The floor seems to be crumbling from beneath the feet of Rush Limbaugh. Or as Jon Stewart of “The Daily Show” would say: “The DISH has hit the fan!”
Ever since our old buddy Rush took to the airwaves to call a young woman a “slut” and a “prostitute” for wanting to protect her right to birth control, it seems as if the world has turned on him. Democrats instantly denounced his derogatory remarks. Republicans arrived late to the party (once they realized the magnitude of the backlash against him) and have also come out against his comments. But now, Rush is starting to feel a bit of pain in the pockets. Hmmm…
AOL, Allstate, John Deere, Sears, as well as 10 other advertisers have since dropped their advertising from Limbaugh’s radio show — and more are prepared to follow. That’s a big deal. For years, Rush has enjoyed a free ride on the radio to say any and everything he wanted. Now it’s time to pay the piper, as Rush is being taught a very valuable (pun intended) lesson.
Realizing the severity of the issue now that it’s costing him ad dollars, Rush attempted one more apology on his Monday radio program: “Those two words (“slut,” “prostitute”) were inappropriate. They were uncalled for. They distracted from the point that I was actually trying to make, and I again sincerely apologize to Ms. Fluke.”
Ahem.. .um… now that Limbaugh’s radio advertisers are using money to dictate what he’s allowed to do, who’s the prostitute now Rush?
<span><span><span><span><span>Is this the BEGINNING of his end? I hope so. But, as I shared yesterday, I'd prefer that his fate be determined by the "Free-market" since conservatives (like Rush) worship at THAT altar, and advertisers AND radio-stations seem to be dropping him left and right. But here's what really makes what Rush did all the more asinine AND offensive…….. IF that vile man had bothered to do a just a basic inquiry into Ms. Fluke's testimony BEFORE he opened his big fat mouth he would have learned what I learned…..that her testimony had pretty much NOTHING to do with her wanting access to contraceptives to have "casual sex with lots of random men". But rather she testified as to its use in treating various forms of ovarian cysts. </span> <span>I actually listened to part of her testimony last evening via MSNBC. She spoke very thoughtfully about one of her college room-mates who had required such treatment but having could no longer aford the out-of-pocket cost of the medicine the room-mate was forced to forego treatment. The ovarian cyst rapidly grew back and she eventually had to have surgery to remove the diseased ovary. The obvious point being that that ignorant, man didn't have the foggiest clue as to what he was talking about in the first place! Btw: I also did a little digging to find out any info regarding just WHO ilistens to Rush anyway? I knew it was mostly SoCON Repubs. But, as I posted yesterday, I suspected that SoCON women had dropped him a long time ago leaving a fan-base of mostly SoCON MEN. And I was right. </span></span></span> <span><span><span></span></span></span> <span><span><span>"Who On Earth Listens To Rush Limbaugh, Anyway?" </span></span></span></span> http://www.tnr.com/blog/the-study/101319/who-eart…</span><span><span><span><span></span></span></span></span><span><span><span><span>"Rush Holds onto his Niche — Conservative Men"</span></span></span></span><span><span><span><span><span><span>pewresearch.org/pubs/1102/limbaugh-audience-conservative-men</span></span></span></span></span></span>
few more related stories…(and quite frankly if the first one doesn't take the cake I don't know what does!?!) 1. "Don Imus Calls Rush Limbaugh An 'Insincere Pig' For 'Vile, Personal Attack' On Sandra Fluke" Video & story: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/05/don-imus… 2. "Rush’s Last-Ditch Defense: Rappers Are Worse!"http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/03/and-so-… 3. "The GOP’s Rush Limbaugh Problem Deepens After His ‘Slut’ Attack"http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/05/…
I am embarrassed for Rush Limbaugh. There is no excuse for him apologizing in one breath, then justifying himself in the next. I really want for him to please be silent.
<span>John Avlon: "Despite Sandra Fluke Apology, Rush Limbaugh Advertisers Sign Off" If you want to know why Rush is freaking out over the Sandra Fluke fallout, follow the money. The horses are spooked. David Limbaugh, Rush’s brother, tweeted that “this jihad against Rush is a distraction,” and followed that up with a column <span>accusing the talker’s critics</span> of “a calculated, organized Saul Alinsky–type community-organizing campaign to pressure and intimidate his advertisers into discontinuing their sponsorship of his show.” But this impulse to play the victim can’t distract from the damage that’s been done. </span><span></span><span>“This controversy will no doubt give Rush a temporary ratings lift, but it won’t be worth the damage that’s been caused in terms of loss of revenue and advertiser confidence,” says WTOP program director Laurie Cantillo, who previously directed Limbaugh’s flagship station, WABC. “It is perceived by many as an attack on young women who represent the holy grail for ratings. Women 25–54 is the prize demo for most advertisers. Rush’s remarks strike at the heart of the audience they’re trying to reach, hence the apology. This is an audience that’s already been in gradual decline on many right-wing radio stations, so Rush’s gaffe compounds the problem.” [….] Read: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/06/… </span><span></span><span></span><span>I'd be suprised if Rush doesn't actually double-down on his hate and ignorance, in an attempt to bluff his way through this mess (at least for a few more days) while he tries to figure out what to do to get out of it because he knows that in addition to the loss of money, his FAKE conservative macho image is on the line and about to be EXPOSED for what it's been all these years…FAKE. And that ain't gonna go down well with his conservative macho MALE listeners. I'm going to TRY listening to the first 20 minutes of his radio show during my lunch hour this afternoon. I believe he comes on at 12 noon or 1 PM. </span>
LOL! Okay mark me down s suprised! I've just spent the last 15 minuites listening to a FAKE conservative macho man SCARED SH*TLESS of what he's unleashed upon himself and is frantically trying to CHANGE the subject. I have NEVER heard such babbling in my life!I know his show is 3 hrs long (I've already turned it off) but if the 15 minutes I listened to is any indication of how the rest of the show is going to go the man will continue "entertaining" his macho male listeners with his "FOOD IS THE NEXT FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S FRONT IN THEIR WAR AGAINST OUR FREEDOMS" rant…or some other such "BARACK OBAMA IS TAKING AWAY OUR FREEDOMS" nonsense.
