Posted on 10/08/2005 6:50:27 AM PDT by SIRTRIS
WASHINGTON - When the White House wanted to talk to its political base about a Supreme Court nominee this week, there was no doubt where to go: talk radio.
Vice President Dick Cheney took the administration's case to the Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity programs, speaking simultaneously to the normally sympathetic hosts and their audiences of like-minded Republicans.
A decade after Republicans credited Limbaugh with helping them win control of Congress - they called him the Majority Maker - they still look to his conservative-dominated medium for a lopsided communications edge over Democrats. Today, they count on talk radio to rally support for President Bush, attack those who criticize or question him, and stir passions leading into the 2006 midterm congressional elections.
There are signs that the Republicans could be losing some of their overwhelming edge, however. Ratings for Limbaugh and Hannity slipped this spring in some markets. Liberals such as Ed Schultz, Stephanie Miller and Al Franken are carving out their own radio niche. And Democrats argue that they have an edge on the Internet, where explosive growth could dwarf the political impact of radio.
Some of that could be just wishful thinking by Democrats. The slip in ratings, for example, could be a normal drop in political interest after an election year. They also could be untrue - radio ratings are difficult to measure. And even if Limbaugh and Hannity have fewer listeners than they did in the past, they still have millions more than liberal talk show hosts.
"We're not there yet," Franken said in an interview.
"My numbers are going up, and theirs are going down. But if I have a million and half people listening to me, that's still just one-tenth of Rush's audience."
Like most people in and around radio, Franken credited Limbaugh's personal talents for creating the genre of conservative talk radio in the late 1980s and dominating it ever since.
"He's very talented, I'll give him that," Franken said. "He's a good storyteller. He's good at framing an issue, whether honest or not. ... He's very good at kicking dust up in the air so you don't see the crap on the ground. It's an evil talent. But he's talented."
Yet Limbaugh, who didn't respond to a request for an interview, lost ground this year in several markets.
Limbaugh lost 30 percent of his audience in Minneapolis-St. Paul this spring from a year earlier. He also lost 9 percent in Miami and 7 percent in Kansas City, Mo. He did have gains in some smaller markets, however, including Charlotte, N.C., and Fort Wayne, Ind.
Some of the loss can be attributed to listeners tuning out after an election year. But they also might be growing weary of the Limbaugh and Hannity format.
"They're pretty much talking about the same thing every day," said Holland Cooke, a Cleveland-based radio industry consultant who said the hosts tend to talk about the same subjects and interview the same guests over and over.
"Last week, Sean Hannity had Newt Gingrich coming on. I've already heard that show. Then he said he had Ann Coulter coming on. I've already heard that show. It's a rerun. You already know what he's going to say."
The 40-somethings with their hands on the driving wheel and money in their pockets - prime radio audience targets - are more likely to listen to news about gas prices than the Supreme Court and more interested in new approaches to their lives than old opinions of politics, Cooke said.
"Most political talk stations (ratings) are down over last fall, conservative or not," added Tom Taylor, editor of Inside Radio, an industry publication owned by Clear Channel Radio. "You can surmise that people are a little burned out on the partisan back and forth. Culturally, this may not be a time when political talk sells."
Democrats insist they have some radio outlets that help them take their case to targeted audiences. Bill Clinton and Al Gore, for example, spent as much time courting urban radio host Tom Joyner as they did television network anchormen, said former Gore aide Chris Lehane.
And they think they can reach more people through the Internet than Republicans. Internet users are younger and more independent-minded than radio listeners and more open to the Democratic message, Lehane said. Democrats Howard Dean and John Kerry showed in their 2004 presidential campaigns that they could reach and organize millions of people through the Internet.
Yet if the communications of politics is changing, it hasn't changed that much yet.
Limbaugh still has about 14.75 million listeners, according to Talkers Magazine. Hannity has about 13 million.
Even the most successful liberal hosts, such as Schultz, Miller and Franken, don't come close yet. None made the top 30 talk radio shows as ranked by Talkers Magazine.
"Al Franken are carving out their own radio niche."
What world does this writer live in? Last I heard, Al Franken was sinking into obscurity and Air America is going bust (despite the fact that the MSM has not covered how funds were misappropriated from a charity to pay for it). The "some markets" where ratings have dropped could refer to LA, MS, AL and parts of FL hit by storms. Do Ya Think????
Boy, is THIS one of the more delusional pieces I've read in a long, long time............
Really? Aggressive conservative (and according to you) stealing audience WWTC has lost almost half its audience since Fall 04. They've gone from a 1.8 share to a 1.1 share. Working pretty well. Stealing that audience from KSTP.
It's more likely WCCO is. They've gone from a 8.0 to a 9.6 share.
They measure internet ratings. While I don't have access to those, the pale compared to the over the air loss.
Re: "The fact remains at one time Limbaugh could boast 20 million. Now just 14.75???? Where did they go?"
You better fire off an inquiry to the author of the article, rarely to reporters delve into such details.
