The fall of right wing radio

[Thorgrim]

SOUTH CAROLINA’S BIG LOSER: TALK RADIO



It’s obvious that the big winner in South Carolina was John McCain (grabbing 33% of the vote in a hard-fought win and 19 of the 22 awarded delegates), but it’s also worth pausing for a moment to identify the primary’s biggest loser.


That loser wasn’t Mike Huckabee (who ran a strong second with 30% of the vote and will certainly continue his underdog campaign), nor was it Fred Thompson (who placed third with 16%, despite talk of his last minute surge) or even Mitt Romney (with a feeble fourth place finish, despite investing more money in the state than any of his rivals).

The big loser in South Carolina was, in fact, talk radio: a medium that has unmistakably collapsed in terms of impact, influence and credibility because of its hysterical and one-dimensional involvement in the GOP nomination fight.


For more than a month, the leading conservative talkers in the country have broadcast identical messages in an effort to demonize Mike Huckabee and John McCain. If you’ve tuned in at all to Rush, Sean, Savage, Glenn Beck, Laura Ingraham, Mark Levin, Hugh Hewitt, Dennis Prager, and two dozen others you’ve heard a consistent drum beat of hostility toward Mac and Huck. As always, led by Rush Limbaugh (who because of talent and seniority continues to dominate the medium) the talk radio herd has ridden in precisely the same direction, insisting that McCain and Huckabee deserve no support because they’re not “real conservatives.” A month ago, the angry right launched the slogan that Mike Huckabee is a “pro-life liberal.” More recently, after McCain’s energizing victory in New Hampshire, they trotted out the mantra that the Arizona Senator (with a life-time rating for his Congressional voting record of 83% from the American Conservative Union) is a “pro-war liberal.”

Well, the two alleged “liberals,” McCain and Huckabee just swept a total of 63% of the Republican vote in deeply conservative South Carolina. Meanwhile, the two darlings of talk radio -- Mitt Romney and, to a lesser extent, Fred Thompson—combined for an anemic 31% of the vote.

How conservative was the electorate that cast ballots on Saturday (in a big, ehtusiastic turnout despite inclement weather)? Exit polls showed 69% of GOP voters described themselves as “conservative” (as opposed to “liberal” or “moderate.”) Among those self-styled conservatives, an overwhelming 61% went for Mac and Huck; only 35% for Mitt and Fred).

The exit polls even sorted out voters who described themselves as “VERY conservative” –a group that represented a full 34% of the primary day electorate. If any segment of the public should have been influenced by all the apocalyptic shouting about “the end of conservatism” if Huckabee or McCain led a national ticket and defined a new direction for the GOP, it would have been these folks. Among “Very Conservative” voters, however, Huckabee won handily (with 41%). Again, the Huck-and-Mac duo, representing talk radio’s two designated villains, swept 60% of the “Very Conservative” voters in very conservative South Carolina while Mitt and Fred combined for only 38% (22% for Thompson, 16% for Romney).

In other words, even among the most right wing segment of the South Carolina electorate, talk radio failed – and failed miserably – in efforts to destroy and discredit Huckabee and McCain.


As the campaign moves forward, my colleagues in talk radio (along with program directors, general managers, advertisers and the other segments of our industry) ought to reconsider the one-sided, embittered negativity toward two of our four surviving candidates for President (Fred Thompson’s departure from the race is reportedly imminent, after he “consults” with his hospital bound mother).

McCain and Huckabee are both decent and principled conservatives --and so, for that matter, are Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, and Duncan Hunter (who’s due to leave the race within twenty-four hours). Isn’t it about time for the nation’s other high profile talkers to join me in acknowledging that we’ve got a group of outstanding candidates each of whom, in his own way, represents different aspects of the Reagan legacy?


There’s no need to pretend that the candidates are identically conservative (they’re certainly not), or equally qualified, or similarly appealing. But they’re all solid Republicans, dedicated public servants, and worthy contenders for the party’s nomination. Most important, each of them is vastly preferable to Clinton or Obama.

Heading into Florida (on January 29th) we need to acknowledge that one of four remaining contenders will almost certainly head the Republican ticket. He (whoever he turns out to be) will need a united party and a revived, renewed conservative coalition.


South Carolina demonstrates the utter ineffectiveness of concerted efforts by the conservative media elite to derail the campaigns of two popular candidates. Continued efforts in that direction will prove no more effective, and will hurt both our industry and the Republican Party.

In other words, the talk radio jihad against Mac and Huck hasn’t destroyed or even visibly damaged those candidates. But it has damaged, and may help destroy, talk radio

Townhall.com::Blog

The most conservative voters in the most conservative state...reject talk radio discussions for months about the dangers of McCain and Huckabee...63% vote for them

Now, I am not saying right wing radio is going to go off the air, much like Air America, even when that collapsed, there were still liberals to be found on the air

It's just now, we can regard them as entertainment figures, basically conservative Howard Sterns, they have no intellectual prowess and have no ability to rile or move their base, whatever may be left of it

The popularity of right wing radio seems to be that there's nothing else on...

