Huffington Post Exclusive: AIR AMERICA RESCUED

[NYCGirl]

Air America Radio, in Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings since October, will be rescued at the 11th hour by Manhattan real estate developer Stephen L. Green.

Al Franken, the best-known host of the liberal network, will announce his expected departure on his show later today, to explore a run for the U.S. Senate from Minnesota.

Green is the brother of Mark Green, the New York Democrat who served as the city's public advocate in the 90s and ran for mayor against Michael Bloomberg in 2001.

He has already signed a letter of intent, and plans to finalize a purchase agreement within the week.

Air America CEO Scott Elberg confirmed the sale. "This is a great thing, for our affiliates, the company, the audience and every employee in our organization."

Green is chairman of SL Green Realty Corp, a real estate investment trust specializing in office buildings with a market cap of $12 billion.

Stephen, who backed Rudolph Giuliani in both of his New York mayoral runs, has supported Democrats other than his brother. He was a major fundraiser for John Kerry's '04 presidential campaign.

Brother Mark is a frequent guest on Air America, and sat in for David Bender, the host of the Air America show Politically Direct, for a couple of weeks earlier this month.

When Franken leaves the network in a few weeks, he'll be replaced by Thom Hartmann, who already has a syndicated show on the network's lineup.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/01/29/exclusive-air-america-re_n_39897.html

[NMDemDist2]

1. woohoo! both on AAR and Franken running

:woohoo:

[NYCGirl]

4. I will miss Al very much (also Tom Oliphant, Joe Conason and the rest of the

regulars).

[Zodiak]

11. Yeah...I personally didn;t know which was better news

listened in on a little Franken recently, and Franken was talking about how Bush's new appointee, Petrayus is going to fix Iraq because he wrote a book.

I was thinking..."oh that's what we need, Al...someone who agrees with Bush's war decisions on Air America".

I wish him luck in his Senate run, but I think he will not be a progressive goliath like Harkin or Boxer.

[NYCGirl]

12. I disagree. He will do his friend Paul Wellstone proud. NT

[Zodiak]

14. A nice thought

but my question is: will he do his friend Wellstone proud, or his friend G. Gordon Libby?

Franken has not proven himself to be nearly the same calibur as Wellstone on his radio show....and these are stances he is taking without a political career at stake. When the rubber meets the road, I think Franken will be a centrist.

Better than Coleman, but certainly no Wellstone. I'd be happy if he were like Kerry, but that is a high bar to set for Al considering the stances he takes on his show. The likely result is between Biden and Hillary....about 60% progressive.

[NYCGirl]

15. Since Al said he's running for the Wellstones and is on the Board of

Wellstone Action, I take him at his word.

[Zodiak]

18. That says nothing about his political stances

He is a friend of the Wellstones....great. Already well-established. He's a Democrat...also well-established.

And his stances?

Al Franken completely denied there was wrongdoing in the 2004 election for years. Would Wellstone let the issue slide for so long?
Al Franken supported the war in Iraq for years under the "we broke it, now we must fix it" meme. Is this the position Wellstone would take?

Name-dropping does not replace good, progressive policy. Like I said, Franken would be a mile better than Coleman, but I do not think he will be a paragon of liberal thought. In fact, I think we will all have to work hard to prevent the power-brokers from getting their claws into him. Franken is very trusting and malleable, it seems to me.

[OHdem10]

24. Franken has in the past

identified himaself as a centrist. This explains many
of his positions , I believe.

Republicans smear. with their loud voices, anyone who
is not right of center with "left" or Liberal. This
may have lead people to think of Franken as a Liberal.

I say War your Liberalism as a Badge of Honor.
Liberals look out for the common good. Conservatives
look out for Business and the Few who need help the
least.

[Zodiak]

26. There we have it.

No need for us to be debating this issue if Franken declared himself a centrist.

Like I said, I wish him all of the luck in the world in defeating Coleman. But I know this man is not going to be another Wellstone and know enough about his stances to not fool myself into it.

[jamesinca]

61. but the best part if he wins

This will take out Coleman and it will relegate Joe Lieberman to the trash bin. Even if Lieberman changes parties like he so badly wants to do, this will make the senate go decidedly to the left. But I would like to see just one more time some British politician make a clown out of Coleman in a hearing.

[mzmolly]

63. As a Minnesotan I am psyched!

:toast:

[LiberalEsto]

2. Now THAT'S Green power! nt

[bdamomma]

3. good for Franken, good ole Norm isn't going to be too happy.

sorry Norm move aside will ya!

