Malpractice

So there is this guy named Doc Thompson. He works for a station in Richmond, VA called WRVA. This week, "Doc" got his Big Break at National Radio Star-Dumm by filling in for the vacationing Glenn Beck.

Now anyone who has followed my posts knows that Glenn, himself, has been known for some outrageous statements, but to an extent he does temper himeself a bit.

Such cannot be said about "Doc." This is a man who has won five Marconi awards. Many of my fellow Twitterers would love to know what the award committee was snorting at the time of nomination.

The reason I am going in to this is what "Doc" said this week about hate crime legislation.

And they will be condemned by thier words. From the July 8 edition of Premiere Radio Network's The Glenn Beck Program:


http://www.mediamatters.com/mmtv/200907080009

This from a man whose lisp sounds less from Virginia...and more from Fire Island.

A little education for you, Mr. Thompson:

9.8.08 Norwich, Conn. —
A trial is scheduled to start
today for the former Plainfield man charged with beating a man and dumping his
body into the Shetucket River in Norwich.

Timothy J. Cote, 39, is charged with attempted murder and first-degree
assault in the Sept. 28, 2007, attack of William Uzialko. At 1:39 a.m. that
morning, fishermen at Howard T. Brown Memorial Park heard a splash coming from
the area of the Laurel Hill bridge and saw a man, arms thrashing, float past
their fishing spot.

Responding police discovered a shoeless Uzialko floating in the river,
clinging to a chain behind a dock on the east side of Norwich Harbor. He was
semi-conscious and bleeding from his face and ears, police said.Police
interviewed people sleeping under the viaduct bridge behind the YMCA, a common
place for the homeless to drink and sleep. Cote and Robert Plummer were found
there sleeping. A pair of work books were found, along with blood and drag marks
leading to a wall that drops 30 feet into river. An “executive type desk chair,”
was found in the river directly below the wall.
http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/x863180418/Norwich-homeless-beating-trial-set-to-begin


6.18.09 EUGENE, Ore. -- Police arrested two
roommates in the murder of a homeless man whose bloody body was found not
far from a playground in a city park last month after one of the men allegedly
confessed to a friend who later called police.

Herbert Taylor Bishop, 56, also known by his street name "Pac-Man," was
murdered in the early morning hours of May 11.

His bloody body was found later that day not far from the waterfront
bike path and children's playground in Skinner Butte Park.
http://www.kval.com/news/local/48263852.html

6.6.09 Belfast, Northern Ireland -- A homeless man was
stabbed to death on a street in Belfast today.

George Morrison, 29, was found lying in Brookhill Avenue in the north
of the city in the early hours of this morning.

A 46-year-old man has been arrested, police said. Detectives believe
there may have been a row before the attack at around 2.30am.

Local DUP MP Nigel Dodds said: ``It is shocking to hear that a man has
been killed in a knife attack in north Belfast.

``This is an appalling tragedy and our thoughts and prayers are with
the family of the deceased.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/ireland/homeless-man-stabbed-to-death-in-belfast-14387207.html

Shall I go on, Doc? Maybe I should.

6.30.09 MASTIC BEACH, N.Y. - Police on eastern Long
Island say they have arrested three people on aggravated harassment charges
after they kicked and hit a victim while uttering anti-gay remarks.

Authorities say 21-year-old Nora Mitzner and 25-year-old Lindsay McBeth and
20-year-old Selwyn Icangelo pleaded not guilty at their arraignments in First
District Court in Central
Islip on Tuesday. McBeth did not have an attorney and Mitzner was
represented by Legal Aid, which does not comment on pending cases. Icangelo's
attorney did not immediately return a call for comment.
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--biasarrests0630jun30,0,2573443.story

6.29.09 NYC --

A man visiting a friend on the upper East Side was robbed
and
pistol-whipped during Gay Pride weekend by a group of hoodlums yelling
anti-gay slurs, the victim and cops said Sunday.

Joseph
Holladay,
36, said he was set upon by at least three
men on E. 85th St. about 4 a.m.
Saturday.

"Out of nowhere, I'm being
attacked," he said from his bed at New York
Presbyterian-Hospital Weill
Cornell, a nasty gush visible on his forehead.