You're really going to love what Political Moneyline (fecinfo.com) says about their neutral analyst.
| 1 . | COOKE, HOLLAND | |
| 9/2/2003 | $1,000.00 | |
| BLOCK ISLAND, PA | ||
| POLITICAL CONSULTANT | [Contribution] | |
| SKINNER FOR SENATE 2004 | ||
| [View Image] | ||
| 2 . | COOKE, HOLLAND | |
| 11/26/2003 | $545.00 | |
| BLOCK ISLAND, PA | ||
| POLITICAL CONSULTANT | [Contribution] | |
| SKINNER FOR SENATE 2004 | ||
| [View Image] | ||
Nancy Skinner [clicking her name gives you a Google search on her] is a far-left Dem, and a struggling talk show host who ran a quixotic campaign in the 2004 election. Mr Cooke is out of the closet, I'm afraid. This sack of $#!+ reporter thinks he can still use his old slanting techniques in the information age.
It's safe to assume that Cooke -- and therefore the reporter who conceals his identity -- is way out there with Skinner and Ward Churchill in celebrating-the-dead-troops KosLand.
Busted!
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
Well, maybe part of the problem is that the Administration still views talkradio as one-way communication. They can sure be stubbornly deaf as doorknobs when they want to be. Then they pretend to wonder why the conservative base gets upset with them.
What MESSAGE????? They have the same failed message since the 1960s. Every month there is some Liberal Think Tank telling them how their message SHOULD be packaged! The Demos problem isn't getting their message out, its' the message they have STICKS. Their ideals have no appeal to anyone unless they are getting a Govt subsidy or want to claim victim status in order TO get a taxpayer paid for subsidy. Same old tired crap we heard right after EVERY election the Dems lose 1984, remember it like yesterday "We just didn't get our message out" 2004 "We need to do better at getting our message out"
No Dems it IS the message that is the problem.
"And they (Demos) think they can reach more people through the Internet than Republicans. Internet users are younger and more independent-minded than radio listeners and more open to the Democratic message, Lehane said
They also sit in front of their computers all day, rather than driving to work or wherever with the kids in their cars listening to Rush.
This article reads like a "The way it oughta be" wish list for Democrats. I really like the part on how liberal radio is SO successful, it's catching up with Rush.
Ten years ago, Limbaugh was about the only game in town. Now, there are dozens of conservative talkers to choose from. People like variety. Try adding up the listenership for all the conservative shows and compare it with the total listenership for the leftist shows and then tell us which side is slipping.
There are some decent local lib talkers. Matter of fact, Randi Rhodes was a ratings winner in South Florida for many years. Ed Schultz, while in cold ND had decent ratings on his local station before going national.
all these guys have similar ratings to some well known conservative talkers like Hewitt and others on salem talkers.
That is one of the Achilles heels of the current hosts. They spend far far far too much time blathering on about themselves. Get sick of a 60 min marketing pitch in place of a talk show. I have pretty much dumped O'Reily and Hannity cause of that.
They wish!
The only reason Limbaugh is declining a bit (if he is) is because of all the other fair to good conservative talk shows.
When Limbaugh came to the Dallas area, it was just re-runs on Saturday and Sunday. At that time there were a few local conservative hosts and that was it.
Now I can listen to probably 15 or 20 different hosts from Laura Ingraham to Mark Levin. But Rush is still the best and the one I don't like to miss.
So what you're saying is the market can't absorb more conservative talkers and the established ones are losing to the more varied choices? That means that new converts aren't coming on. Sort of like GM, Ford and Chrysler with Honda and Toyota in the market. Will Rush and Hannity become the GM and Ford of the talk markets?
Never happen. He is even worse then Rush about self promotion. Frankly, I spend more time on the net doing my own snooping then I do listening to any of the Conservative Establishment Pundits. Too much self purporting, too much whining. Wish they spent 1-30th as much time shooting at our foes as they do shooting at what is suppose to be OUR side. If I wanted to hear no stop whining, I would listen to either Error America or PBS, or read a "newspaper" or watch TV news
It's not that people don't like Rush or Hannity---it's that for the first time, you can get that "spin" on the news at any time of day, so someone who hears Laura Ingraha or Neil Boortz from 9/10:00-12:00 doesn't HAVE to tune in to Rush as he or she once did to be assured of getting the "right" news.
Second, Franken's an idiot. He doesn't have one-tenth of Rush's audience. His MAXIMUM listenership is one-tenth of Rush's AVERAGE. If you compare MAX to MAX, he has one-twentieth, and he's not growing.
Third, most local areas (PHX, DAYTON, MINNEAPOLIS) who carry conservative national shows also bracket them with other conservative local shows. In Phx, for ex., you have Barry Young; in Cincinnati/Dayton, Mike McConnell; in Minny, it's "Garage Logic." So once again, while these don't directly compete with Rush, it's like having a new restaurant that is only open 12-3 for 10 years, then all of a sudden you can get similar (not as good, but somewhat different) meals at any hour of the day. That is bound to siphon off listenership.
The proper way to measure this would be ALL "conservative" talk radio---national and local---vs. ALL "liberal" talk radio, national and local. I bet we are annihilating them.
your pal is being denigrated...
I just reread the article. This guy is totally delusional. It's a "conservative talk radio is dying and libs are catching up" article, but it's built on false conclusions.
This will get big play on DU - when Err America finally goes under, they will go nuts - articles like this will be proof for "it's gaining listeners and doing so well - it must be a corporate conspiracy! After all, we ARE the majority!"
Just like when they keep losing elections and saying it must be the voting machines are rigged.
"Even the most successful liberal hosts, such as Schultz, Miller and Franken, don't come close yet. None made the top 30 talk radio shows as ranked by Talkers Magazine."
Hmmm. I wonder why they didn't list the top 12?
Oh that's right. None are liberals.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.