Randi Rhodes suspended from Air America

Click on the YouTube video above, and you'll quickly see and hear why I despise most talk radio, on the right and the left. Randi Rhodes has joined a long list of both liberal and conservative morons who I cannot stand spending 10 minutes listening to - most of it is about attacking and name calling. I used to think that Air America Radio was above most of this, but my naïvetay has received a not-so-subtle dose of reality as of late with what passes for on-air talent at the liberal network these days.

Quite frankly, Thom Hartman, Bill Press and Ed Schultz are the only ones I have any use for. And Stephanie Miller.

Lynn Samuels would make a freight train take a dirt road - her voice is quite possibly the worst I have ever heard on any network, ever. I don't mean to play attack dog myself - she can't help how her voice sounds, but her pure obnoxiousness makes it all the more tougher to endure.

Alex Bennett is another one that drives me crazy, so I don't complain, I just don't listen. He goes out of his way to say that he hates Democrats as much as he hates Republicans. Well, good for you, Alex, but you are working for Air America Radio. Thinking for yourself is always a good thing, but I don't tune in to her his screeds against all politicians of any stripe. Please.

And now we have Randi Rhodes - what a sad example she's setting for liberals and progressives. I constantly am complaining about the likes of Limbaugh, Hannity, Savage and all the rest about their incessant attacks and demonizing of anyone even a nanometer left of center, much less everyone else who doesn't carry the GOP party line, 24-7.

Well, Rhodes is no better. I'd like to know exactly what she thinks she's accomplishing by attacking Hillary with so much gusto. She can't possibly be considering voting for McSame if Hillary is the nominee, can she?

I was just on Air America's Website, and I was reading the comments that follow the announcement of her suspension, and they make for an interesting read, no doubt. Sure, Rhodes is free to say what she would like - we do, after all, have a little something called the First Amendment. But, that doesn't mean that Air America is under any obligation to make her voice heard. There is a thing called standards, and what does it hurt for Air America to take a stand? After all, she couldn't get away with saying stuff like that if she were on terrestrial radio, and most agree it's a good thing that people can't go around saying "fuck this" and "fuck that" on radio that is available to everyone over public airwaves.

Yes, she was saying this during a comedy routine, but AAR is correct in discipling her; broadcasting personalities can't simply make comments like these and not expect to be reprimanded. How long do you think Wolf Blitzer would be employed if during a stand up comedy act he called Ann Coulter "a stupid c---"? Or how about Jonathan Alter of Newsweek, who is a political columnist - what if he called Condi Rice "a stupid bitch" during a comedy sketch? He'd be out of a job tomorrow. The reason is simple - Blitzer and Alter are both reflections of the very public media they work for, and inappropriate, hateful comments would probably be viewed in a very negative light by many of the viewers and readers of those respective media.

I do agree that free speech and censorship are both valid concerns and must be monitored closely, but there are standards that most media will abide by, and evidently, according to AAR, she violated them.

What's more, Rhodes' comments represent the kind of hate speech, as I've mentioned, that the right-wing talking heads engage in just about every day, and Progressive and liberal bloggers the world over (yours truly included) vilify them for it. Isn't it possible for any nationally known broadcaster of any political stripe to comment on a candidate or an issue without it turning into fifth-grade name calling?

Just a thought.

Air America lives

It seems that reports of Air America Radio's demise have been greatly exaggerated. And thankfully so.

I'm the first to admit that when Air America launched on March 31, 2004, I was very enthusiastic, specifically because of Al Franken's involvement. When Franken left the network on February 14 of this year, I canceled my subscription to the network. (A small fee every month gets you an Air America Premium account, where you have unlimited access to podcasts of every Air America program.)

However, after hearing good things about Thom Hartman, Franken's successor, I figured I'd listen to him on a trial basis. After listening to one episode of the show, I re-upped my subscription and haven't looked back.

There are many progressive talk-shows hosts I respect and admire on a consistent basis - Stephanie Miller (more on her in a separate post later this morning), Ed Schultz, Randi Rhodes, Bill Press and Rachel Maddow, but Hartman sits firmly atop the list.

Hartman's an encyclopedia of political knowledge, and not just about liberal stuff. The author of 19 books, he has been in radio since 1967. The best part about Hartman's show is that it's not about tearing people down and denigrating them. (If you want that, listen to The Sean Hannity Show or Rush Limbaugh's daily rant.) Hartman's show is about debating the issues, and he often has on conservatives to discuss issues and a (mostly) civilized manner. Opposing opinions are respected and sometimes vigorously debated. But, in the end, listeners can weigh both sides and decide for themselves.

And Hartman won't go down the smear and fear road, either. Recently, when one caller began making comments about Newt Gingrich's character flaws (like those are hard to find), he cut the caller off, saying, "I'd rather stick to the issues."

Bravo, Tom - you're a bigger man than me.

If you haven't listened to or considered Air America Radio lately, give it a go - you'll be happy you did.