Progressive talk radio

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Progressive talk radio is a

Dan Pfeiffer, Bill Press, Randi Rhodes, Ed Schultz, Sam Seder (The Majority Report with Sam Seder), Hal Sparks, and Tommy Vietor
.

In contrast to conservative talk, progressive talk has historically been far less popular on commercial terrestrial radio; it briefly had some modest mainstream success for a period from the mid-2000s (decade) to the early 2010s. The format has been more popular on emerging technologies such as podcasting and Internet radio, which have accelerated the popularity and dominance of Crooked Media through podcasts like Pod Save America.[1]

History

Progressive talk radio programs in markets across the U.S. have existed for many decades. The

Fairness Doctrine and equal-time rules effectively required that stations broadcasting controversial political content also provide airtime for the opposing viewpoint; progressive stations such as WMCA would thus usually have a "house conservative" (in WMCA's case, Bob Grant) to maintain balance. One of the most notable liberal talk-show hosts was Michael Jackson, who had a show for 35 years at KABC
in Los Angeles, often commenting on both political and national issues.

Two developments in the late 1980s – the struggle of

Conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh became one of the early success stories of this new radio environment, helped by a syndication arrangement that was financially appealing to local stations. Many other radio hosts used his show as a model. During the 1990s, radio stations found that a schedule of mostly conservative radio drew more listeners than liberal or mixed programming.[5]

From the mid-1990s to the early 2000s, few liberal talk hosts had national exposure.

The Hightower Lowdown
newsletter (2015) and is still producing audio insight segments heard on various media broadcasts.

There were some notable local liberal hosts during this period:

i.e. America had over 30 affiliates, including Sirius Satellite Radio, and a lineup of Doug Stephan, Nancy Skinner, Thom Hartmann, Peter Werbe, Mike Malloy, and The Young Turks
. New management at the UAW was unenthusiastic about being in the network radio business and in 2003 went silent. Doug Stephan (not an overt liberal), Thom Hartmann, and The Young Turks continued on the air, with Stephan on over 300 affiliates, Hartmann holding about 25 (plus Sirius), and the Turks holding their spot on Sirius, all three being independently owned and syndicated.

In September 2002, Democratic strategist Tom Athans and radio veteran Paul Fiddick joined forces to create Democracy Radio, a production company focused on creating and funding progressive talk programs. Their concept was to develop and incubate liberal oriented talk talent and enlist radio networks to market their programs to stations around the country. Democracy Radio developed and produced talk shows that launched the national careers of Ed Schultz and Stephanie Miller, among others.

In December 2002, Thom Hartmann[7] wrote an op-ed for commondreams.org titled "Talking Back To Talk Radio" which posited - based on Hartmann's experience as both on-air talent and being a program director back in the 1960s and 1970s - that progressive talk radio could be a profitable format if done right.[5] That article interested Sheldon and Anita Drobney, venture capitalists from Chicago, who brought Hartmann on as a consultant and hired Jon Sinton to form what would become Air America. (Detailed in Drobney's book The Road to Air America, including a reprint of Hartmann's early article.)[8]

The dominance of conservative talk radio caused concern among some liberals and political independents, who viewed it as an integral part of promoting conservative policies and Republican Party candidates.[9][10] After the failure of i.e. America, and with the aid of private investors, two projects came to fruition in early 2004 as an alternative to right-wing talk radio.

The first was the January 2004 debut of

Air America Radio, a liberal full-service talk radio network. The fledgling network started with only a handful of stations, mostly lower power AM signals. Early financial difficulties led to the loss of affiliates in Los Angeles and Chicago
.

Air America's original

Bill O'Reilly.[11]

Another original Air America affiliate was

Clear Channel Communications, decided to roll out the format on many of their other struggling AM stations across the country. More than 20 of their stations switched to liberal talk within the following year, which included major markets such as Los Angeles, Boston, Washington, D.C., Detroit, Seattle, and Miami.[12]

By early 2006, approximately 90 stations were carrying at least part of the Air America lineup. The growth of the format created opportunities for additional programming. Democracy Radio and Jones Radio rolled out shows hosted by

Lionel saw increases in the number of affiliates carrying their shows. Ron Reagan (son of Ronald Reagan) was also featured. On September 1, 2006, Air America's flagship station moved to WWRL
.

