Air America vs. The Truthseeker

After carrying on at length here at BOTB on the state of Air America over the last month or two, I thought I’d just shut up and let AAR do what they were going to do and see what happened next. I wasn’t all that hopeful, but I was frankly tired of thinking about the whole mess. Then while working on another post I happened across the Air America website, and I had to laugh and then shake my head. And so here I am again, blogging about the sad state of affairs at the struggling progressive talk network.

Yesterday, a new and revised on-air schedule went into effect at Air America radio. And although I happened to post an almost identical schedule (which I heard through the grapevine) here as a comment on one of my BOTB posts four weeks ago, and to my surprise I appear to have been the only one to actually promote the line-up. Sure, a few folks reposted and linked to the schedule I posted, but for some reason Air America never officially publicized their programming reshuffle until the day it actually took effect.  Very strange.

Sunday night, only hours before the new schedule became operational, the old one was still on the AAR website. However, If you spent some time digging deep into their site you could figure out that “The Young Turks” were taking over the network six to nine morning slot (not in NYC), and that Sam Seder and Rachel Maddow would now have new time slots as well, but there was no big announcement online or on the network itself touting the programming changes. I had assumed that after the line-up make-over there would be some major revision of the website to clean it up and add more current information. But so far it's a turning into a poorly maintained online fossil.

And I got to wondering. Are they trying to keep their programming and decisions a secret for some reason? Or are they just so incompetent or short-handed that they’re not able to publicize (or define) themselves efficiently?

It seems to be the latter. As everybody who has been following the recent twists and turns in the behavior of Air America management, late-night firebrand Mike Malloy was suddenly canned a few weeks ago (with plenty of protestations among the AAR faithful). Well, apparently they haven’t been able to figure out what to do with Malloy’s time slot, and have brought in Peter Werbe (Malloy’s friend who often filled-in for him when he was away) to man the late night position at the network while they try to decide what to do with those hours. And much to my surprise, as I looked at the Air America when Werbe went on the air and there was no banner image of the host (as there always usually would be) and there was a brief description of Werbe’s broadcast posted by Mike Malloy himself. And it was hilarious:

"Hi. Malloy here. It’s Monday, September 18, 2006. Well, it’s been almost three weeks since we were fired by the really, really strange pod-people who have temporarily taken over Air America. Tonight’s program will be hosted by my good friend Peter Werbe. Not sure what he’s talking about tonight, but do tune in. If you’re wondering how we’re writing and posting this mini-blog it’s simply because the airheads in Air America’s executive suites – the pod-people mentioned above – are too, um, stupid to figure out how to handle their own website access.

The door’s wide open. Well, eventually their bodies will start to react to Earth atmosphere and they’ll have to leave. Meantime, Mike and Kathy here saying, stay tuned!"

Wow. Apparently, not only is Air America unable to keep their website up to date, but a host they fired weeks ago is still able to post text that shows up on their home page! Considering the possibilities, Malloy was practically graceful. Here’s what he says about it on his personal site:

"Strange things can happen when certain corporate entities fire much of their website editing department without first making sure at least one remaining employee knew how to operate the darned thing. I'm just sayin' . . . . .

And be sure to tune into Peter Werbe at 10 PM ET on Air America Radio while you can. He's a good guy and a premier talk show host and you should check him out, wish him luck, and pray his checks cash."

On the same page Malloy mentions that he was interviewed for an upcoming Salon article where he says we’ll all be able to read some of his “interesting observations” about the network. That should be fun.

The firing of Malloy infuriated thousands of fans and supporters (you can see or sign the petition to reinstate Malloy at AAR here) and led at least three or four Air America hosts to take time on the air to discuss their disagreement with the decision. (And all this following their split with Maron, a decision which caused the same kind of stink and they lived to regret). But what's even more curious, is how he was let go a few minutes before going on the air when they don't even seem to have had a viable plan for his replacement. And the fact that Malloy can make fun of the Air America brain trust right on their home page just adds insult to injury. To be sure, Air America is hurtin’.

So, I do wonder if they’ll catch on by tomorrow night. It’ll be worth checking to see if Malloy can continue to poke fun at Air America’s sad state of affairs right on their own website. But the site is like a ghost town. There’s even a link to Marc Maron’s show, which hasn’t been on the air since July and never made it to the network. On the AAR Malloy page, which remains up as well, Mike put up a post hinting he’ll keep causing trouble there as long as he can get away with it:

"The door’s wide open. So we dashed in just for the hell of it to post this “howdy, how is everyone?”

Frankly, we think the suits are too stupid to stop us so we’ll probably do this every day and also post a longer blog inside the site where we used to. Until they figure out what we’re doing and stop our fun. Bastards. Just mean ol’ right-wing bastard pod-people running our Air America."

