Clear Channel wanted to diversify the range of voices on LA radio, especially in light of the Limbaugh dust up and KFI local hosts John & Ken's remarks referring to Whitney Houston as a ''crack ho'' after her death, but instead of replacing Limbaugh or the KFI locals, they bumped nationally known progressive talker Thom Hartmann.
In one of the most liberal cities in America that has ONE progressive commercial station and a couple of conservative ones, and in which they own two AM stations and five FM ones.
The Black Media alliance also noticed that the station that carries Rush has the highest ratings in the LA market, but it also has a very strong signal. The progressive station is static at a range where Rush is still coming in loud and clear.
If Clear Channel really wants to do a mea culpa for Rush, they should replace HIM with this new show, or better yet, swap signals between their low powered progressive shows and their stronger signal conservative one.
It's also hard not to notice that Clear Channel is hardly making moves to make the progressive channel, KTLK 1150 AM more successful. They have gradually replaced nationally known progressives who could draw a large audience with little known hosts, David Cruz and Clark Howard from 3-8 pm, and now have done the same in the crucial morning slot. Come to think of it, if Clear Channel wanted to try out new hosts on KTLK, why bump someone who has a national audience, that even people from out of town might spin the dial to find, instead of bumping the late afternoon hosts that even loyal listeners of KTLK switch away from?
Either Clear Channel doesn't care about listeners who started with the station when it was Air America and stayed with for the nationally known very progressive hosts ever since, or they are actively trying to kill the format so they could then say it failed and keeping Limbaugh in spite of near universal outrage.
Does this really sound like a free market at work or a corporation drawing blood from progressives to give a transfusion to a dying right wing propaganda format?
Contact KTLK at Programming@KTLKAM1150.com
And Clear Channel at publicrelations@clearchannel.com
More Clear Channel contact info
Tell them to bring back Thom Hartmann to 9-12 am on KTLK AM 1150, and move Diverse LA to the later slots or better yet, to Rush Limbaugh or John and Ken's time slots on KFI AM 640!
ORIGINAL WITH SUPPORTING LINKS
UPDATE: Thom has moved to the afternoon drive time to avoid scheduling conflict with Ed Schultz, and allowing stations back east at least to carry both live. The problem is, he is off the air here in LA.
The stations have other options for fixing this like running Tom's show the next day instead of live, either in the morning or drive time. Los Angeles is a big progressive market, but the only pay radio host is now Randi Rhodes in the middle of the day with unknowns on either side of her.