What happened to Thom Hartmann on the MIC in the afternoons?

[AllyCat]

I really liked him and now there is Dave Ramsey which is okay and probably helpful to lots of people, but not exactly "progressive talk".

[undeterred]

1. It was a station manager decision.

The mic is owned by Clear Channel, which is not exactly on the left. Lee Rayburn said something on his show about management wanting to give the station more 'balance' as well as make sure the station is profitable.

I prefer Hartmann to Stephanie Miller and Ed Schultz, although I don't always get to listen during the day.

I think they are playing Hartman's show 2-5am.

[AllyCat]

2. Thanks. As my husband says...

"IOW...he was making too much sense".

[undeterred]

3. Mitt Romney's private equity firm owns Clear Channel.

And Clear Channel hosts a number of Air America stations as well as lots of NeoCon radio. But they are the only possibility for Air America in the Madison market. Although I don't always agree with their choices, I hope the station continues to be profitable- I'd hate to lose it.

Hartmann and Maddow are the stars of Air America as far as I am concerned. Lee Rayburn said he was amazed at how much preparation Maddow does - as he saw when she's come to Madison to do a live show. And Hartmann is brilliant- he's a rare breed, an independent scholar. I'd like to read some of his books.

[Kashka-Kat]

4. Here's the reply I got from the station mgr dude - feel free to write him back!

The thing about that new show is that weekend talk radio is littered with financial advice shows, including D.R. himself on WIBA much of the weekend. So, the claim that somehow this is filling some kind of "void" in talk radio is questionable. (I rely on talk radio a lot as I am doing a lot of work in my home.)

I MUCH prefer Thom H. to all the other progressive hosts because being the true renaissance man he takes all this other data from history, psychology, literature etc. weaves it together to give a complete picture... doesn't reduce everything to simple minded, either-or, black-white political slogans and sound bites.

Indeed - as above poster mentioned, he was "making too much sense." Connecting all the dots. According to Thom H's website his is a growing show which is beating a lot of the competition, so I'm not sure what's going on here... what the real reason is for canceling. I'm sure it wouldve helped to have it on at its real time, and not delayed, so that Madison people could call in. They've never offered that so I don't believe they've really given it a fair shake.

Still, I would forgive them if they ran more of the Thom H. reruns on the weekend - in place of that utterly STUPID home remodeling show on Sat a.m.s Every other word on that show is vinyl siding and pesticides. Absolutely NOTHING remotely "progressive" about that at all.




***************
From: "FERRIS, MIKE" <[e-mail]>
To:
Subject: Thom Hartman and Dave Ramsey
Date: Jan 5, 2009 4:58 PM
Thank you for your input.

The decision to carry Dave Ramsey instead of Thom Hartman was made by me and approved by my superiors. I spoke with Thom last week, he understood and respected my decision. I believe Dave's show offers expert advice and counsel on subjects that affect everyone, our personal finances.

The addition of the Dave Ramsey show makes the MIC 92.1 a more complete and well-rounded program lineup. Indeed, this has been the goal of this station over the past four years, to provide exceptional programming not available anywhere else on the FM dial, and one that offers more than just political talk.

Consider the fact that even the progressive Capital Times has a financial/business section, sports and comics. Our radio station's programming now features a dynamic blend of progressive talk and award-winning hosts that cover a variety of important subjects, those that matter most to all of us.

Again, thank you for your comments and I hope you will continue to support our station.


Mike Ferris
FM Operations Manager
WIBA FM - WZEE - WMAD - WXXM
Clear Channel Madison
PH 608 663-7231 direct
Fax [phone]
[e-mail]

[undeterred]

5. "Capital Times has a financial/business section, sports and comics"

So Republicans read those sections and Dems/Progressives do not?!

[undeterred]

6. Hartmann will be back on air next Monday!

Apparently there were a lot of complaints about losing him.

