Even Limbaugh's introductory theme music has attracted controversy. Since the 1980s he has used an edited and looped version of the powerful instrumental riff from The Pretenders' "My City Was Gone", a song written by Chrissie Hynde to bemoan the effects of overdevelopment on her native Ohio. Limbaugh loved the riff, hated the message, and thought he could both attract listeners and annoy opponents by playing it. When a landmark copyright case was decided in the 1990s, musical artists gained control over their works when performed thematically. Briefly in 1999, Limbaugh was forced to suspend playing the song while negotiating with Hynde. Hynde eventually decided to allow Limbaugh to use it, with Limbaugh donating approximately $500,000/year to the animal rights organization PETA. Hynde explained that she doesn't agree with Limbaugh but her parents are big fans.
I do not believe this portion is correct. Wikipedia has a lot of urban legends.
Just because it's in Wikipedia doesn't make it so.
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/5923659?rnd=1121963621155&has-player=false
The standoff between CHRISSIE HYNDE and radio right-winger RUSH LIMBAUGH is finally over. Since 1984, Limbaugh had been using the "My City Was Gone," the Pretenders lament about the mall-ification of America, without Hynde's consent. According to Hynde's manager, Limbaugh had not licensed the song for his nationally syndicated radio show, nor had he even asked for permission to use it -- something that didn't seem to bother Hynde all that much until Limbaugh told a pair of reporters in 1997 that "it was icing on the cake that it was [written by] an environmentalist, animal rights wacko and was an anti-conservative song. It is anti-development, anti-capitalist, and here I am going to take a liberal song and make fun of [liberals] at the same time." Last month, Hynde finally got Limbaugh to pull the song but then did an about face on Aug. 18, telling him that he could use the song if he donated all the royalties to the animal right's organization PETA, after PETA campaign manager Dan Mathews told her Limbaugh had a soft-spot for animals. She fired off the following missive to PETA to let them know of the recent developments. "In light of Rush Limbaugh's vocal support of PETA's campaign against the Environmental Protection Agency's foolish plan to test some 3,000 chemicals on animals, I have decided to allow him to keep my song, 'My City Was Gone,' as his signature tune and to donate all proceeds from the deal to further PETA's efforts in that regard".
It is clear at least that Hynde is donating the money to PETA for a very specific purpose that Rush agreed with.