After its growth spurt in 2004–2006, the liberal talk format had some setbacks. Over a spread of time following the November 2006 elections, Clear Channel increased its purchasing of talk radio stations, changing many of its liberal talk shows to other formats. Their announced plan to change the format in Madison, Wisconsin was dropped as the result of a successful listener campaign, but a similar campaign to get the station to retain the format did not work in Columbus, Ohio.[13] An unrelated Columbus station (WVKO) picked up the liberal talk programming later that year. Air America filed for bankruptcy in October 2006, and was sold to new investors in February 2007, though they maintained operations during that time. Air America's highest-rated host, Al Franken, left in February 2007 to run for Senate and was replaced on the network by Thom Hartmann live in the noon-3 PM ET. Hartmann held Franken's ratings in most markets, regularly beating O'Reilly in Los Angeles, and beating Limbaugh in Portland and Seattle in 2007 and 2008.

Currently,[as of?] there are fewer than 100 U.S. commercial radio stations carrying liberal talk programs particularly due to the Clear Channel terrestrial radio station purchases and subsequent talk format changes. The stations gained by Clear Channel contributed to Rush Limbaugh retaining around 600 stations, 500 for Sean Hannity etcetera[clarification needed] – although conservative talk radio ratings have declined substantially.[14] AM radio in particular has switched over to business, sports, health, religious and other programming.

An example of the liberal talk format's struggles is in Boston, where Clear Channel put it on AM 1200 and 1430 from 2004 until 2006. A short time later, host Jeff Santos began buying time on WWZN AM 1510 in Boston airing his own show plus syndicated offerings such as Ed Schultz and Stephanie Miller. As money dried up, and after other national hosts were offered such as Al Sharpton, his brokered time on WWZN shrank to his own show, and then that was cut loose in the fall of 2012 as the station went to all sports.

On January 21, 2010, Air America announced that it would immediately cease programming, and the company would file for

Chapter 7 bankruptcy
; stating the following on their website:

The

Radio and Records
have signaled that these are very difficult and rapidly changing times.

better source needed] Leslie Marshall, is another woman show host who is popular and widely heard. Arianna Huffington and other women in radio and television have had a significant history[16] and are key players in the growth of the talk genre (see also Oprah Winfrey
).

Dial Global, talkers Ed Schultz, Stephanie Miller, Thom Hartmann, and Bill Press all enjoy a strong following with Schultz[17] (later transitioning to MSNBC
) and Hartmann arguably leading the way.

In Portland, Oregon, KPOJ was the Progressive Talk radio station on AM 620 from the time of Air America Radio. Its success netted it a stronger signal strength, and it could be heard to the coast and to Mt. St. Helens in Washington State, etc. The station was profitable and had been mentioned as a model for other progressive talk stations. Listeners supported the station and there was a growing base. The format was changed without any public announcement on November 10, 2012, at 5:30PM to Fox Sports Radio.

In December 2012, Seattle's Progressive Talk announced it was switching formats from progressive talk to sports in January 2013. Despite many efforts to keep KPTK, it switched to CBS Sports Radio; both KPOJ and KPTK's new formats have earned them dead last in ratings. In January 2014, progressive talk lost three of its largest markets; in Los Angeles and San Francisco, Clear Channel/iHeartMedia replaced it with conservative talk, and in New York City, the local progressive talk station switched to ethnic programming. Following these losses,[18] several of the remaining progressive talk hosts discontinued their shows, including Randi Rhodes and Ed Schultz.

Ironically, an attack on conservative talk helped ensure the demise of progressive talk on traditional radio: the

blacklist scared away advertisers from progressive, conservative and even neutral political talk, fearing further controversies and campaigns against them.[19][20]

Independently owned stations such as

better source needed] While progressive talk is sustained on fewer terrestrial stations, the web of new progressive hosts is exhibiting expansion and changing styles.[22]

Carrying his own show style of "fierce independence" (2015),

Salon, ThinkProgress and The Atlantic. Host of "I've Got Issues," Wayne Besen[24] and Hal Sparks
both substitute-host for Goldman.

