Zogby: Liberals Drive Rush Limbaugh's Ratings

BBSNews - Sources ^ | November 12 2007 | Edited by: Michael Hess

[ModelBreaker]

People with a "blue" entertainment preference like many of different types of programming, even if it doesn't reflect their taste or values. They shy away from a lot of primetime programming, especially game shows and reality TV, but they like comedies, drama, documentaries, news, and arts and educational programming. They love 60 Minutes, PBS, HBO, Comedy Central and The Daily Show. They go to the movies, where they often see comedies, and they like to go to live theater and museums and galleries. They read books more often than most people – they prefer fiction to non-fiction, but their favorite genre is politics and current events. They enjoy entertainment with political themes, and they feel like they learn about politics from entertainment. Sports are less interesting to them, but football is their favorite, and they're more likely to follow soccer than other people. They like lots of different kinds of music (except country) and they watch MTV and VH1. They play video games a lot more than other people – Mario and The Sims are favorites.

So they watch stuff that doesn't match their values by watching MTV, VH1, and prime-time comedies and dramas. Given this, does Zogby have any sense how silly it sounds to paint lefties as willing to watch stuff that "doesn't agree with their values?" MTV, VH1, prime-time comedies and dramas are, by and large, secular-humanist, left-wing values put to a soundtrack. Watching Sex and the City (I think that's its name) and Seinfeld reruns is not a sign of open-mindedness for a leftie.

What this poll probably says is that liberals think of themselves as open-minded and, when asked if they watch programs that do not reflect their values, they say "yes" even if it is total self-delusion.

Ask them how many listen to Rush or Michael Savage or Fox News.

[BallyBill]

Limbaugh is enjoyable On Air. I mostly agree with Sean Hannity too, but can’t stand his On Air style. Root Canal comes to mind.

[sirchtruth]

This could be part of the reason Air America has faltered – there are simply fewer potential listeners.

This statement is akin to another I know of:

...Pork bellies, which produce bacon, like you might find on a bacon, lettuce and tomato sanwich.

[chesley]

Liberals more likely to listen to other opinions than their own.

This does not conform to my (admittedly anecdotal) experience. Liberals can’t stand to listen to other opinions.

[Vision]

Rush Limbaugh touts himself – mostly in jest – as having "talent on loan from God"

No he's serious about that.

[Zhang Fei]

In other words, Limbaugh's potential audience is larger than that of liberal competitors because more liberals say they will listen to conservatives than vice versa.

What liberals say, and what liberals do, are two different things. I know of many liberals. I know of none who read or listen to conservative viewpoints. Liberals have an excessive need to show their questioners that they are open-minded. In the liberal world, it is better to lie than to appear to be close-minded. This is why you get more liberal attempts to censor conservative speech than the other way around. Watch what they do, not what they say. Hillary Clinton has said a lot of things. The problem has always been her deeds, not her words.

[MrB]

Yes, because it’s true.

Leftists can’t fathom the idea that all of our talent is granted by God, and not of our own accomplishment.

[Ditto]

Okay, be a cynic and dont believe Zogby. But you cant deny anything put out by the "Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School".

LOL. Great line!

[chesley]

Conservatives overwhelmingly (76%) believe that TV shows and movies "very often" contain political messages, but they are the least likely to learn anything about political issues from them. Just 4% say they learn lessons from movies. * While 68% of liberals seek out entertainment that contains political themes and commentary, just 33% of moderates are the least likely to do so.

So liberals learn from fantasies rather than facts? Who'd a thunk it?

[Alter Kaker]

Zogby has low credibility. You really cannot accept as fact any statement from Zogby.

2006 Zogby Results, Senate Races

1. Missouri (McCaskill v. Talent)
Final Zogby Poll: McCaskill 46, Talent 43 (McCaskill +3).
Actual Result: McCaskill 50, Talent 47 (McCaskill +3)

2. Virgina (Webb v. Allen)
Final Zogby Poll: Webb 45, Allen 44 (Webb +1)
Actual Result: Webb 50, Allen 49 (Webb +1)

3. Tennessee (Corker v. Ford)
Final Zogby Poll: Corker 53, Ford 43 (Corker+10)
Actual Result: Corker 51, Ford 48 (Corker +3)

In 2006, Zogby got all the outcomes right and got the spreads right as well, except in Tennessee where he significantly overstated Republican performance. He did screw up in 2004, but he was very good in '02 and '06.

[bolobaby]

MrB,

That would be a nice conclusion IF that was what Zogby was actually polling. Instead, he is trying to apply the results of very vague and open-ended questions to something very specific. For libs to say “oh yeah, I love stuff I don’t agree with” and to ACTUALLY PRACTICE ON THAT BELIEF are two totally different things.

If you want to find out if libs actually listen to Rush, why doesn’t Zogby perform a REAL poll that asks, “Do you listen to Rsuh Limbaugh? Given only two choices, are you more likely to classify yourself as a liberal or conservative?”

Wow - then you’d ACTUALLY get some results instead of trying to create some BS extrapolation from BS data.

OF COURSE, libs say they are tolerant. That’s what they SAY. How they act is another matter altogether.

Real message behind the poll: conservatives are more intellectually honest than liberals.

[rottndog]

...shows that liberals were much more likely than conservatives to listen to commentary and entertainment with which they disagreed philosophically. This could be part of the reason Air America has faltered – there are simply fewer potential listeners.

Of course it can't possibly be because left wing talk radio is in most instances deplorable and completely devoid of any entertainment value.

[pigsmith]

"Liberals are almost twice as likely as conservatives to read literary fiction.."

Yeah, but they often don't know it's fiction..

I think they often don't want to know it's fiction

[Tailgunner Joe]

they're more likely to follow soccer than other people

Those dirty...anti-American...treacherous...SCUM!!!!

[Alter Kaker]

Sorry, left out Montana. Tester beat Burns by 1%, and again, that was the exact margin and result predicted by Zogby.

Zogby predicted every 2006 Senate race correctly.

[Slapshot68]

“I think they often don’t want to know it’s fiction”

I’m not sure a true liberal even knows how to determine the difference between truth and fiction.

Brain defect.

[weegee]

He tried to steal an election by cooking the books on election day with biased poll samples.

[weegee]

The Left sees it as a boast. Actually it is a humble admission.

The actors and musicians who “thank God” for things in their lives are not similarly scoffed for thanking God for their talents.

[MrB]

I’m not sure a true liberal even knows how to determine the difference between truth and fiction.

true liberals don't believe in an objective truth. Truth is whatever truth is for the individual at any given moment.