posted August 21, 2006
I am writing on behalf of several members of the Chattanooga community who are gravely disappointed about the recent decision to drop Air America from AM 1310's program.
We believe that this decision is a serious blow to democratic access to freedom of information and our ability to access alternative viewpoints. This decision also reveals a serious right wing bias in local media and undermines Chattanooga's reputation as a cosmopolitan city. Clearly, the decision was not motivated by listener desire, but rather by transparent political ideology. (Think Corker vs. Ford)
Clearly, the myth of the so-called "liberal media" is just that--a myth espoused by those who wish to suppress the truth.
Dr. Heather Palmer, Full-time Lecturer in Rhetoric and Composition
Department of English
University of Tennessee
Knoxville
hpalmer@utk.edu
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It's called "capitalism," Dr. Palmer.
A radio station is a "for profit" organization owned and, generally, operated by greedy capitalists interested only in making a profit. This means the owners are providing a service with the expectation of receiving a return for the money they invested to build or buy the station. In order to do so they must have advertisers. In order to have advertisers they must have programming that people will listen to. Granted, any return they receive for their investment is probably unwarranted and totally unearned, but it is their right.
So, with this in mind, one would reasonably come to the conclusion that either the listening audience or the advertisers went away...perhaps both...and taking their money with them. Those greedy corporations that own the stations aren't going to eliminate the programming that butters their bread.
We each have a constitutionally guaranteed right to speak in what ever manner we wish within limits, e.g. that "shouting 'FIRE' in a crowded movie theater" deal. However, this doesn't guarantee that others will listen nor does it guarantee us a right to say things about another that are untrue and may cause harm to another person. Personally, I'm waiting for Randi Rhodes to prove some of the claims she's made about others.
What we really need to do is get rid of all those corporations and the greedy capitalists that own them. But then there would be nowhere for the rest of us to work...or anyone to support our institutions of higher learning such as the University of Tennessee by making grants to the university directly, grants and scholarships to students, providing opportunities for students to have cooperative study programs, providing places for students to work upon graduation, providing places for students' parents to work so they can send their offspring to colleges and universities, or paying those colleges and universities to perform research that will do nothing more than further increase their profits.
Yeah...let's run all of those corporations and greedy capitalists out of town, and out of business, so we can do what we want rather than having to abide by their wishes. In the alternative, we could always go buy or build our own radio station and then we wouldn't be subject to their greed and demands to make a profit.
Royce E. Burrage, Jr.
RBurrage@bellsouth.net
* * *
Good riddance to bad trash. It seems to me that the people of this area have shown that far left liberal tripe just doesn't sell.
Apparently it doesn't sell in very many other parts of the country either, judging by the number of stations that have dropped Air America.
Most Americans are smart enough to recognize junk when they hear it.
John T. Sanders
jts@outdrs.net
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Dr. Heather Palmer:
Why liberal based spew does not work:
As to why the station dropped ErrAmerika I’ll bet a $1 to a donut it was due to not generating income. AKA “the station could not make any money in the time slot.” That is the point of being in business I believe, making money. After all this is a capitalist model we use here in the U.S.
Also, you must be living in an altered state of being. There is a huge liberal bias in the US Main Stream Media (MSM).
Bill Gardner
Cleveland, Tn.
WDG@MCADVB.NET
* * *
As I read the posting titled "Disappointed Air America Is Gone," it made me think of one of my favorite scenes from the movie Animal House. John "Bluto" Blutarsky (John Belushi) has just been kicked out of school and runs into the fraternity house raising Cain and screaming that they are not going to accept the results. A guy sitting on the couch looks up and says "What the "heck" are we supposed to do, you moron?"
In that same light, I wonder what you expected AM 1310 to do in light of the terrible ratings? Apparently the several members of the Chattanooga community were some of the few that listened to the eloquence of Al Franken, Janeane Garafalo, Jerry Springer, et al. I may be totally off base, but it would appear that AM 1310 is a privately owned business that, like most non governmental institutions, must take in more from sales than it spends (I believe UTK offers some excellent classes in the economics of a free market economy). I am not in the radio business, but I think the way it works is that ratings attract advertisers and advertisers pay the bills. I can't help but thinking that the ten people that listed to the show did not endear high paying advertisers to giving AM 1310 piles o' cash. It’s hard for a radio station to write payroll checks with no money in the bank.
Before anyone responds with the pulling of the show having been the result of right wing myopics, can anyone tell me what happened to the Rush Limbaugh TV show? Did Rush's TV show bite the dust due to the right wing bias? Nope...it was terrible ratings. What about Laura Ingrham, another less than liberal? Her show bought the big one (locally) due to lack of ratings.
With that said, I drop back to the point made by the guy on the couch in Animal House...what did you expect AM 1310 to do? Might I suggest that vast audience that is so upset about the show leaving the local airwaves pool their money together and purchase the station. That way Air America can once again beam out it rays of hope for all of those on the left side of the isle.
By the way, if y'all have any money left over, would you mind sending a few bucks to WGOW and get Laura Ingrham back on the air...I thought she was funny.
Arch Willingham
arch@tuparks.com
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Laura Ingrham is returning in September in Michael Savages time slot.
They are waiting on the contract with Savage to expire. I guess her ratings are better than Savages, though I like them both.
Keith Roberts
flathead75@comcast.net
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