(Read the whole thing and some comments here, . The blog post and Malloy's page at AAR's website since vanished.)

Yet, perhaps just mentioning Malloy’s little prank on this blog will be enough to make somebody scramble and change the password to keep the mischievous talk host off their site. I mean, I’m starting to feel like I’m an unpaid consultant for Air America. The new schedule has at least two changes I’ve advocated a few times here at BOTB– Springer’s off the schedule, and Randi Rhodes has been cut back to three hours. And in my last AAR post I discussed their shameful weekend newscasts by the smarmy “Miles Cameron” (formerly “Frisco Hills”) which were obviously pre-recorded many hours beforehand and repeated the same "evergreen" (calculatingly viable all weekend long) stories throughout the day. Then when I was listening this last weekend, Miles was gone! The new weekend newsreader, a woman (Paula Reid?), was actually reporting news relatively current to the hour of the newscast. Coincidence? Or is somebody over on Sixth Avenue reading these posts? More importantly, why isn’t somebody who understands what makes radio compelling and worthwhile (specifically news and talk radio) listening to the network (and checking the website) and remedying embarrassments before a blogger like me points them out? Just the fact that the website has begun to rot and Jerry Springer even had a network show for longer than a week should tell you one thing-- nobody making important decisions at Air America actually listens to Air America for more than a few minutes at time, or keeps up the network's online presence (or gives a rat's ass about it).

A while back I fantasized that Randy Michaels might either take over, buy out, or merge his progressive talk company (Product First) with Air America. It seems that might have been a damn good idea. While recent rumors of Air America declaring bankruptcy have been officially denied, they’re obviously in deep financial trouble. And Al Franken says he’s not getting his paycheck lately (at least that’s a step in the right direction). But what is obvious is that Air America really is bankrupt– of vision, new ideas, and the ability to even maintain the status quo of running a radio corporation.

While progressive talk radio has already proven itself in a number of ways as a viable new format (Clear Channel and Randy Michaels wouldn’t have gotten in the business otherwise), Air America itself is heading for failure with the current leadership. If Sheldon Drobny and Jon Sinton and others who remain of the original founders really give a shit about the network they need to either sell it to somebody who knows what they’re doing, or trim Air America down to a manageable syndication outfit and bring in real radio veterans to run the damn thing. And if they want to hire me, I’ll give them more detailed advice and quit sending snarky commentary into the blogosphere. I thought Air America Radio was a promising proposition from the beginning and I’ve been quick to say positive things about good programming on the network, but despite much good work by so many folks on and off the air, but AAR is obviously broken and needs to be fixed. First they hired a doofus CEO from the music business to steer the company, and now I hear the new guy calling the shots came from the cosmetics industry. Unbelievable.

As it stands Air America is a bloated and mismanaged monster adrift in the mediastream, and it’s become an embarrassment. There's some solid programming, but it's more by accident than part of some grand plan. There's no focused leadership or willingness to make any major decisions that aren't dictated by petty economic concerns.

And if you hear Air America via their new New York outlet have you heard Armstrong Williams (nickname "Army"??) on the local morning show? It's a tragic state of affairs...

Of course I want to say all I’ve already said– bring back Maron and Malloy, and (PLEASE) get rid of Franken, all that. And maybe it wasn’t so smart to part ways with Carl Ginsburg or Shelley Lewis either. But while those may be good ideas, it’s now all too obvious that there are deep and pervasive problems with the entire structure and vision of the current management. Have I mentioned how much I hate these people who have taken over Air America?

This isn’t going well. The last thing I want to do is toss my lot in with morons who live to live to celebrate the demise of Air America. I hope Malloy is right, and "pod people" have only temporarily taken over. But I do plead with you suited men who can make such decisons--please let somebody else run the show or just let the seeds you've sown find more fertile ground. Air America provides an important role in a biased mediascape. Hand the reigns over to somebody who knows what they are doing.

Comments

[Citizen Keith]

Amen, Professor. I always wondered about the idiots running this network. I've been in radio (briefly), and every decision coming out of management seems to be made by people with no understanding of the industry. It's as if they come up with ideas that only work in their heads, then expect them to succeed in the real world. "Sure, let's fire Maron and make our morning show more like a fun NPR show." Huh?

Poor Mark Riley. The guy deserves so much more and he's quietly swept aside to the 5am-6am slot. Is it worth it for him to get up that early and drive into the city?

I will say this about Jon Sinton: when they were courting Maron to come back to mornings, Jon personally responded to many of our emails of support. He realizes the value of the hardcore fans, unlike the rest of them. I sometimes get the feeling that AAR management considers the fans a nuisance.

[Chris R.]