The Stephanie Miller Show has included includes guests like Hal Sparks, who has his own radio program on Chicago's Progressive Talk as host of The Hal Sparks Radio Program (megaworldwide). (As of February 2014, Sparks no longer appears on Miller's show.)[25] Sparks airs on such channels as CNN and programs such as The Joy Behar Show and The View. In 2011 he joined Stephanie Miller and John Fugelsang for the Sexy Liberal Comedy Tour.[26] Miller's other guests include Democratic strategist Karl Frisch, Jacki Schechner, Bob Cesca, Valerie Jarrett (one of President Obama's longest serving advisers and confidantes and was "widely tipped for a high-profile position in an Obama administration),[27][28] and John Fugelsang. Hosts Brad Friedman and Desi Doyen are heard on radio-aired segments, The Green News Report.[29] Substitute show personalities noted here illustrate how program popularity (and social media) can influence the rise of new talk shows and personalities.

By January 2017, the migration of progressive talk to off-air and noncommercial radio left a severe shortage of programming for commercial radio stations; by one estimate, fewer than ten progressive talk stations remained in the United States, many of which were forced to change to other formats (examples including

Twin Cities
which have proven to be two of the more resilient progressive talk stations.

Podcast sales, smartphone apps, YouTube and TV simulcasting

Main article: Podcast

When early podcasts became available through iTunes, Al Franken's show was the second-most popular.[31] Providers of liberal radio shows such as Head On Radio Network made streaming and podcasting integral to their operations.

Contemporary talk, music, sports and newscasts are significantly branching out to the internet and

Stephanie Miller's Happy Hour
podcasts project the host's "sexy liberal" approach more boldly. Podcast subscriptions may also be accessed through the particular host's own separate smartphone app, boasting the advantage of play-anytime convenience.

Another media development exists where talk radio shows such as Thom Hartmann, Democracy Now!, Stephanie Miller, Ring of Fire, The David Pakman Show and Bill Press are simulcast on Free Speech TV.[34] In recent years, FSTV's television footprint has grown to more than 40 million homes. The network's monthly viewership (cume) nearly doubled to more than 1 million households over a two-year period between 2012 and 2014. YouTube channels are also utilized by many host/commentators on this page, and others such as Lionel (radio personality),[35] Mike Malloy,[36] Bill Press[37] and Norman Goldman[38]

Webster Tarpley hosts a progressive program, World Crisis Radio, on GCN on Saturdays 1-3pm CT. It is also available on his website Tarpley.net as a podcast and on various YouTube Channels.

Daniela Walls hosts the AmericanSystem.tv podcast Monday-Thursday. Her programs are unique in that they are not only center-left, but she is also a key political figure in the Tax Wall Street Party. Walls call for a 1% Wall Street Sales Tax, nationalizing the Federal Reserve, and an economic system based on that of Henry Clay.[39]

Former

U.K.-based political commentary podcast Pod Save the UK hosted in part by comedian Nish Kumar.[42]

Internet, satellite, cable TV, social media

The internet has become an important and growing factor in the distribution of liberal talk programming, with many radio stations and individual show hosts

streaming their show as they are "on the air" live. Twitter and Facebook web pages exist for nearly every currently broadcasting progressive/liberal/independent talk show host(s) named here. Various television shows feature talk radio guests such as Stephanie Miller on CNN,[43] Thom Hartmann on "Real Time with Bill Maher."[44]

Sirius XM Progress, channel 127, airs the shows of Miller and Hartmann and originates the shows of Dean Obeidallah, Michelangelo Signorile, Xorje Olivares (Affirmative Reaction), John Fugelsang (Tell Me Everything), and the duo of Zerlina Maxwell and Jess McIntosh
(Signal Boost).

Another notable example of liberal talk online is

MoveOn.org, Politico, ProPublica
and many more.

Non-commercial outlets

The liberal non-profit

National Public Radio (NPR) affiliates, as well as the nationally syndicated talk radio and television program The David Pakman Show
.

Not uncommon with the varied responses to many forms of media, critics have long accused NPR of having a liberal bias, though the network as well as parties on both sides of the political spectrum state that it reflects a diversity of views.[46] The programs produced for non-commercial outlets are generally not "talk" programs—in that calls are not taken, with the focus on the opinions of the hosts or guests.

