Yes you have (and your contributions are why he may win).
Yes, if you gave to Hillary or Obama, you have already paid for ads on Clear Channel, Sinclair, and even Fox. And your contributed dollars will flood in that direction in the fall.
And the little 30-second ads you are paying for are maintaining a huge 24/7 barrage of flag-pin, Rev. Wright, global-warming-is-a-hoax, the-surge-worked, "what-recession?" right-wing propaganda.
Great work Democratic Party. It’s like paying to put your very own bumper sticker on the swiftboat that runs you down.
And it’s especially tragic when it comes to radio. 90% of American’s listen to radio at least once a day, and 91% of talk radio is right wing. So guess why lapel jewelry is a major issue in this campaign.
What can you do? You already know: 1. Find a progressive station (if you have one--there is only one in the whole state of Ohio). 2. Spread the word about it. 3. Buy from its sponsors and tell them. 4. Encourage your business friends to advertise.
But the subject of my diary is what the DEMOCRATIC PARTY can do.
- Wake up. For a start, stop pretending the "main stream media" is main stream. It is not. Main stream America is more concerned with McCain’s ties to Bush (42%), than Obama’s ties to Wright (32%). Try to find that fact on your radio dial. Our candidates need to recognize they are being attacked, not reported, and our constant "I miss-spoke" mea culpa’s are like the twitching apologies of an abused wife. Wake up and smell the agendas.
- Speak up. When Thom Hartman interviews right-wing guests, they are not hesitant to point out he is a liberal. So why do our candidates not do the same when they are in the lions’ den? Stephanie Miller called Chris Matthews a right-wing tool, and suggested Neal Cavuto try reporting news for a change. True--she has not been invited back, but can’t our candidates at least be as truthful as she is.
- Fight back. Stop playing cricket at a street brawl. Among Democrats, progressive radio is treated as "just a business"--while Republicans treat it as a resource. Right-wing all-Rev-Wright-all-the-time radio might as well be programmed directly out of Rove’s office. In 2006, after Howard Dean gave credit to a mere three progressive stations for helping turn Ohio Blue, Clear Channel killed all three (and all three went into the ratings toilet--so much for it being a "business decision"). If Republicans can kill progressive stations, the least Democrats can do is support them.
- Do some cost analysis. When you go to your progressive business donors and ask for yard sign and robo-call money, how about suggesting they also advertise on progressive radio? Right now in 87 of Ohio’s 88 counties, every car with a radio is a 24/7 right-wing noise machine. Even here in Franklin County with the loan progressive WVKO 1580 AM, we are outgunned by WRFD, WTVN, WTDA, WLW, and WYTS. A dollar spent on progressive radio will do far more to help the party than buttons and bunting.
Sad example:
WVKO AM 1580 in Columbus, Ohio. It’s the lone progressive station in the state. And with Democrats in the Governor’s Mansion, and leading the county and the city, guess where you hear state and local agencies paying to advertise their events and programs? You guessed it. Right-wing radio. On WVKO--nothing. Reagan killed the fairness doctrine, and the Bush FCC has pushed past ownership limits. But that does not mean fairness is illegal. Give some support to the other side--your own side--for a change.
(What about NPR? It’s mostly cultural, and when it does deal with politics its is factual and doggedly neutral. That only seem’s progressive in comparison. Case in point: When Terry Gross asked Bill O’Reilly hard questions, he whined to the NPR ombudsman, who called her on the carpet. Meanwhile, O’Reilly "reports" that 300 lesbian gangs are raping little girls in the D.C. area. Yeah. Be fair to the poor guy. He’s all about fairness.)