I don't think this is a "progressive" radio network, but rather a shill network for the Democratic Party regardless of what positions the candidates of that party take. There's a huge difference. The positions of the Dems are so tortured (chant with me: "What do we want?"/"A phased withdrawal from Iraq contingent upon ill-defined goals!"/"When do we want it?"/"We have no timetable!") that they don't really lend themselves to an enthused talk radio audience. An actual network of people advocating progessive positions independent of both parties would do somewhat better.

[norelpref]

This is all too typical of "lefty" organizations which never really define their charter. Chris R.'s statement that AA is merely "a shill network of the Democratic Party"
is spot on. I never felt that Air America was particularly progressive; from the onset they seemed poised to be the antipode to the right wing talk radio hegemony, with the same essential formulas: character assassination, cheesy little skits and bits; in short, they seem to want to be the entertainment equivalent of the Rushes and Savages, et. al.

I think though that those of a truly "progressive" mind eschew bipolar politics and the frothing at the mouth so typical of these "entertainment" talk radio program.

So while the right wing pundit radio contingency is fairly solid (they love the frothing, the hyperbole, the disinformation, the jingoism), I think the left wing pundit contingency is rather weak, due to lacking the same type of audience "enthusiasm".

[Joe]

Amen to norelpref. I don't feel sorry for either left or right demogogues that cannot keep their idealogical megaphones afloat. Its a business and "the people" will decide what they want to hear (even if it is lies).

[esoterroriffik]

I live in Clear Channel's Flag ship city, San Antonio. Clear Channel experimented with a Progressive radio station in the area. Although well recieved the signal was weak and people on the north part of the city couldn't pick it up clearly. It was called a progressive radio station, but it seemed more time was dedicated to basa ball shows, automotive and gardening than the may three progressive political shows. I remember emailing them telling them that they were purposely ruining the Progressive talk platform for San Antonio. They reassured they weren't. Three month later the radio station changed to an Outlaw country station with a stronger signal.

[K.]

Anyone living in NYC who is familiar with the cyclic meltdowns and floundering of WBAI will find nothing new here. Different names, but the song remains the same. Try nyc.indymedia.org for yet more of the same. To quote St. Bowie, "she tore down Paris on the tail of Tom Paine, the Left wing is broken, the Right's insane, my pretty Pink Rose".

[SueB]

This is kindof lie wrking for a non-prof. so i electthat it is incompetence. more $$ = secretaries and webmasters and media reps who would get it done in between lattes.

i am guessing.

[Citizen Keith]

If you think AAR is a shill for the Democratic Party, you haven't been listening to Air America much. The DNC is constantly criticized by Randi Rhodes, Sam Seder and Thom Hartmann, not to mention the departed Mike Malloy and Marc Maron.

[JT]

I think the Prof has got it right on. They *should* be paying for his consulting.

The notion that AAR is a Democratic Party organ is laughable. The on-air talent has taken a role closer to that of bloggers - describing what Democrats should be doing, and aren't, to win some elections.

By contrast, Rush Limbaugh gets out and day after week after year tells a good yarn about why what the Republicans are doing is right and will win, and why what the Democrats are doing is wrong and will lose. Doesn't matter how many voice impressions, canards, blatant lies, misrepresentations, etc he needs to do it, either. But I cannot honestly remember having heard him deviate in the slightest from that formula.

[DanO]

i don't think Air America is a shill for anyone.

whats clear is that that their entire programing schedule is a spew of unending lugubrious condemnations of the United States and its citizens. a piercing catterwaul of negativism, and indictment of our nation.
no one, outside of the extreeeeeme left found in NYC and maybe the pacific northwest, wants to hear this tripe.

as bad as right wing radio's rhetoric is, for the most part they are vehemently defending something about our nation be it christianity, family values, personal wealth. these are things that many may not invest such hysteria into - but at least people can relate.
there is nothing anyone can relate to on the Air America schedule when it is a constant vitriol of attacks.

no one wants to hear that, and that is why the channel is going under. the only thing missing from this extreme left drama is accusations of a conspiracy as being responsible for its downfall.

[norelpref]

whats clear is that that their entire programing schedule is a spew of unending lugubrious condemnations of the United States and its citizens. a piercing catterwaul of negativism, and indictment of our nation. no one, outside of the extreeeeeme left found in NYC and maybe the pacific northwest, wants to hear this tripe.

Really? Wow, I haven't listened in a while. Maybe I ought to start again ;-) I'd rather hear pessimism grounded in reality than a bunch of ahistorical, mindless cheerleading and rationalizations for the current "regime."

[Chris R.]

This week Al Franken's featuring a speech by Sen. Obama, no raging liberal. As for Ms. Rhodes, she cut her teeth on that station by attacking Ralph Nader's right to run for public office on behalf of a Democratic Party that wanted no outlet for progressive votes. She was rewarded with a show. If these people aren't shills for the DNC then no one is.