"Hey you just mentioned Howard Stern, he's on!" Only for a little, and what would you rather play next to your female coworker...a guy talking about anal sex, or some right winger talking about how we're taxed too much, including daily news

What about NPR? Well you have to admit, they do a lot of "creative" (i don't mean that in the leftist-liberal sense) pieces, that I know fly over the head of your average trucker or cubicle worker, but even to me they can be rather boring as I decide if the producer made the piece for himself rather than for an audience...

I think, come next decade, if a radio network becomes like CNN-Headline News, it will dominate over right wing radio

[kinggovernor]

just a few months ago they derailed the immigration bill

[Stylerod]

Wait a minute. I thought Republicans were puppets and couldn't think for themselves and that is why Talk Radio is dangerous and therefore needed Democrats to regulate.

Were you wrong this whole time??? I just can't believe that!

[ballz2wallz]

Conservative radio isn't going anywhere. The Republican party just isn't conservative anymore.

[Thorgrim]

Originally Posted by Stylerod

Wait a minute. I thought Republicans were puppets and couldn't think for themselves and that is why Talk Radio is dangerous and therefore needed Democrats to regulate.

Were you wrong this whole time??? I just can't believe that!

Can't be wrong if I never said it

[lew]

I was just thinking of this same thing.

I was wondering why the voters went out for Huckabee and McCain when they have been correctly decried as liberals by right-wing pundits.

[Stylerod]

Originally Posted by Thorgrim

Can't be wrong if I never said it

Originally Posted by Thorgrim

Fairness Doctrine will finally bring BACK balance to federal airwaves

Waaaa. Conservitive Talk radio is successful. Waaaaa. Liberal Radio isn't. Waaaa. We need to make it FAIR. Waaaaa..... So let's regulate it. Because, when Democrats don't like something, they need to create law to make it go away.

[Scrum]

Originally Posted by Stylerod

Because, when Democrats don't like something, they need to create law to make it go away.

Bush calls for ban on gay marriage - U.S. news - MSNBC.com

[Stylerod]

Originally Posted by Scrum

Bush calls for ban on gay marriage - U.S. news - MSNBC.com

And I don't agree with that. Unlike others that will never, ever disagree with their party.

[Stylerod]

So Thor, now that talk radio is failing (). Does that mean you don't think the Democrats need to regulate it anymore?

[Thorgrim]

Originally Posted by Stylerod

Waaaa. Conservitive Talk radio is successful. Waaaaa. Liberal Radio isn't. Waaaa. We need to make it FAIR. Waaaaa..... So let's regulate it. Because, when Democrats don't like something, they need to create law to make it go away.

advocating balance does not mean something is dangerous or some people can't think for themselves

[Stylerod]

Originally Posted by Thorgrim

advocating balance does not mean something is dangerous or some people can't think for themselves

Then what does it mean? This thread tells me that Talk Radio failed in getting the more conservative people enough votes to win. Yet your party and your people say that Conservative Radio is dangerous because people will blindly follow it without a dissenting opinion being heard. Now which is it? You can't have it both ways.

[JaJae]

Originally Posted by Thorgrim

advocating balance does not mean something is dangerous or some people can't think for themselves

To be fair, I believe you have made this point a few times about Fox News... perhaps not talk radio which is where his confusion is coming from.

[Thorgrim]

Originally Posted by JaJae

To be fair, I believe you have made this point a few times about Fox News... perhaps not talk radio which is where his confusion is coming from.

Sounds about right

Fox is dangerous because they have "anchors" come on "non-opinion" news shows and give...opinion...or very biased stories...or have "panels" of 4 blood-red conservatives and call it "the all star panel" of the "fair and balanced" network

The worst day at CNN/MSNBC never comes close to a 24 hour weekday "news" channel of Fox

It's dangerous because even somewhat intelligent people can tell right away talk radio is all about the personality, and flip it off at one guy, but when they go home and watch 6 hours of Fox, they think they see all the different anchors, the promise to be objective, the expert panels, the different shows...they think they're getting the full range of the spectrum on all the issues

[hsmith]

Conservatism is dead.

[bheld]

There's no need for true conservatism when the elite can simply manufacture consent for taking directly from the people instead of promoting permissive government (hands-off approach, free markets, etc). Conservatism couldn't outlive its use as a vehicle to wealth for the people that control this country.

[David Octavius]

Originally Posted by hsmith

Conservatism is dead.

God I hope not - we need reign in spending and we need smaller more efficient government

[ballz2wallz]

Originally Posted by hsmith

Conservatism is dead.

QFT

[thewise1]

Originally Posted by hsmith

Conservatism is dead.

Kinda feeling that way myself lately.

[kinggovernor]

McCain is winning the open primary states, which means he will do well in the general election. I don't want to have a Goldwater election even though I might agree with it on principles. But I would rather go with a candiate that I agree with 75% that has a good shot of winning rather than a candiate that I agree with 100% that has no shot of winning.