2:40 PM EST…the *Free-market* continues to be at work……MSNBC just reported that up 28 advertisers and 2 radio stations have now dropped Rush.
Yesterday I questioned just WHO are Rush's listeners?…….Today a reader over at Sullivan's site questions the ACTUAL size of Rush's audience?Where does this "15 million Rush Limbaugh listeners" number keep coming from? Talkers Magazine? You think they just might have a vested interest in propping up Rush's numbers, and those of every other yakker they cover? Check out this image [seen below]. They say they make estimates based on "analyzing" reports from Arbitron, which are absurdly unreliable. […]Read: "Who Listens to Limbaugh?"http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/03/w…
This is hilarious just sitting back watching Repubs explode before our eyes. Here it is Super Tuesday but everybodys talking about this mess instead of Romney and all of them. Rush Limbaug is about to pull himself and everybody else down with him. I can't wait to say good riddance.
David Frum: "20 Million Limbaugh Listeners? Hardly."Andrew Sullivan posted a <span>letter</span> today from a reader disputing the oft-heard statistic of 20 million Rush Limbaugh listeners. In terms of actual human beings with addresses and voting registrations, the true number is probably quite far south of 2 million—and dropping fast.Tim Mak now of Politico did the reporting at the old FrumForum site about how talk radio hosts were trapped and forced to compete for a constantly shrinking audience:According to Scott Fybush, the proprietor of North East Radio Watch, talk radio has lost 30-40% of its ad revenues over the past two years.Further, in an interview with a talk radio trade publication, Talkers Magazine, late last year, Talk Radio Networks CEO Mark Masters said: “2008 will be known as the year that weak syndicated programs began dying off in droves,” adding that “it has only just begun.” [….]Read: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/06/…
CBS News: "Will Limbaugh's show outlast firestorm?"Nearly 30 corporate sponsors have now pulled advertising from Limbaugh's show. At least two radio stations have dropped his program altogether.On Monday, Limbaugh remarked to his audience, "They've decided they don't want you or your business anymore. So be it."The backlash has been driven by social media, such as a Facebook campaign urging a boycott of Limbaugh's sponsors.Limbaugh has faced backlashes and boycotts before. But not like this.The question is whether his show can survive the firestorm. [….]Read: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505266_162-57392189/w…Honestly, I think Rush's show will survive this firestorm…but NOT without a price.I couls be wrong(?) but I think even the powerful Rush Limbaugh has finally crossed a line in attacking Ms. Fluke (a decent and civil young law school student) in such a personal and vicious way _and he did so over a period of 3 DAYS. The majority of his radio audience are SoCON men but even SoCON men have daughters, wives, sisters. I suspect that whatever the ACTUAL size of his audience, he'll soon see that number gradually decrease along with his eventual decline in power and influence over Repub politics.But in the meantime, the GOP has a HUGE *Limbaugh* problem on their hands. The GOP is inextricably linked to_and afraid of_Limbaugh. And, as I stated the other day, I believe the GOP's FAILURE to repudiate that man's verbal assault on Ms. Fluke will haunt that party to November and beyond.
<span><span><span>TAC: "Rush and the GOP: A Mutually Abusive Relationship" Steve Kornacki <span><span><span>calls attention</span></span></span> to the downsides of the Republican Party adopting Limbaugh as its mascot and revisits the history: </span></span> <span><span></span></span> <span><span></span><span>After being shredded on-air by Limbaugh over the tax hike he signed, George H.W. Bush invited him to the White House in June 1992, and made a show of carrying his bags to the Lincoln bedroom for him. When the GOP won the House in 1994, the party’s 73 freshmen members invited Limbaugh to their orientation dinner, where they honored him as a “majority maker.” He hosted Bob Dole on his show in 1996, beat the drums exhaustively for George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004, and even admitted in the later years of W’s presidency that he’d been carrying water for congressional Republicans. And when he’s stepped over the line in recent years, Republicans have been painfully hesitant to take issue with him — and when they have, they’ve often ended up apologizing to him. </span></span></span><span><span><span></span></span></span><span><span><span>The results of this courtship have been degrading for all concerned: the party, the host, his listeners, and voters. ………………………. </span></span> <span><span></span></span> <span><span>Now the party is embarrassed by his slut-talk, when it ought to be embarrassed about lusting after him in the first place. Limbaugh, for his part, long ago divorced conservatism to become the GOP establishment’s trophy. [….] </span></span></span><span><span><span></span></span></span><span><span><span></span></span><span><span>Read: http://www.theamericanconservative.com/blog/2012/…</span></span></span>