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Fonda, Steinem and Rosie Challenge Rush and the ‘Male Point of View'
NewsMax ^ | 9/5/06 | Lowell Ponte

Posted on 09/05/2006 5:18:15 PM PDT by wagglebee

Jane Fonda, Gloria Steinem and Rosie O'Donnell are backing a new leftwing radio network that plans to appeal to women listeners and counter what the dominance of conservative talk radio that their network says is "dominated by a male point of view."

The new talk radio network is called GreenStone and will be officially launched on September 12, 2006. Its Web site describes it as "a clear alternative to the polarizing, highly political talk commonly heard on AM radio."

Unstated but clear is that GreenStone is at war with Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Michael Savage and dozens of other hosts that dominate the airwaves.

"We know what women want," says GreenStone's mission statement, "and have the entertainment, political, social and business connections to deliver it . . . . Our goal is to build the leading brand for women's talk programming."

What women want to hear about on the radio, according to GreenStone's Web site list of topics, ranges from plastic surgery to Feng Shui, and from how to work at home to cooking and spring cleaning tips.

"Women are ready for a new kind of talk that speaks directly to them on the issues they care about most," says GreenStone's Web site, quoting research it commissioned. "Women want ‘useful information,' something ‘lighter and more entertaining' than political talk shows . . . . Although current events and issues are the most important topics to 90 percent of the survey respondents, women also want a steady diet of entertainment, health and fitness, and relationships – delivered with lots of fun and laughter."

GreenStone claims it will deliver de-politicized, de-polarized talk radio by women hosts for female listeners.

But among this new network's creators and biggest investors – who as of last March had secured $3.1 million in venture capital to launch it - are leftwing activist-actress Fonda, radical feminist Steinem and strident liberal anti-gun crusader comedian, and new co-host of 'The View,' O'Donnell.

"The radio has become overbalanced toward the ultraright," Steinem said in a recent New York Times Magazine interview, making clear she doesn't like the political slant of America's top talker, Rush Limbaugh.

"AM talk radio does not reflect the fact that only 30 percent of the country, at the most, is anywhere near Rush Limbaugh," Steinem said.

Among GreenStone's nine corporate directors are Fonda and Steinem. Its board also includes Robin Morgan, the "Global Editor" of the radical feminist magazine Ms., founded more than two decades ago by Steinem.

Morgan is a former child star and longtime left activist who once staged a witchcraft protest against the House Un-American Activities Committee. She is editor of the classic radical feminist anthology "Sisterhood Is Powerful."

"White males," Morgan wrote in a 1970 essay, "are most responsible for the destruction of human life and environment on the planet today."

Another GreenStone board member is Gail Evans, who "participated in the founding of CNN in 1980" with former Fonda husband and liberal activist Ted Turner.

When Steinem was asked by The New York Times Magazine if "your radio network [is] the female version of Al Franken's left-leaning Air America Radio," she replied: "No. No. They are very Washington-directed, very argumentative. What we are doing is more populist, centrist and community-oriented."

Steinem dissociates her new network from Air America Radio, but GreenStone has been renting studio and satellite time from Piquant LLC, the corporate entity that owns Air America Radio.

Through its business ties, GreenStone has reportedly made payments to Piquant that average more than $25,000 per month for spare broadcast facilities. GreenStone has thereby helped keep Air America Radio on the air.

Did Steinem, Fonda and GreenStone's other left-activist board members, managers and investors really expend huge effort and more than $3 million to create a new "niche" radio network merely to air "centrist" talk shows that tell female listeners how to clean their closets and cook a mean meatloaf?

If GreenStone is merely a money-making attempt to attract women with a female-oriented network, its other investors like tennis star Billie Jean King ought to know that previous attempts to do this – such as the cable TV channels Lifetime and Oprah Winfrey's Oxygen – have had only limited success. ABC Radio failed in its attempt to build 24/7 female-oriented talk radio programming in Los Angeles, and its lifestyle-focused, female-oriented national show "Satellite Sisters" has had a hard time gaining affiliates.

Until now, most women who wanted to hear about relationships tuned to female radio psychologists. Those who wanted serenity tuned to music stations. And those who wanted lifestyle advice or humor turned to cable television's HGTV, Style, Bravo, Comedy Central and other channels where things can be seen as well as heard.

Or could GreenStone be a "stealth" network designed to wear a disguise of apolitical camouflage so it can fly below the radar to conquer American women with its concealed left-liberal agenda?

Approximately one-third of today's conservative talk radio listeners are women, a worrisome thought to Democratic power players.

For sure, the heavy-handed Air America Radio approach of throwing mud at all conservatives and ridiculing Republicans has failed commercially. It survives only with subsidies from wealthy Democratic Party-aligned sugar daddies – and GreenStone.

GreenStone apparently will use a softer propaganda technique – and make a play at becoming commercially viable.

At first blush, the network's radio hosts aren't known as polemicists. GreenStone's midday host is Rolanda Watts, a veteran of Los Angeles radio, New York City television and (like Bill O'Reilly) the syndicated entertainment show Inside Edition. Its morning hosts, "The Three Ritas," are writer-comedians Cory Kaheney, Nelsie Spencer and Maureen Langan, recipient of Planned Parenthood's Maggie Award. Its afternoon show is hosted by author Lisa Birnbach, author of "The Official Preppy Handbook." Its later show, "Women Aloud," is co-hosted by actor-comedienne Mo Gaffney and either fellow feminist-actress Kathy Najimy or actress Shana Wride, star of the stage play "Women Who Steal." Except for Watts, GreenStone's hosts have little or no proven experience as radio hosts.