[PennyK]

5. Yay!

Great news! All around! Thom Hartmann is very good, and I'm pleased that Al is going to announce for the race. Do you think there will be other changes in the lineup? Like maybe bringing back Marc Maron? Lordy how I miss him...and of course our late night hero Malloy!

[Egnever]

6. Thank god!

Both on air america getting new ownership and al frankenbore leaving. I appreciate his commitment to the cause but I seriously believe his show has been dragging air america down for a long time. It's long past time to do something with that time slot.

Thank Al, good luck on your run.

[NYCGirl]

10. Hopefully, Thom can get the same high ratings that Al did. NT

[Hun Joro]

35. I would think so, although it may take a little time

for the audience to adjust to the change.

I love Thom Hartmann and am thrilled that he'll be taking Al's slot. I stream Thom at work instead of listening to Franken anyway.

[Tracer]

7. Not that it will do any good here in Boston ...

... where Air America has been ditched for a format of Spanish music.

I miss Stephanie Miller!

(I have trouble accessing the on-line version)

[NMDemDist2]

17. i see two Boston stations listed on the AAR website n/t

[endarkenment]

40. Then the website is wrong.

The boston outlets were scrapped a month or two ago. Not a huge loss as they were completely shitty quality AM that could not be picked up in general in the metro area, and certainly not on most portions the two beltways, where they have to be picked up if they are going to reach the rush hour traffic. But a loss none the less.

[jgraz]

59. They also list Majority Report as one of their shows

They're not real big on the whole up-to-date concept.

[leftwingnut]

27. I love Stephanie Miller!!!

You can find her on Sirius Radio...channel 146....6-9pm.....easily my favorite show!!

[The Count]

8. Same Mark Green that Sharpton sabotaged to get NYC a GOP mayor....

We were this close to a really progressive mayor...Then Sharpton came and told his friends to stay home and not vote..It was a very low trun out, small difference...The second time the turnout was even smaller...

[sonias]

9. Great news for AAR

I'm going to miss Al Franken. But he'll be stepping up to do a much more important job. And there are lots of good radio hosts to step up and work another good talk show.

:woohoo:

Sonia

[NMDemDist2]

13. Sam Sedar just said he was going to cover this next segment n/t

[Norwood]

65. Delete

Meant to reply to OP

[thereismore]

16. Thom Hartmann is a genius. One of the absolute best. Yay! nt

[JPZenger]

21. I Hope Hartman Keeps Franken's Guests

The best part of Franken's shows were his well-informed guests (except for the annoying dittohead segments). I hope Hartman keeps them. I also hope Randy Rhodes gets more guests to minimize her repetition.

[Zodiak]

28. He can keep the dittoheads

for a few shows, and then let the dittoheads quit voluntarily when their asses are sufficiently red. Hartman is not near as conciliatory or as trusting as Al Franken is.

[NYCGirl]

29. Doesn't Hartmann have that creepy Ayn Rand guy on his show a few times a

week?

[Zodiak]

31. The one with the speech impediment?

Yes.

The Ayn Rand guy is a masochist, in my opinion...gets his ass handed to him time and time again. I am not sure Mark Luther is the same type of masochist.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

73. yes, especially David Brock

and Joe Conason

[The Count]

23. Hartman over Franken - definitely an improvement!

[Zodiak]

32. If you like an informative show

done by a populist, that is.

But if you want a Leprechaun with diarrhea....

[NYCGirl]

34. I find Hartmann informative but somewhat pedantic.

But I'm sure going to miss the Strom Thurmond impression. Cracks me up every time!

Al will be on David Letterman's show on 2/7, though.

[Kira]

37. I love his show too.

I am really going to miss Tom Oliphant. I look forward to it every week. I also think he does great interviews.

[OnionPatch]

68. Agreed 100%!!

I like Al, but there is no one that can frame the left's point of view better than Thom Hartmann. I'm so glad he's going to be reaching a wider audience.

[Misskittycat]

19. Why didn't Stephen Green support his brother for mayor? n/t

[The Count]

22. he certainly did support Mark! I even saw a documentary on that.

The writing in there is a bit fuzzy. Giuliani was NOT running then - Bloomberg was (Sharpton's buddy)

[endarkenment]

48. Yes so then that says nothing about

Green backing Guliani twice. It only says that he also backed his brother when he ran against Bloomberg. I continue to be nauseated.

[glitch]

20. I will miss Al Franken, but I am now hoping Seattle am1090 puts Sam Seder in his slot

we already have Thom Hartmann in the mornings. :bounce:
And what about our Conason fix? I would like to see him with his own show too. An in-depth news commentary would be wonderful.