Morning host Lee Rayburn quit his show last Friday and I'm not sure what that's about.

http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=24816

[Kashka-Kat]

7. Weird!!! They obviously don't have a clue what the "progressive" audience is, or how to grow it

I've suspected as much all along, what with their inane slogans ("if the neocons would wise up they'd see how silly they were.".... errr... there's nothing really "sillly" about a neo-con, that really isn't the first word that comes to mind when I think about neocons!)

There was a weekend financial Air America guy that was pretty good but I don't think he's on anymore - investing and finances from a "green" progressive viewpoint.

There's a home remodelling guy on Sat. mornings who's also totally hopeless and who also reveals the profound lack of understanding of the progressive audience - every other word is "pesticide" and "vinyl siding." Definitely not cool! Now, home renovation/ gardening from the green/ progressive point of view - that would be VERY interesting indeed.

I respect the desire to make money, but come on guys -get a clue! First, know thy market.

[hornblast]

8. Remember the fight to keep 92.1 on the air as an AA station?

When was that, 2002? 2004? Clear Channel had suddenly changed 92.1 from Air America to sports radio, or something like that. There was a huge protest by people in the listening area, and a campaign launched to make 92.1 an Air America station once again. It was successful! I think I remember Ed Schultz saying something about it. Apparently CC wasn't giving 92.1 any ad sales staff, or somehow obscuring the ad revenue from 92.1 as a way to claim it's not making money, so they could do what they pleased with it. That said, having run The Wisconsinite back in 2004, I know how fickle some advertisers can be. But I think there were shenanigans by Clear Channel too.

[undeterred]

9. It was after the 2006 election

AA has only been around since Feb 2004, and only in Madison since around Aug 2004. In November 2006, right after the mid-term election they tried to change the format and there were protests. My guess is that they pick up a lot of listeners late in an election year and they lose some of them in the ensuing months.

Clear Channel is doing a lot of layoffs nationwide, so this isn't really a surprise- they are going to choose whatever programming makes the most money for them. Unfortunately there is no other station more likely to pick up progressive programming in the Madison area.

They put the Dave Ramsey in the 5-8am slot and brought back Thom Hartmann in the 2-5pm slot. I could listen to Dave Ramsey maybe an hour a week without being totally annoyed by him. So I wrote the program manager and told him- you lose me first thing in the morning, I probably won't change the station back till evening.

[hornblast]

10. location is relative

Living in Milwaukee, I have to listen online. It was nice when I lived in Madison, but that hasn't been since 2005. There was an event over here shortly after I arrived that was aimed at starting an AA station here in '05, but I don't know what's come of it.

This Ramsey character isn't the former mayor of Middlton, is he? I knew him; nice guy, but not the sort I'd expect to her on Air America!

[undeterred]

11. Dave Ramsey is a 'christian businessman' with his own show

http://www.daveramsey.com/radio/home/

It seems like a really odd choice for this market.

I miss the live on air morning guy, Lee Rayburn.

When Madison re-claimed Air America in 2006 it really depended on getting committed advertising, and encouraging listeners to patronize those businesses. Starting a new station in the Madison market would require too much money. Milwaukee might be able to do it, but not in this economy.

It would be great to have a station with a 60 mile signal that was halfway between Madison and Milwaukee.

[dragonlady]

12. Can you not receive WCPT from Chicago?

They have an AM station at 820, and FM stations--the one facing north is 92.7. The FM one may not reach this far because of the physics of the signal, but we can hear 820 up here a dozen miles north of you. I have to put the radio on the window sill to get a good signal, so it's my companion while washing dishes. I schedule that chore in the afternoon to hear Thom Hartmann between 2 and 5. (They have to sign off at dusk on AM, but at least we have something!)

http://www.chicagoprogressivetalk.com/

[undeterred]

13. Station Manager Bryan Turany was also let go recently

He is a progressive and terrific guy, so this does not bode well for Clear Channel continuing to host progressive programming in our area.