Madison's The Mic 92.1 boots Thom Hartmann, and Lee Rayburn follows
A double whammy for progressive radio in Madison
Emily Mills on Tuesday 01/13/2009 10:32 am , (14) Recommendations
Last week, it was announced that Madison’s progressive talk radio station, The Mic 92.1 FM, would stop airing Thom Hartmann’s show during its prime 2-5 p.m. timeslot. His replacement is Dan Ramsey, a conservative Christian who gives financial advice. Then, this past weekend, the station’s popular local host, Lee Rayburn, announced that he, too, would be leaving.
It was a one-two punch for Madison-area fans of progressive talk radio, and they’re not taking it well. A group of concerned listeners, Friends of Progressive Talk, plan a meeting tonight to discuss the station’s decision to cut Hartmann and Rayburn’s departure. Mike Ferris, Clear Channel’s operations manager, has agreed to attend. The meeting is tonight at the Dardanelles restaurant, 1851 Monroe St., at 6:30 p.m. Anyone is welcome to attend.
The loss of Hartmann’s program came as a surprise to many listeners. When asked about the decision by a caller to his own show, Rayburn expressed his deep admiration for Hartmann, his “mentor,” and sadness over the loss of the program.
Rayburn has not commented publicly on whether his decision to leave the station was prompted by the dropping of Hartmann’s show. I did, however, speak to him about the flurry of changes at The Mic, and his departure in general.
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Questions must be asked: Is this downturn simply a product of the financial woes being felt nationwide? Is there a real lack of interest in the station’s format? Or is there something else going on at the corporate level?
One can’t help but look at the jagged hole that’s suddenly been blown into the middle of the station’s line-up and wonder how that made sense to the suits in charge. Some fans are wondering whether the goal is to slowly kill off the current progressive programming so that, come time to shut the whole thing down, hardly anyone will notice or care.
More:
http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=24816And:
DIAL GLOBAL ADDS HARTMANN
NEW YORK -- February 2, 2009: Dial Global and WYD Management have announced an agreement under which Dial Global will provide advertising sales and affiliate representation for The Thom Hartmann Show, beginning March
1. The show airs from noon-3 p.m. ET and currently airs in Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, and other markets.
"With the addition of Thom Hartmann, Dial Global solidifies its position as the premier content provider of the very best progressive Talk radio," said Dial Global SVP/GM, News/Talk Amy Bolton. "Dial Global now offers 12 hours of proven, winning progressive talk shows. We're delighted to work with Thom and WYD."
WYD's Ron Hartenbaum said, "It is great to be reunited with so many friends and former colleagues who are at Dial Global. In a tough economic environment, we are pleased to be working with such an aggressive team on all aspects of our business."
More:
http://www.radioink.com/Article.asp?id=1141065&spid=24698