[The Witch]

25. I got to meet Thom Hartmann last week. For those of you who haven't listened to him yet...

you are in for a TREAT. I'm listening to him RIGHT NOW. He's FABULOUS.

[The Count]

45. I heard him when he subbed for Al and I agree.

[tnlefty]

58. Oh, you lucky Witch!!!!

I really enjoy listening to Thom Hartmann, and I'm currently reading his book, Screwed.

Thanks for taking me in spirit with you to the march, and I'm sooo envious! :hi:

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

74. and a damn nice guy, too

helped me out with a college assgnment. a real class act.

[Djinnjinn]

30. Thank the Gods!

Great news indeed!

I'll miss Al, but I do enjoy Thom and Sam.

The thought of Air America going off the air would be like giving up my 20 cups of daily coffee...the withdrawal would be h*** and nothing else could give me that buzz. Might as well just stay in bed.

Whoo-Hoo! :)

[ncrainbowgrrl]

64. welcome to DU, Djinnjinn!

:hi:

[Edgewater_Joe]

33. Betcha Chicago Will Now Get Randi LIVE!

WCPT moved Ed Schultzzzzzzz into Al's slot, and now I'll bet anything that they'd just slip her in to that slot so they'll have all live shows and an AAR presence instead of the pablum of Schultzzzzz and Pressszzzzz ...

Sure hope so!

[ronnykmarshall]

36. Great news!

I knew AAR would survive.

Can we have a big ol' GLOAT to those Henny Penny's that were saying AAR was DEAD?

[Frank Cannon]

38. This is great news, but I'm a Jones Radio guy myself

Stephanie Miller and Ed Schultz.

I couldn't live without Stephanie every morning. She and her crew are just so funny and well informed. She makes me start my day with a smile, which is what Marc Maron and the gang used to do on AAR's Morning Sedition before they killed it.

Ed has made me very mad a couple of times, but I've forgiven him because I think he just tells things like he sees them, and he really seems to appeal to your huntin', fishin', football-lovin' liberal out there. He also is one of the few hosts that DOESN'T screen his calls, and I think he handles his occasional RW callers better than anybody--very polite, levelheaded, and explanatory without conceding any ridiculous RW talking points.

[FredStembottom]

43. I totally understand this.

As I have written at DU before...... I spent the late 70's begging liberals in general and the Dem party in particular, not to hate on the hunters and fishermen. That it would be the biggest mistake possible here in America. That my life growing up with them showed them to be the most environmentally aware and concerned people you could find.

They always know first when things are wrong with animal and fish populations and they have the most personal stake imaginable in keeping it all healthy and operating.

This past year, all my fisherman friends have noticed that all the "good fishing" continues to move outward from the Twin Cities metro area in a ring (thousands of lakes are right within the metro area here). Just like suburban development.

That wasn't true before (despite development and icky things like lawn chemicals, the fishing could be teriffic right in town) and shouldn't be now because the metro lakes are supposedly cleaner than ever (due to regulations).

So you heard it here first: the fishing is going bad metro-wide - the U of M will "discover" this sometime in the near future.

But I digress........

[endarkenment]

39. "Stephen, who backed Rudolph Giuliani in both of his New York mayoral runs"

Ok I just thew up.

I realize that NYC politics are different, but Guliani is a fascist asshat creep.

[NYCGirl]

41. Not true — see this post:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2707623&mesg_id=2707669

[nutsnberries]

42. i'll miss Al & his guests but...

here in the Boston area I can only stream the show (when possible) since Dec 21 when the Progressive Talk station turned to Rumba.
i hope Progressive Talk floats back to our airwaves on this change.

I'm looking forward to Thom Hartman in the lineup.
When I can't stream radio, I download the free clips from Stephanie Miller and Ed Schultz for my daily fix.

GO AL !!! :woohoo:

:patriot:

[FredStembottom]

44. Yay! Thom Hartmann!

+yipee!

(maybe Thom could channel a little of Al's humor, though....... just sayin'.)

[onehandle]

46. God I'll miss Al. My checkbook is ready for Franken 2008.

Coleman will be the Santorum of 2008. He will go down.

[Puglover]

47. I really really

like Thom Hartmann. And while I want Al to defeat Normie boy I won't miss his schtick on the show. As much as I find Randi Rhodes hilarious I find Al Frankens humor lame. It's just my preference.

[Patiod]

50. Didn't enjoy the schtick, either, but God bless him

he worked to get AAR on the air and keep it going.

