Stop Rush is growing, dramatically increasing its presence on Twitter:
Stop Rush as measured on Topsy
The Flush Rush group on Facebook has added several thousand members, just since the November election. And Flush Rush is just one of more than a dozen such groups on Facebook alone. Other groups on Daily Kos, Reddit, Democratic Underground, and numerous other social media platforms also contribute to the cause.
All are welcome to use the Stop Rush database at http://stoprush.net, which has recorded 40,000 reports on nearly 5,400 companies that have at one time or another advertised on the Rush Limbaugh Show.
When Coca-cola and Arby's decided a few months ago to no longer support ALEC and Rush Limbaugh (respectively), they encountered a nasty backlash from conservatives. In stead of politely registering disagreement with corporate decisions about advertising, conservatives launched a campaign of slander and defamation, throwing around lingo such as "fascist", "cop killer", "collusion", "weaklings", and "anti-freedom". For a time Arby's blocked the most zealous of the conservative tweeters.
The raucous rancor on the right seemed more a cause for celebration on conservative websites, than a cause for concern. Rather than attempting to persuade and influence corporate policy, many right wingers seemed interested only in scoring twitterverse points for the most obnoxious tweets.
The Flush Rush movement is very different. Our goal isn't impressing fellow activists with bitterness and bellicosity; our goal is actual success, no matter how long that takes. Rush flushers are among the most dedicated, patient, and persistent activists I have ever met.
No surprise, then, that long term campaigns to persuade longstanding Limbaugh sponsors are paying off, even as we mark more immediate day to day successes with new, or newly identified local sponsors.
We don't normally identify local sponsors who drop Limbaugh to protect their privacy. Generally speaking, national advertisers have greater resources to deal with any possible backlash from ditto heads. And (after Arby's) we generally prefer to identify national advertisers in large enough groups that may help to avoid singling out one or two companies.
Angie's List boycotted Rush. Then they didn't. Now, they've stopped their ads once again. They announced they had opted not to renew their contract with Rush. We don't know their long term intentions; maybe they grew weary of being bombarded on Facebook, Twitter, and email day after day by outraged consumers. Or maybe they did the calculations and discovered how many of us are terminating our memberships.
Perennial Limbaugh advertiser Amberen has just confirmed on Facebook that they have made the decision to stop advertising on Rush. Their ads continue to run; they're requesting additional time to remove them.
Bayer Health Care is no longer advertising. Grasshopper Mowers dropped, although they may be a seasonal advertiser, so we'll be listening next spring.
Lear Capital has informed some individuals that their contract is up in January, at which time they expect to re-evaluate their relationship with Rush. Some expect them to drop. Nestle and Circle K have quietly stopped advertising.
McDonalds corporate doesn't want their ads on "controversial programming" like Limbaugh. They've re-affirmed this repeatedly after a few ads have run in a few markets. Some corporations allow local advertising decisions, and everyone isn't always aware of corporate policy.
Constant Contact is trying to have their ads removed from the Rush Limbaugh Show. As an occasional sponsor of the news, they're constantly chasing after the radio stations that disregard their requests. Like McDonald's, they seem supportive of our concerns about Rush.
Regus ads are rarely heard any more, although we don't know the circumstances.
These are just a few of the many national advertisers who have dropped, or are no longer advertising on Rush. ThinkProgress has a rather amazing Pinterest page that shows many of the companies that have chosen not to support hate radio. (The page needs to be updated with recent developments.)
But some advertisers have pulled ads, only to see them continue to run (to fill dead air time?) In other circumstances, ads pulled from a radio station are not pulled from the station's streaming audio. We've had confirmation of this from the current Arbitron wingding:
RAB = Radio Advertising Bureau
But the biggest problem has been radio stations moving ads into the Rush Limbaugh Show to replace the ads of departed advertisers, without telling the advertisers. Radio analyst Norm Pattiz reported at the Talkers convention that this applies to "about 70 percent" of Limbaugh's advertisers.
Considering the "earth shattering" changes predicted for the radio industry, the trends do not look good for Rush.
The diarist is active in Flush Rush on Facebook:
Flush Rush on Facebook: http://facebook.com/...
Stop Rush database: http://stoprush.net
My Stop Rush blog posts: http://dailykos.com/...
Twitter hashtag: #stoprush