As of August 24, GreenStone had only three affiliates – WXCT AM 990, a 2,500 watt station in Southington, Connecticut, already airing an "off-Broadway" pre-launch version of "The Three Ritas," along with stations signed in Albany, New York, and Jackson, Mississippi. But the network says it's aiming to be carried mostly on "no static at all" FM stations, which it predicts will be dropping their music formats as upscale music listeners switch to commercial-free digital satellite music programming.

GreenStone, originally known as the "Women's Radio Network, LLC," took its current name from an Alice Walker short story about a magic stone that turns dark when the person owning it lacks integrity or honor. Time will tell whether GreenStone turns to gold by creating an advertiser-desired "new paradigm" of successful female-only talk radio – or goes dark.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 3somequeen; airditzychicks; americahaters; americantraitor; americantraitorbitch; bushhaters; commies; feminazis; fonda; gloriasteinem; goodtimesgoodtimes; hag; hanoijane; hollyweird; hollywoodleftists; janefonda; janewho; liberaloldcranks; notfondajane; penisenvy; rosieodonnell; rushlimbaugh; scumsucker; talkradio; tobaccojuicetarget; traitor; treason; twoidiots; urinaltarget; vietnam
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It will fun to watch this bomb even bigger than Err America.
1 posted on 09/05/2006 5:18:15 PM PDT by wagglebee
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To: wagglebee

Al Franken will be glad to dress up in drag and start talking about how his hormones "go all crazy" once a month.


2 posted on 09/05/2006 5:19:31 PM PDT by mkjessup (The Shah doesn't look so bad now, eh? But nooo, Jimmah said the Ayatollah was a 'godly' man.)
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To: wagglebee

WELCOME to Chick Radio, W-PMS!!!

Later today, we'll have the Dixie Chicks talk about life on the road and what it means to play to smaller venues.....


3 posted on 09/05/2006 5:19:45 PM PDT by TWohlford
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To: wagglebee
GreenStone claims it will deliver de-politicized, de-polarized talk radio by women hosts for female listeners.

I'm guessing it will be de-civilized too.

4 posted on 09/05/2006 5:20:00 PM PDT by Millee (A joke then, a joke N.O.W.)
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To: TWohlford

ROFLMFAO!


5 posted on 09/05/2006 5:20:19 PM PDT by wagglebee ("We are ready for the greatest achievements in the history of freedom." -- President Bush, 1/20/05)
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To: wagglebee

Rush has appeal to aboth sexes. They don't understand the market. KABOOOM!!!


6 posted on 09/05/2006 5:20:24 PM PDT by golfisnr1 (look at a map)
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To: MNJohnnie; AliVeritas

Limbaugh Ping!


7 posted on 09/05/2006 5:20:42 PM PDT by wagglebee ("We are ready for the greatest achievements in the history of freedom." -- President Bush, 1/20/05)
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To: mkjessup
Birkenstock crowd is sure to tune in.
8 posted on 09/05/2006 5:20:44 PM PDT by Bringbackthedraft ( "Going to war without France is like going deer hunting without your accordion Norm Schwartzkopf)
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To: wagglebee
Guess they are pretending that, Michele Malkin, Laura Ingrahm and Ann Coulter don't exist.
9 posted on 09/05/2006 5:20:45 PM PDT by BenLurkin ("The entire remedy is with the people." - W. H. Harrison)
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To: wagglebee

1206 bulldykes will be devoted listeners................


10 posted on 09/05/2006 5:21:10 PM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (Our troops will send all of the worlds terrorists to hell in a handbasket with no virgins!)
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Fonda and the don't understand women.


11 posted on 09/05/2006 5:21:41 PM PDT by CAWats (Insert Links without HTML. Click my name.)
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To: wagglebee
Here we go again!

I'll be reading stories like this when I'm 90! ;)

12 posted on 09/05/2006 5:21:42 PM PDT by Mr. Buzzcut (metal god ... visit The Ponderosa .... www.vandelay.com ... DEATH BEFORE DHIMMITUDE)
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To: wagglebee

I predict it will drop like a.. well.. a stone!


13 posted on 09/05/2006 5:21:48 PM PDT by divine_moment_of_facts
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To: Mr. Buzzcut

Hey I love stories like this!


14 posted on 09/05/2006 5:22:08 PM PDT by wagglebee ("We are ready for the greatest achievements in the history of freedom." -- President Bush, 1/20/05)
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To: CAWats

Fonda and the rest


15 posted on 09/05/2006 5:22:20 PM PDT by CAWats (Insert Links without HTML. Click my name.)
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To: Bringbackthedraft

yeah, that's one hip group of chicks - Steinem and Fonda well over 60 if not close to age 70 and with Rosie, so "in touch" with the mainstream female point of view...not!


16 posted on 09/05/2006 5:23:10 PM PDT by avital2
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To: TWohlford

LMAO!! That's hilarious!


17 posted on 09/05/2006 5:23:27 PM PDT by Ladysmith ((NRA, SAS) Gun owners have illustrated rights are individual and can be protected by individuals.)
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To: wagglebee

Will men have to send in their pictures before they can get on the air?


18 posted on 09/05/2006 5:23:36 PM PDT by razorback-bert
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To: wagglebee
"counter what the dominance of the conservative radio that their network says is "dominated by a male point of view."

Well, if they seek to counter what is dominating, why choose radio as a platform. After all, weren't men responsible in creating the radio, and radio programming. Where's the consistency? Ah yes. They're liberal (but of course.)
19 posted on 09/05/2006 5:23:48 PM PDT by This Just In ("that protectionism, socialism, and communism are basically the same plant" The Law; F. Bastiat)
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To: wagglebee

Who hasn't heard this one:

How do you make a small fortune in radio?

Start with a large one.


20 posted on 09/05/2006 5:24:02 PM PDT by synbad600
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