Maybe didn't love his "bits" (or crude jokes) but liked some of his guests, like Joe Conason. Maybe Thom will be able to get some of the better ones to call in sometimes to his show.

We don't have AAR hear in Philadelphia, so I've always had to stream Thom OR Al, and usually chose Thom. I've learned a lot about "winning the water cooler wars" from him.

[no_to_war_economy]

49. praise be upon allah ! no more Franken

[Fluffdaddy]

51. Great news about AAR. I will miss Al Franken tune in to hear him everyday.

[Fluffdaddy]

52. Never heard of Thom Hartmann, but I will give him a fair hearing.

[smoogatz]

53. Franken Quitting Air America

http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2007-01-29-air-america_x.htm

Liberal talk radio network Air America finds a buyer, Franken will leave
Updated 1/29/2007 1:56 PM ET
By Seth Sutel, Associated Press

NEW YORK — Air America Radio, a liberal talk radio network, said Monday that it has reached a tentative agreement to be sold to the founder of a New York area real estate company. The network also said Al Franken, its longtime headline personality, would leave next month.

The agreement with Stephen Green, founder and chairman of SL Green Realty, appears to rescue the struggling network. Air America has been seeking a buyer since last fall, when it filed for bankruptcy reorganization after reaching an impasse with one of its creditors.

Any sale would have to be approved by the bankruptcy court. The company has signed a letter of intent to sell itself to Green and expects to agree on financial terms soon, Air America spokeswoman Jaime Horn said.

Stephen Green's brother Mark is a longtime New York politician who has also appeared frequently as a guest on Air America Radio.

[WestHoustonDem]

54. Thom Hartmann is great! Now I won't have to change streams

to listen to him.

[MrSlayer]

55. That probably means he's going for the Senate run.

Would be good for us if he could win.

[rocktivity]

57. Thanks for everything Al!

If you've resigned, you're a class act. If you were fired, they've done you a favor. Now you can run for the Senate minus the conflict of interest, Thom Hartmann gets a well-earned shot at the big time, and AirAm has the financial muscle with which level the media playing field. Everybody wins! Now all that's left to do is get rid of Armstrong Williams--not because he's a neocon, but because he's a paid neocon shill!

:headbang:
rocknation

[katty]

56. Great news!

[Doctor_J]

60. Does he know how to run a radio network, or will he hire people who do?

that and organizing boycotts of advertisers who shun AAR will be the two key things to making a go of this.

[Patsy Stone]

62. Anyone tell O'Reilly?

I'm sure he'll be upset to find out they're not gone yet.

[Norwood]

66. Woo Hoo!! Now resurrect Morning Sedition please!

[Maat]

67. I loved Al on Saturday Night Live; I loved Stuart the Therapist!

That having been said, I went up and down, and all around, in terms of my opinion of Al's Air America show.

I'm proud of what he did for Air America; he generated a great deal of publicity.

I really AM a supporter of his run for the Senate; I believe that he "will do the Wellstone Legacy proud."

I'll be one of the first to donate to his campaign; he may be more centrist than I, but Al is a very caring person. He is really concerned about the plight of most Americans.

This truly is a win-win situation; I love listening to Thom Hartmann.

[peaches2003]

69. My wishes have been answered

Thom Hartmann Live on AA/XM! I have been crossing my fingers this would happen. I know some AA stations carried TH on syndication, but he was only on XM as a rerun in early morning weekend spots. This is perfect; he is the best liberal talk show host on the air! (For those don't know him TH is live weekdays from Portland, OR 9 AM to Noon PT; therefore Noon to 3 ET.)

Good Luck to Al. I hope he will campaign as a serious candidate and not resort to too much comedy. Often on AA he interrupts a good discussion with a lame joke.

[RiverStone]

70. Yahoooooooo! and a question?

I live in a rural part of Washington state and can faintly pick it up on a.m. 620 out of Portland - if the atmospheric conditions are right. If I'm near a computer, I can stream it - though anywhere else I miss it.

May cave in and buy a satellite radio. Does XM carry AAR?


Great news anyway - even if I can't pick up it's signal! :)

[Doctor_J]

72. XM carries AAR - Sirius does not

the "Sirius Left" channel lline-up is weak. Alex Benett and Lynn Samuels are awful.

[Zorra]

71. Great news. I'll miss Al on AAR, but having Thom Hartmann as

a replacement is awesome...Thom and Mike Malloy are my favorite radio folks, although I really enjoy every host on the AAR lineup.

I gotta say, I would have been devastated if AAR stopped broadcasting.