BREAKING: Rush Limbaugh Syndicator Suspends National Ads For Two Weeks

[kpete]

Source: Think Progress

BREAKING: Rush Limbaugh Syndicator Suspends National Ads For Two Weeks
By Judd Legum on Mar 12, 2012 at 9:24 pm

Radio-Info.com http://www.radio-info.com/news/rush-syndicator-tells-newstalk-affiliates-not-to-run-its-barter-spots-for-2 that Premiere Networks, which syndicates the Rush Limbaugh show, told its affiliate radio stations that they are suspending national advertising for two weeks. Rush Limbaugh is normally provided to afflilates for free in return for running several minutes of national advertisements provided by Premiere each hour. These ads called “barter spots.” These spots are how Premiere makes its money off of Rush Limbaugh and other shows it syndicates.

But without explaination, Premiere has supended these national advertisements for two weeks. Radio-Info.com calls the move “unusual.” The development suggests that Rush Limbaugh’s incessant sexist attacks on Sandra Fluke have caused severe damage to the show.

From the memo:
Attention Traffic Managers of Premiere News/Talk Affiliates:

We are suspending the requirement to run barter spots for two weeks, March 12th and March 19th, for our News/Talk affiliates only.

Please replace/re-traffic any Premiere barter spots immediately. Contractual requirements to run barter spots are being suspended for these two weeks only. Replace them with Lifelock and Lear Financial or a local spot of your choice.

Read more: http://thinkprogress.org/media/2012/03/12/443195/breaking-rush-limbaugh-syndicator-suspends-national-ads-for-two-weeks/

[msongs]

1. time to get rid of "local" ads from the hometown of the station broadcasting the "show" nt

[maxrandb]

8. YES! The local stations have to pay a price

for giving this asshat a forum to spew his hateful bile.

[alp227]

2. active discussion now at GD

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002417415

[freshwest]

3. I'm not sure if this changes anything since IDK if it loses money. But it's probably good.

Some people might add Lifelock and Lear Financial to their list of sponsors to contact and ask why they continue to support BFI after what he's done.

[wendylaroux]

13. good idea

can not believe lifelock is still in business,so many lawsuits,such a scam.

[Tunkamerica]

32. The show definitely loses money if it offers 2 free weeks of the show to all local stations

[Lone_Star_Dem]

4. Interesting.

Looks like this isn't going away as fast, or as easily as Limbaugh and CC had hoped it would. Maybe using the "but so-and-so did it too!" defense wasn't so smart?

[maxrandb]

5. Not good enough Premiere

Make it permanent, and that might work.

BTW - I'll make sure I include this in my letter to the local station that carries Limbaugh and the local advertisers that buy ads for that local station.

I think it's important for the local stations and advertisers to know how completely "toxic" Rush Limbaugh has become.

Now, it's time for my daily e-mail to Armed Forces Network.

Keep the pressure on!

[Ruby the Liberal]

6. Lawrence O'Donnell is covering this story this for anyone who gets MSNBC and wants to watch.

He opened the show with it, but I don't know which segment its going to be.

[safrthjt]

7. Spam deleted by William769 (MIR Team)

[Justice wanted]

9. This might be a sign that Premier is looking to see just "How" Rush's show "Stands on it's own"

[aquart]

10. Or the stations can't meet the requirement because Premier can't provide the required ads.

Which is very interesting indeed.

[Tunkamerica]

33. No the stations don't have to meet any requirement except to play the tape or feed provided

Premiere is not putting national spots on the tape or the feed which gives the local stations more time to fill with local inventory. It is still very interesting since I've never heard of anything like it.

[zelduh]

11. They are a BUSINESS

If Premier cannot make money off Limbaugh, he will not stay on the air.

Glenn Beck believed that Fox would stay with him, no matter what. Fox realized that Beck simply cost too much.

Even propaganda-based GOP media like Premier must make money off people to whom they pay $40 million per year.

[earthside]

12. Mike Huckabee picked a good time to start a radio show.

Look for the Limbaugh show to shatter.

And look for the Mike Huckabee show -- that is set to start in April -- to pick-up a lot of Limbaugh's time slot.

I do believe that the demise of Limbaugh as a national radio blatherer is at hand.

Who woulda thunk it?

[technotwit]

14. not just barter

I've worked in radio for 38 years, including a stint at a Rush affilate in a mid size market.

Actually Rush's show is unique in that it is Barter plus cash.

So not only do stations have to give about 8 minutes an hour of advertising inventory to Rush's syndicators ( Premiere), they also have to pay cash to premiere to run the show.

In a market that is about #70 in size, I understand that fee is $150,000 a year.
And at one time they also forced the station to carry the Rush update in morning drive with its' ads and Dr Dean Edell's show (again 8 minutes an hour of barter) and some other short features with their ads too.

So they were paying about $200 an hour for Rush plus 8.5 minutes of ads.

Technotwit
--former employee who filled out the ad affidavits for syndicated shows at the station.

[Bozita]

18. Interesting and informative post!

Thanks.

[Tunkamerica]

34. That's what I heard too and that stations are starting to go back to local programming

since Rush's fees are so expensive.

[certainot]

15. suspension no good. and replacing him with another RW liar while maintaining a coordinated monopoly

of 1000 plus radio stations is no good, unamerican, and should be completely intolerable to all democracy -loving americans.

