Madison Protestors Denounce Libtalk Cancellation

MADISON MOCKERY

Libtalk Cancellation Protest Is Dead On Arrival





*** Update Below ***

The good news was that there was no need for riot police or tear gas.

But with yesterday's poorly attended protest, Madison's radical leftists may actually have sped up their beloved liberal talk radio's demise.

With so few demonstrators to voice rage and anger over the cancellation of so- called "progressive" programming in Wisconsin's capital city, their "mock funeral" succeeded only at making a mockery of political activism.

And it certainly couldn't have done much to convince station managers to refrain from pulling the plug on The Mic FM's lefty talk.

According to an area television station, only about 30 activists took part, but at least they carpooled:

Mock Funeral Procession Mourns Air America
Leaders Say They Will Fight For Liberal Talk Radio


MADISON, Wis. -- Some Air America supporters held a fake funeral procession Wednesday, saying that a Madison radio station pulling the plug on the liberal Air America Radio programming is the "Death of the free speech."

A small group of supporters of the Mic 92.1 FM put signs that read "The death of free speech" on their backpacks, car dashboards, bumpers and windows for the procession.

The fake funeral procession was also marked with black crepe paper, supporters said to indicate a somber occasion as a local station prepares to shut down liberal talk radio in the area.

One driver in the mock processional, Judy Skog, of Madison, said she is devastated by the news that her favorite station is losing the programming she loves.

"I can't stand right-wing talk radio. Other than public radio, this is the only radio I listen to," Skog said.

"I'm just real sorry to see this station go off the air, or essentially go off the air, change its format," said Jeff Lange, of Madison, who attended the mock procession.

With their car radios tuned to 92.1 FM, about 30 people in 15 cars drove with their lights flashing to the source of their disappointment -- the local version of radio giant Clear Channel Radio.

Supporters rolled into the front office parking lot on Wednesday, car after car, carrying one message: Don't dump The Mic's Air America Radio network, hosted by liberals like Al Franken.

They were greeted by Clear Channel FM Operations Manager Mike Ferris. The group presented him with a petition with over 4,500 signatures asking Clear Channel to keep Madison's only liberal talk radio station and not replace it with an all-sports format from Fox Radio.

Clear Channel managers have said in the past that the decision was based on audience research and a lack of advertisers.

"We are hearing your voices, and your voice has been heard. We appreciate you coming out and supporting this," Ferris said as he accepted the petition.

Ferris was cordial but refused further comment. The doors to the offices were locked and a police officer was visible inside, WISC-TV reported.

Here at the Radio Equalizer, we're having a great time chucking over their "free speech" complaint, given that liberals have long called for reinstatement of the FCC's Fairness Doctrine, which would have the effect of shutting down talk radio.

Some believe that Democrats will push for it once they have taken control of Congress in coming weeks.

Also from the left, we often hear about the "public airwaves", with the crazy idea that corporate owners should be compelled to carry leftist radio programming. But at the time of conservative talk radio's initial surge in popularity, the same argument was used in an attempt to force it off the airwaves.

These activists should open up and be honest: if they had a way to kick Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity and others off the radio dial today, they would do it.

In addition, they've had a chance to support liberal talk radio during the almost three years Air America has been on the air, but didn't do nearly enough to make it viable.

As a result, a real funeral should be held, this time to mourn their own faded cause.


UPDATE: the protestors succeeded! Here's the story.

Looking for gift ideas? It's not too late! Your Amazon orders that begin with clicks here, regardless of what you ultimately select for purchase, greatly help to support this site's efforts. Thanks again!

Technorati tags: talk radio the mic FM madison mock funeral air america liberal talk radio progressive movement wisconsin

The Mic image: David A Lunde, Protest image: Channel 3 Madison