Al Franken vs. Rush Limbaugh

The Weekly Standard ^ | 3/26/04 | David Skinner

[NYCVirago]

And they are not content to work slowly. Franken has signed only a one-year contract and has made it clear that his real goal is simply the unseating of George W. Bush. Maybe it's possible that he can charge away, on the air for three hours every day, for a few months. But, after the fuel of Election Day runs out, what?

The author is missing the point -- Air America is not intended to be a longtime radio mainstay. It exists for exactly one reason: to get Bush out of office. It's an easy way for Democrats to funnel money to that effort without worrying about campaign finance laws.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

It exists for exactly one reason: to get Bush out of office. It's an easy way for Democrats to funnel money to that effort without worrying about campaign finance laws.

There is already a loophole in CFR which liberals are, will, and always have been driving a truck through - it's called journalism. If you are a journalist you can report the news right up to election day, "so people know what's going on." But "what is going on" is only to be seen in retrospect; making that call in real time is an ink-blot test.

Journalism is politics. By the freedom journalists have to decide what is and what is not news, journalists express their politics - and vice versa. The rules of what makes a "great story" are anticonservative in nature; the business of reporting consists of looking for the hole in the conservative donut.

Journalism calls itself "the press," as if the particular genre of nonfiction publishing which is published periodically on a fixed schedule with short deadlines were the only thing the First Amendment freedom to publish was talking about. In reality, of course, books ain't chopped liver. Even fiction (e.g., Uncle Tom's Cabin) can have a powerful political effect.

The true motive of the push for "a liberal Rush Limbaugh" is to provide cover for the liberalism of journalism. It is to help in the ongoing propaganda campaign to "position" journalism as being something other than the liberalism that is so obviously is.

[backhoe]

This theory of course contradicts others about Rush advanced by critics, for one that he is a success mainly because he tells conservative listeners what they want to hear--

Nope. Rush simply gave voice to a lot of stuff I was noticing, and thinking all along. And for whatever it's worth, I probably agree less with Rush than with many other radio hosts- but he's informative, entertaining ( the parodies alone are worth tuning in for ) and always polite. I like that.

What so many commentators on this subject don't mention ( for whatever reason ) is that radio is a business, and business is about numbers, profit, and money- if Rush didn't attract a lot of listeners, sponsors would go elsewhere, and he'd fade away.

Whether the Voices of the Left will fall or prosper will be a very interesting and entertaining event to observe.

[RightOnline]

They'll fail miserably.......we all know exactly why.......and it will be fun to watch.

[TomGuy]

I watched about 2 minutes of Janeane Garofalo when she subbed on some program on CNN or MSNBC a few months ago.

The one notable thing about Janeane Garofalo's appearance was they she couldn't go off-script. She didn't seem capable of following the stream of discussion. She was constantly looking down at and fumbling with sheets of paper (her script?) on the desk in front of her.

---

So, what's Hannity, Larson, Rush, Savage, and all the other conservative talkshow hosts going to do now that the voice of radio is going to be Frankin's? [end sarcasm]

I doubt LibRadio will last much longer than Phil Donahoe's return to TV (MSNBC) lasted.

[PokeyJoe]

no pun intended.

Ditto what you said!

[giotto]

A lot of liberals listen to conservative talk radio. They listen, I believe, because there is a deeply felt human need to hear logical, reasoned thought expressed in words. And no one does this as articulately and with such insight as Rush.

But there is no reasoned, logical thought coming from leftists like Franken, Garafolo, or any other of the blowhards on tap for this network. There are a few liberals worth reading, such as Nat Hentoff and sometimes Christopher Hitchens, but I doubt that there will be many of those on Air America. So conservatives will give it a listen, out of curiosity, and then permanently stay away in droves.

But there are plenty of Bush haters out there, and there aren't a lot of talk stations for them to express that hatred, so I'm predicting this thing will go pretty well until after the election. Then, when Bush is re-elected, they'll not only still hate him, but they'll be even more frustrated. So who knows, it might really take off. Oh well, God bless 'em.

[auggy]

This could harm them, more than help them. When Alan Colmes was on the air, he was considered by most to be a fruitcake.

He was a fruitcake, because of his ideaology, his liberal beliefs. Very few people in this country actually think like a liberal. Most Democrats I know are way more conservative than liberal. They are in denial that their Democrat Party is actually as idiotic as, their liberal hosts might suggest they are.
If, the new liberal radio network is honest about who, they really are, it will only defeat their purpose and help re-elect President Bush.
I honestly hope it is successful. though , it won't be.