[efhmc]

17. Is Huckabee a rush clone?

[oldhippydude]

19. Hucksterby has a show on fokkks

expect christian dominionist, reconstructionist, theocratic stuff

[Bjorn Against]

20. He is a right-wing nut like Limbaugh, but his style is not nearly as abrasive.

Huckabee is very right-wing but he is more soft spoken and unlikely to trigger national advertising boycotts in the way Rush has. Huckabee is not as bad as Rush but you are not going to agree with much of what he says, he may however actually give someone who does agree with you the chance to respond as unlike Rush he does not completely insulate himself from opposing viewpoints.

[OmahaBlueDog]

23. Right, but Huckabee won't get Limbaugh's ratings either

Limbaugh is like a shock jock. He has to say something outrageous, and then stand behind it, to keep people interested enough not to listen to something else. This is why the tone of the right sounds increasingly shrill, angry, and hateful to those who are not dittoheads -- he has become the substitute for intelligent discourse on the right. There are plenty of righty talkers -- Dr. Laura; Lars Larsen; Hannity, BillO, Dennis Miller -- none get Limbaughs ratings.

Huckabee can sling right wing talking points with the best of them, but he's not looking to create controversy for its own sake.

[arely staircase]

24. that's about my take on him too

he is as right wing but not abrasive. i couldn't picture him yelling "slut and prostitute" and i definitely can't imagine him going on the sex tape rant - and yeah, probably would let opposing views on.

but the most important thing is the fact that this much safer guy is out there; it makes limbaugh's position even shakier.

[certainot]

29. have't heard him much but i don't think he's a guy who can beat a lie detector as naturally as rush.

rush can rationalize opposites within the same hour, with the same royal certitude.

[sarcasmo]

16. Fire the sexist, racist, bigot.

[OmahaBlueDog]

21. They'd have been smarter to make Rush take two weeks of vacation

They'd have had a better chance of getting advertisers back and putting this behind them. Now, they just are handing him a shovel and allowing him to dig himself in further.

[arely staircase]

25. maybe they were concerned about the peril two weeks vacation

would pose for dominican children.

[OmahaBlueDog]

26. ..or our nation's precious Viagra supply

[JBoy]

22. Happy to discard a Limbaugh and draw a Huckabee off the top of the deck.

[lonestarnot]

27. Good fucking riddens Rush Limpballs, you fat gas bag, good riddens!

[Grassy Knoll]

28. Just a Few Fries Dropped Your Show, Eh Lumps ?

Maybe Bill Maher will have you on to compare apples and oranges.

[Uncle Joe]

38. Nice touch, Grassy Knoll.

[Kablooie]

30. Local stations will like this.

They can put on more ads that pay them directly.

[Devil_Fish]

42. Do that and the advratizers will be pissed at the local stations.

[Kablooie]

31. They should replace him with Ronald Reagan.

He'd be a great host to fill the dead air.

[DLevine]

35. Love Ron Reagan.

Totally the opposite of his dad.

[samsingh]

37. this should hurt and cost the right wing some money

a good start.

[LynneSin]

39. I told everyone - we need to go after local advertisers

That's how we truly sink the SS Titanic Limbaugh!

[maxrandb]

40. According to the "Freakers"...this is all part of the Master Plan

I swear, you just can't fight stupid like this:

To: org.whodat
Gives the station a bonus, since they will feel the gap with more local ads. Smart move.

Absolutely! Will give all local stations a bump to their bottom line which will make them much more resistant to calls to cancel Rush.

20 posted on Tuesday, March 13, 2012 14:21:42 by Buckeye McFrog
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To: pallis
it will also leave the Lefties scrambling and scratching their heads on exactly who to boycott.



21 posted on Tuesday, March 13, 2012 14:22:42 by Buckeye McFrog
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: kristinn
My guess:

They are lining up new advertisers (and some who have come back). None of these advertisers want to get picked off one by one, as they are rolled out. Instead, in two weeks, after all the spots are sold, they will roll out with the new ads.

It gives the controversy a few weeks to die down; instead of stringing it along for weeks, as new advertisers try out the show.



23 posted on Tuesday, March 13, 2012 14:39:36 by lacrew (Mr. Soetoro, we regret to inform you that your race card is over the credit limit.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

[calimary]

41. Ooooh. Two weeks. Two whole big fat weeks. Wow. Mongo impressed...

Last edited Tue Mar 13, 2012, 04:24 PM - Edit history (1)

NOT!!!!!!!!!!!

NOT ENOUGH. We need to get that bastard yanked OFF THE AIR. PERMANENTLY. Not just his commercials. Him. Period.

On edit - what was I thinking? (Or NOT thinking?) Forgot to add these:


I wanna make sure EVERYBODY sees this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002374653

How to fight back at the local radio, with insights from a former radio person. As one of those, myself, I can vouch for the good ideas in it. I have personally personally witnessed how effective these strategies can be.

And here's a link to register a complaint to Armed Forces Radio:

http://www.dma.mil/dma_contact.html

certainot
6. and here are links to 76 universities that broadcast sports on 170 limbaugh stations

http://sites.google.com/site/universitiesforrushlimbaugh/

and another petition:
Chancellor of the University of North Carolina: Tell Tar Heel Sports Network affiliates to drop Rush Limbaugh

http://www.change.org/petitions/chancellor-of-the-university-of-north-carolina-tell-tar-heel-sports-network-affiliates-to-drop-rush-limbaugh

[MADem]

43. On MSNBC they played Limbaugh making more excuses today, and I couldn't help but notice that he

pronounced Sandra Fluke's name in such a way as to make it rhyme with FUCK--FLUCK, is how he said it. Repeatedly. Deliberately.

This was while he was saying her appearance before Congress and his excoriation was somehow a vast White House conspiracy against him...!

That guy is something else--what a despicable asshole!