[Webster Hubble Telescope]

"whats clear is that that their entire programing schedule is a spew of unending lugubrious condemnations of the United States and its citizens. a piercing catterwaul of negativism, and indictment of our nation."

And why does that freedom not have the potential to make great art? The minute this starts disappearing and we hear millions of Medved's spouting "the graetest nation on gOD's green earth" in unison we know we have become doomed.

Some of the pod people commenting here should listen to a WFMU podcast where Stefan inserts an hour long Noam Chomsky diatribe into the mix. Sad to say, AAR has never shown that kind of nerve, because they still have to pay the bills.

[Aaron]

Never in my life will I understand people who insist that legitimate criticism of the government of the United States is inherently seditious. The message AAR disseminates is especially vital right now, when the weasels seem to be most virulently in heat than they've ever been before. Speak for yerself, sir. I, for one, am listening.

Also beyond my understanding is the rightie-tighties' glee about AAR's demise, which they've been insisting for 2.5 years now is right around the corner. This is America. Change the station. Listen to Comedian Rush Limbaugh and O'Really all you want, but what's it to you a-holes if I get to listen to Randi Rhodes or not? Since when can you be all like that and get to call yourselves "Americans?"

AAR has its troubles, but it's not because of what they're saying. It's because, as the Prof indicted, AAR doesn't think it's very important to promote its own programming. It's because AAR is fast becoming an entire network of single-talker talkies and has lost even the tiny creative spark it seemed to have had once regarding its programming. It's because, I'm convinced, the suits at AAR don't understand that they have a strong, enthusiastic base of an audience that feels passionate about its existence and that would jump in and start throwing sand bags if we needed to. AAR suffers from what I'd consider a "lack of imagination."

Regardless. So long as they're on the air and driving the righty-tighties crazy, that's okay by me. That's success.

[Aaron]

"This week Al Franken's featuring a speech by Sen. Obama, no raging liberal. As for Ms. Rhodes, she cut her teeth on that station by attacking Ralph Nader's right to run for public office on behalf of a Democratic Party that wanted no outlet for progressive votes. [ snip ]"

Randi's objection to Nader's candidicacies is legitimate: Nader shows up every four years to run for president but does nothing to build third-party political machinery in the off-years. Randi does NOT object to third parties in America, not by a longshot. She believes Nader, however, has proven to be nothing but a spoiler. As for Al's cutaway today to Obama: Recent talk says Obama could be the Democratic nominee in 2008. If you have an opportunity to have that speech on your air, you cut away.

[Eli]

It looks like something's going on with the Sam Seder show. It didn't air this morning, they aired the horrible Sam Greenfield instead. I called the studio and they kept saying it was technical difficulty, and Sam Seder's show was definitely not canceled. But Sam G. never mentioned Seder on the air, and miraculously the difficulties have cleared for the Franken show. I think something happened, but they WWRL won't say.

[DanO]

"AAR has its troubles, but it's not because of what they're saying. It's because, as the Prof indicted, AAR doesn't think it's very important to promote its own programming"

AAR is collapsing because people don't want ot hear it. they don't tune in. it isn't entertaining, its angry and one dimensional and that only goes so far.
its not because of lack of promotion.
(i predicted the conspiracy excuse and i was nearly correct)

[Will2]

To have a paying radio gig (or maybe to just keep living):

1. You are not going to discuss who was really behind 9-11.
2. You are not going to tell the truth about the war in Iraq.
3. You are not going to criticize Israel's invasion of Lebanon.

Dave Emory can pick up peanuts shilling for the Mossad because nobody listens and nobody cares (about Dave Emory.)

Malloy was a prophet, a fearless voice of reason and truth. He practiced "real" freedom and democracy every show. The amazing part is that he lasted as long as he did. Are you kidding?
It's back to sleep, America. Sleep tight.

[Faye Quillin]

I agree that AAR could do a better job of promoting itself and it's programming.
I hear so many callers say that they were not aware of AAR's existence and happened across one of it's programs by accident.
I particularly am troubled by some of the new hosts, mainly "The Young Turks" who are now in the time slot I loved to listen to on my way home from work. I had even got XM Satellite radio so I could listen to Air America when I commuting to work on the midnight shift.
Now I find myself tuning in to The Bill Press Show and Lionel on the AM channels.
I was not a big fan of your show....you were a bit too ballistic for my tastes, but this Peter Werbe is too milk toast for me. Wish they would play more of Rhandi Rhodes, Ed Schultz, and Jerry Springer.
Good luck wherever you end up, Mike.

[Mordaci]

I say shoot them all...and make them eat dog shit out of a hair brush.