See also

References

  1. ^ Jarvey, Natalie. "After the Resistance, What's Next for the Crooked Media Podcasting Empire?". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  2. ^ "WMCA Good Guys History". Musicradio77.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  3. ^ Olszewski, Mike. "WERE-AM". Cleveland, Ohio Broadcast Radio Archives Project. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  4. ^ Hershey Jr, Robert D. (August 5, 1987). "F.C.C. Votes Down Fairness Doctrine In a 4-0 Decision". The New York Times. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  5. ^ a b Hartmann, Thom (December 3, 2002). "Talking Back To Talk Radio - Fairness, Democracy, and Profits". CommonDreams.org. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  6. TIME. Archived from the original
    on October 13, 2007.
  7. ^ "The Thom Hartmann Show". thomhartmann.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  8. ISBN 978-1-5907-9065-6
    .
  9. ^ Plumer, Bradford (September 9, 2004). "The Republican Noise Machine". Mother Jones. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  10. ^ Starr, Paul (March 1, 2004). "Reclaiming the Air". The American Prospect. Vol. 15, no. 3. Archived from the original on February 12, 2007.
  11. ^ Hinckley, David (June 8, 2004). "Franken draws a growing audience (but no pay)". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on June 9, 2004.
  12. ^ Durbin, Dee-Ann (February 18, 2005). "Liberal talk radio - Clear Channel adopts liberal programming on a growing number of radio stations". Mail Tribune. Medford, Oregon. Associated Press. Archived from the original on October 12, 2008.
  13. ^ Feran, Tim (January 5, 2007). "Big changes at 2 stations cause static among fans". The Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011.
  14. ^ Riismandel, Paul (July 22, 2014). "The Death Spiral of AM Talk Radio". RadioSurvivor.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  15. ^ "The Nicole Sandler Show". Radio or Not. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  16. ISBN 978-0-7656-0581-8
    .
  17. ^ "The Ed Schultz Show". We Got Ed. Archived from the original on February 5, 2017. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  18. ^ Collins, Peter B. (February 10, 2013). "An Insider's View of the Progressive Talk Radio Devolution". Truthout. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  19. ^ Rothman, Noah (June 13, 2012). "Ed Schultz Comes To Rush Limbaugh's Defense: Targeting Advertisers 'Wrong Thing To Do'". Mediaite. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  20. ^ Parks, Darryl (May 27, 2015). "The Business of Being Rush Limbaugh". DarrylParks.com. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  21. ^ Colmes, Alan. "Liberaland". Alan.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2015. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  22. ^ Weinger, Mackenzie (November 28, 2013). "How to rescue liberal talk radio". Politico. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  23. ^ "Alex Seitz-Wald". MSNBC.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  24. ^ "About Wayne Besen". Triton Digital Media. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  25. ^ "HalSparksFangPage". Facebook. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
  26. ^ Morris, Steven Leigh (October 20, 2011). "Stephanie Miller's Sexy Liberal Comedy Tour". LA Weekly. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  27. ^ Belkin, Douglas (May 12, 2008). "For Obama, Advice Straight Up - Valerie Jarrett Is Essential Member of Inner Set". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  28. National Archives
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  29. ^ "The Brad Blog Green News Report". TheBradBlog.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  30. ^ Reynolds, Nick (January 11, 2017). "A Progressive Talk Station Goes Off Air. No, It's Not A Conspiracy". Ithaca Times. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  31. ^ Barnako, Frank (July 1, 2005). "Top podcasts at iTunes". MarketWatch.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  32. ^ "TuneIn Radio: News & Podcasts". itunes.apple.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  33. ^ "The Norman Goldman Show". normangoldman.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  34. ^ "Free Speech TV". freespeech.org. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  35. ^ "Lionel Nation". YouTube. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  36. ^ "Mike Malloy Show". YouTube. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  37. ^ "TawkrTV: The Bill Press Show". YouTube. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  38. ^ "Norman Goldman". YouTube. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  39. ^ "World Crisis Radio". Tarpley.net. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  40. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (March 20, 2017). "Opposition and a Shave: Former Obama Aides Counter Trump". Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  41. ^ Zengerle, Jason (November 22, 2017). "The Voices in Blue America's Head". The New York Times. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
  42. ^ Ibekwe, Desiree (April 25, 2023). "Can a Podcast Save the U.K.? Crooked Media Takes on British Politics". Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  43. ^ Neiwert, David (July 6, 2014). "Stephanie Miller Smacks Down Fiorina: Your Medieval History Degree Is 'Handy' Defending GOP". Crooks and Liars. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  44. ^ Cowell, Jude (October 17, 2011). "Thom Hartmann on Bill Maher Show". Stars Over Washington. Archived from the original on November 14, 2011. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  45. ^ "Home". Democrats.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  46. ^ Gilgoff, Dan (June 23, 2005). "Culture: Bias in public broadcasting?". U.S. News & World Report. Archived from the original on August 29, 2005. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
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