[reg45]

And who is going to advertise on this network,

1. Bungee Condoms? Sorry, Rush already has that account.
2. The Josef Mengele Womens Health Zenter - Combining womens needs with an eastern mystical respect for life
3. Bush Whackers - a drinking establishment for liberals - home of the Teddy Kennedy million dollar bar tab.
4. Pinque - a fun bathhouse for Barney and the boys.
5. etc.

[InvisibleChurch]

i can see franken being there everyday because he doesn't have anything else to do, but does anyone expect rappers and comediennes to show up everyday for work? my response reads as such: har har har

i'm guessing that the libs will keep this afloat until the day after the general election

[elfman2]

" The author is missing the point -- Air America is not intended to be a longtime radio mainstay. It exists for exactly one reason: to get Bush out of office. It's an easy way for Democrats to funnel money to that effort without worrying about campaign finance laws."

I think you’re right. This author doesn’t bring up the possibility that the subject of his analysis is simply a misdirection. Looks like he took the bait and ran.

[P.O.E.]

Franken was on Jon Stewart's Daily Show last night. I think he pretty much did his entire radio show in the five minute interview.

Basically, it boiled down to:

1)Conservatives lie.
2)Bush is stupid.

I can't believe this is all they can come up with - all these brilliant intellectuals on the left.

[guitfiddlist]

What libs don't understand, among many things, is the content. They are completely mystified by the success of Rush, attributing it all to his presentation, shtick or other gimmicks. What people are sick of, is the governing elite media's arrogant presentation of blatant lies and wacko philosophies - and Rush has an unmatched ability to lay them all out in clear and hilarious fashion, when he gets on a roll.

The leftist weenies think they can match this with a cheap-shot one-liner "comedian", in the form of Al Franken. The low-tone and fact-free zone that Franken brings with him will have serious listeners rapidly clearing their radio memories of his station settings, leaving only the dim-witted DUmmies calling in to spout, "Yeah, man, like I really hate Bush too, dude!" And that...will be that.

[reagan_fanatic]

Al Franken vs. Rush Limbaugh

That's a bit like comparing Paris Hilton to Stephen Hawkins, isn't it?

[Carolinamom]

Al Franken's picture will never appear in the dictionary beside the definition of comedian.

[jojodamofo]

The limousine liberal bewitches and exploits the gullible, the ignorant, the trusting. He reserves for himself all the advantages of capitalism, wealth and treasures, all the joys and pleasures of life. Yet meanwhile the limousine liberal complains about oppression and persecution, about hatred and prejudice against others. But the limousine liberals have gathered and swindled the world's money.

[WilliamofCarmichael]

None of these pioneers rode into town on a wave of popularity. Rather, it was in hiding, during off years, and without the whole world calling that they rediscovered the language of conservatism and delivered it anew to wide acclaim.

"they rediscovered the language of conservatism and delivered it anew to wide acclaim"

Anew?! That is total BS! I cannot count the number of times callers exclaimed to Rush and all the other talk show hosts, "I never knew anyone else believed as I believe!" or "I thought that I was the only one who knew / remembered that!"

There was nothing new, except..

We had this little thing called the FCC "Fairness Doctrine." Stations owners could lose their licenses if they allowed opinions on the air that weren't fa-a-a-a-a-a-air. Guess who did all the complaining.

The market for conservative talk's brand of opinion journalism was always there. President Reagan made it possible when he did away with the "Fairness Doctrine."

We weren't "in hiding." We knew conservative opinion was virtually banned from the mainstream. I wrote letters to the networks in the 1960s -- noooo, they responded, we're all professional, highly trained and very intelligent journalists. Mr. Skinner must be some youngster under sixty.

The decades of the 1960s, 70s, and most of the 1980s proved that liberals can make it only if they are backed by a "Fairness Doctrine." Watch out! After these pukes fail bringing back "fairness" is next. Over their dead bodies!

BTW, Morton Downey Junior in Sacramento was fired for saying "Chinaman" on the air. Yes, a Sacramento city council critter was offen-n-n-n-n-n-n-ed and the best and brightest Sacramento Bee brains played up the story big time.

[ChevyZ28]

1. Conservatives lie
2. Bush is stupid


Didn't the liberals make this mistake the last time?

[ijcr]

Here in Orlando recently the local show that follows Rush
ran a three hour special for Democrats to call in and state why they would vote for Kerry.

The host stated that the answer "He's not Bush would not be sufficient". It was a long empty show.