply won't matter in virtually any urban market.
Thank you SOL.
As of last week rush was still on am 1130 in minneapols. The channel has not changed but about a year ago clear idiots moved them from fm 100.3 ktlk to the am band. They wanted their sports talk on fm.
Rush is also on 103.5 fm a low power fm station serving the down towns and 100.3 hd 2. He is carried live.
Now if we could get Levin live I could dump sprint (unlimited data for streaming in car) and get a real cell provided.
Ah.
OK good. I was a bit confused by this. So Rush is still at peak power in LA.
:D
I stopped listening to Savage in 2006 when it was disclosed that he sent the largest allowable contribution to Jerry Brown’s campaign.
I have the services, but I seldom use them to listen to Rush.
I am a subscriber, and I don’t use that as much as I thought I would, but it is great to be able to go in and call up a show and listen when I want.
Still, a lot of folks won’t fork over the coins to do this.
iHeart radio does it for free though, I believe. If people want to, they can find his show.
Anywhere in the domestic US. I was surprised to find that iHeartRadio does not allow reception to non-US internet addresses. The Philippines was a no-no for iHeart.
This is a continuation of moving Rush over to Clear Channel stations exclusively.
WABC is NOT owned by Clear Channel, WOR is, as is the case with the other moves.
As long as data caps exist on cell phones radio will exist.
I stream levin. Its the only way to get him live. With out fail it seems my phone drops the connection just when he is getting cranked up and won’t reconnect and rebuffer until the commercial break. Go figure.
He is.
Evidently...
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