Full disclosure: I published a near-identical version of this last night, where it got a few eyes but not many. I'm being a swine and doing it again, not because I think my words are golden and Should Be Seen By All Dammit, but because I think this is an extraordinarily important task we're undertaking. If you disagree, please read this diary.
I haven't seen America Online noted as a sponsor of Rush Limbaugh's everyday celebration of filth and misogyny until just a few minutes ago, when a link to this site appeared on my Facebook account:
Tell AOL: Dump Limbaugh
Batter up.
SumofUs gives a nicely worded rationale for going after AOL over Limbaugh. The emphases are all mine.
Rush Limbaugh is calling women who use birth control sluts.
And that’s not all. If the women in your life want to have birth control covered in their medical plan, then Rush “wants something for it” — he wants them to record themselves having sex and then “post the videos online so we can all watch.”
The only reason this bigot is on the air is because of the millions of dollars companies pay each year for advertising on his show. Among them is internet giant AOL, which has even been offering discounts to Limbaugh’s listeners.
Use the form at right to ask AOL to stand up for women and pull their ads from Rush’s show. (Me: It's a standard petition form that asks for name, email, and country.)
Limbaugh’s disgusting, hateful words specifically targeted Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke. Fluke has fought for coverage for birth control publicly on behalf of a friend at school with a medical issue that resulted in the loss of one of her ovaries — a condition that would have been entirely preventable if she had been given access to hormonal contraception.
Companies have a responsibility not to support hate speech like Limbaugh’s – and consumers like us are demanding that they stand up to him. Rush clearly recognizes the danger he’s in — yesterday he issued a mealy-mouthed “apology” excusing his behavior by saying that he has always “illustrated the absurd with absurdity.”
But those half-hearted, uninspiring words are only feeding the huge momentum that’s building to get Rush off the air. Two of his biggest advertisers, Carbonite and ProFlowers, dropped Rush after his so-called “apology” yesterday. Carbonite’s CEO said, “No one with daughters the age of Sandra Fluke, and I have two, could possibly abide the insult and abuse heaped upon this courageous and well-intentioned young lady.”
Meanwhile, AOL continues to advertise a 75% discount on its “Quick Check Diagnostic” service “exclusively for Rush Limbaugh listeners.” That’s simply unacceptable.
All the contact info on AOL you need.
Plus the email for investor relations: IR@teamaol.com
You know what to do.
Edit: Nice graphic from Scarce, in the comments. I've included it in the heading, and here's the link to the AOL offer. Disgusting.