NYT: Bloggers Take on Talk Radio Hosts (KSFO and Spocko)

[Kadie]

Bloggers Take on Talk Radio Hosts

By NOAM COHEN
Published: January 15, 2007

A San Francisco talk radio station pre-empted three hours of programming on Friday in response to a campaign by bloggers who have recorded extreme comments by several hosts and passed on digital copies to advertisers.

The lead blogger, who uses the name Spocko, said that he and other bloggers had contacted more than 30 advertisers on KSFO-AM to inform them of comments made on the air and to ask them to pull their ads.

The comments were also posted on Spocko’s Web site, spockosbrain.com. In response, ABC Radio Networks, which owns KSFO and which in turn is owned by the Walt Disney Company, sent letters to the site’s service provider, demanding the clips be taken down from its servers. The provider complied, raising the issue of what constitutes fair use of copyrighted material by a critic.

In an unusual cap to a simmering controversy, four talk radio hosts at KSFO-AM themselves played the clips on Friday, which had, in some cases, drawn national attention for language considered racially insensitive, religiously intolerant or containing violent imagery. The broadcast contained the occasional carefully measured apology for language that “could have been put more elegantly,” as one host, Melanie Morgan, described her comment — “We’ve got a bull’s eye painted on her big wide laughing eyes” — about Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic speaker of the House of Representatives, who is from San Francisco. “But Ms. Morgan added that her words were obviously a political metaphor that had to be distorted by critics to appear violent.

Ms. Morgan said that the on-air talent had “been reissued guidelines from the company about violent rhetoric and we’ve reviewed those rules and we don’t believe that we have crossed any single line.” But the hosts were uniformly defiant against the bloggers, who were called “crackpots with keyboards” and accused of using “guerrilla tactics.”

more...
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/technology/15radio.html

[Pirate Smile]

1. More Mike Stark.

"Most of the callers were sympathetic during Friday’s broadcast, but one blogger who has supported Spocko’s cause, Mike Stark, was encouraged to call in. The extended dialogue perhaps can best be summarized by one exchange.

Mr. Stark: “You’ve spoken of the number of apologies you have tried to make. How many apologies does a professional get before they realize they are an incompetent and move on to another line of work?”

KSFO’s Lee Rodgers: “Well I haven’t apologized for anything and I am not going to start with you. How the hell do you like that, creep?” '


The same as this Mike Stark:


and this Mike Stark

Mike Stark assaulted by George Allen’s campaign.
By: John Amato on Tuesday, October 31st, 2006 at 11:35 AM - PST


Mike Stark, from Calling all Wingnuts was attacked by George Allen's camp today for basically asking him some tough questions after Allen finished his speech. He was not protesting or interrupting Allen in any way. The news report is wrong of course, but that's not a surprise. So nice to see a constituent of Allen's being treated in such a positive way.

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2006/10/31/mike-stark-assaulted-by-george-allens-campaign/

[TheCowsCameHome]

2. Tell Midol Melanie to get a life.

She's a creep.