Did Clear Channels ban Stern in areas strategically important to the RNC?

[Lone_Wolf]

I am deducing from the RNC holding its convention in NYC that the RNC is hoping to put NY into play.

I'm from upstate NY, which is (unfortunately) Republican country. With Bush playing up 9-11, and the RNC convention being held in NYC, there is a chance more people downstate will vote Republican than usual. The point I'm trying to make is with a strong Bush turn out in the Rochester/Buffalo regions and in NYC, there is a slight to moderate chance that NY could go to Bush.

Stern was banned from KROCK in Rochester, NY. Stern is a popular morning voice in this area. His show was heard through a great portion of upstate NY (probably close to a third of NYS). Buffalo and Rochester (along with much of upstate NY) are very pro-union and have been hit hard by the global economy. They could be very easily swayed to vote against Bush if we hear Howard advocating it.

I'm just wondering if this is part of a larger strategy by the RNC and CC.

Out of curiosity, were the other areas where Stern was pulled, swing areas for their respective states?

[Shoedogg]

1. To my understanding,

CC pulled him from all their stations, not any select stations. Which, I believe, was a whopping total of......six.

[NewJeffCT]

3. however...

All 6 stations are in important areas - a station in Rochester might reach parts of PA, while Florida had two huge Stern markets.

[Grins]

5. Uhhh, Clear Channel..

Clear Channel, "...a subsidiary of Bush, Inc", owns over 1,200 stations around the country.

"...the number of radio stations it owns comprises 10 percent of the nation's total, Clear Channel takes in 20 percent of all radio advertising revenue ($16 billion in 2001) and reaches 25 percent of total listeners. It also owns approximately 39 television stations and more than 770,000 billboards."

<http://www.buzzflash.com/analysis/03/04/18_clear.html>

[mac2]

9. I'm not one of their listeners.

[Shoedogg]

21. They own over 1,200 but

Stern was only on six of them.

[Lone_Wolf]

11. Clear Channel has over 1200 stations

Stern was pulled from six. Because of this, I'm left wondering why these six were chosen.

Why were San Diego, CA; Pittsburgh, PA; Rochester, N.Y.; Louisville, KY; Fort Lauderdale,FL; and Orlando, FL chosen???

PA and FL are definite battle ground states.

NY and CA are states that traditionally vote Democrat. It isno secret that Rove wants to put these states into play so the DNC has to spend money they normally wouldn't spend there.

I'm not sure about KY... I believe the Louisville is pro-union... Is KY a swing state?

[Lone_Wolf]

19. I'll answer my own question... Yes... KY is a swing state

According to this:

http://www.fec.gov/pubrec/fe2000/geparty.htm

in 2000 KY voted:

1,200,650 voted Dem
1,697,407 voted Repuke
81,539 voted other.

KY can go either way in 2004.

PA voted:

6,920,102 voted Dem
6,992,146 voted Repuke
290,722 voted Other

[Killarney]

2. Florida

Due to Clear Channel's suspension of Stern, he is no longer on in Florida.

[madrchsod]

4. if howards

ratings in the areas that clear channel had him on are really good there will be stations trying to fire staff to get howard a time slot....

[eek]

6. aWol + 9/11 = NYC voters? No way.

"With Bush playing up 9-11, and the RNC convention being held in NYC, there is a chance more people downstate will vote Republican than usual."


Unscientifically but with fair certainty I believe that most of us who were in NYC on 9/11 consider aWol is ,in effect , pissing on the graves.

[trumad]

8. I'm in Orlando and that's CC country

So no Howard for me...

[LincolnMcGrath]

16. Is Jim Phillips still on?

[trumad]

22. Yah..but he sucks now

he's got about 5 other knuckleheads in the studio with him..They all suck..

[Lone_Wolf]

12. All I'm saying is this is part of the RNC strategy...

I'm not saying they will be succesful doing it. Unlike my fellow upstaters, I think most downstaters are smart enough not to fall for the Repukes ploy.

[NewJeffCT]

10. possible, but...

If I recall, Stern uses quite a different method of syndication than what is tradional... they have a big charge up front, but the station then gets to keep a higher percentage of advertising dollars. Normally, there is little to no charge up front, but the program gets a higher percentage of advertising dollars. That is part of the reason he is only on in 41 markets (35 now...) - a mid market station won't put down the up front money, whereas they can pick up Limbaugh or Hannity for very little up front.

So, unless Stern (or CBS/Viacom/Infinity) changes his policy, a station will have to put up big money to get him on in their market. It is a big commitment for some.

[mac2]

7. Of-course...Mikes gone before the "selection" too.

[SoFlaJets]

13. Stern

has left the darkside and gave a ahem stern warning about GWB being dangerous and if people want to hear him they have to vote him out.I'm very impressed and Howards is back in my good graces.Imagine Imus and Stern campaigning together for John Kerry."Come Together right now over me..."

[tjwash]

14. Here in San Diego...

...They banned him also.

California is still a blue state, but SD is as conservative as it gets. So after hypocritically banning Stern, we still get the pleasure of Roger Hedgehog, the fat junkie, and weiner-boy on the CC network here. Those three are as vulgar and tasteless as it gets. Should have heard hedgecock spout off his filth while the fires were burning in October here. It truly made me ill...

[Lone_Wolf]

15. The RNC has been trying to put CA into play...

So it is possible they and CC have colluded to selectively ban Stern from certain parts of the country where his anti-Chimp message hurts the RNC most.

[tjwash]

18. I would say it is....

...more than possible, it is downright plausible. CC is working the propaganda game straight from the old Soviet Union handbook--control the mass media.

CC was the biggest rah-rah supporter of the gropenater during the recall. They whipped up a huge group of unregistered voters in California--young college students, into a frenzy, to vote for the nazi. They flooded the polls, most of them first time voters, and were a huge factor in his taking the governor's office here. Funny thing is, the first thing he did was raise college tuitions, and has yet to tax the casinos here like he said he would. Same ol' same ol'. The GOP is still the master of getting the people who will be screwed over the most by them, to vote for them.

[LincolnMcGrath]

20. "The GOP is

still the master of getting the people who will be screwed over the most by them, to vote for them."

That is so true.

[Sgt. Peppers]

17. It sounds like something they would do

:(