One of the robbers
called out, "What are you looking at?" and used an
anti-gay epithet, the Boston
man added.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2009/06/29/2009-06-29_slurs_hurled_in_e_side_attack.html

07.07.09 ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - For the third time in four
years and the second time in a month a cross-dressing man has been found dead on the streets of Albuquerque.
They are believed to be the victims of what police across America say is a growing hate crime: People born men, dressed as
women, and in all likelihood murdered because of that.

Janice Devereaux, the head of "Transgender New Mexico," believes Albuquerque is seeing that
trend.

“I think it's incredibly dangerous,” says Devereaux.

Police aren't sure why someone beat transgender Teri Benally to death last weekend.

Witnesses found Benally, 42, unconscious on Maple Street SE near Coal
Avenue. Benally died at a hospital.

“The individual may have been meeting somebody that they found online,”
Albuquerque Police Department spokesman John Walsh told KRQE News 13.
http://www.krqe.com/dpp/news/crime/crime_krqe_albuquerque_cross_dresser_murdered_in_albuquerque_200907072204

...and on and on.

We understand, "Doc," that you fancy yourself as a kind of humorist on your dailta afternoon show on WRVA. You do have to admire someone who feels that smashing someone' skull because they wear a dress instead of overalls is hilarious, or that stabbing someone in the back because he has lost everything is side-splitting.

Maybe Mr Thompson should betold exactly how much people appreciate his unique comic stylings.

Personal e-mail: doc@wrva.com

Maybe Glenn's producer should know how much you appreciate, as well

Glenn Beck Radio Program producer: stu@glennbeck.com

The Real Tammy Bruce (it ain't pretty)

Today a lot of me fellow liberals who toil in talk radio were taking to task a certain Tammy Bruce, who while filling in on the radio for Laura In-GrahamCracker....errrr...Ingraham, took great pains to comment on a visit First Lady Michelle Obama made to a schoolroom earlier in the week.

Let's listen shall we?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3QZ7ljo3fo

Now I can go into what I went through as a black kid with a "white-sounding" voice, not only in school but at home too. But I won't. This is, after all, not about Mrs. Obama, but about Ms. Bruce. And the fact that my fellow non-conservatives have it all wrong about her.

Not that she is a racist slag. That is evident in the words she uses, not only against Michelle Obama, but as far back as 10 years ago when she attacked Bill and Camille Cosby.

"I have two words for you this evening," (Tammy Bruce) warned listeners.
"Camille Cosby." The Tammy, as fans affectionately call her, then went
ballistic. In two hours of fire and brimstone, she ripped apart the essay line
by line, not only questioning Camille's sanity but wondering aloud about her
super-rich and powerful husband's sexual mores, referring to him as a
"philandering, impregnating friend of O.J. Simpson." While acknowledging that
she had no proof, she suggested that the revered Cosby, a friend of Simpson
lawyer Johnnie Cochran, may have secretly helped to fund the ex-football star's
murder defense. But most of her ire was aimed at Camille's assertion that the
27-year-old Ennis had been shot to death while changing a tire late at night
near a lonely stretch of Mulholland Drive because he was black. Bruce posited
that he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time-while driving his
mother's $130,000 Mercedes-Benz. She then implied that the parents themselves
shared the blame. "I say to Mrs. Cosby first of all, if she's not in therapy she
needs to get some immediately. And how dare she!"

http://www.blackvoices.com/blogs/2009/03/24/tammy-bruce-calls-the-first-family-trash-in-the-white-house/

After which KFI/Los Angeles, her employer at the time, not to mention the station that helped initially give Rush Limbaugh is national pulpit...among other right-wing blowhards, had to apologize ten times for those remarks. This from a program director that, after the many outrageous thing said by his hosts, thought an apology was akin to the plague.

This led to Ms Bruce being terminated by KFI. Tammy filed suit:

Former KFI-AM (640) overnight host Tammy Bruce, who last year came
under fire for critical remarks she made on the air about Bill and Camille
Cosby, has filed suit against the station and key personnel on charges that
include sex discrimination, discrimination due to sexual orientation, wrongful
termination, sexual harassment and slander.

Named as defendants in the lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior
Court, are Cox Radio-owned KFI, Program Director David G. Hall, General Manager
Howard Neal and nighttime host Phil Hendrie.

Neal, speaking for the station, said Thursday: "We can't comment." He
said he had not yet received a copy of the lawsuit.

In the 27-page suit, filed March 16, Bruce did not ask for a specific
dollar amount but says at several points that the damages she sustained are
"greatly in excess of $50,000." Her lawyer, Patricia Bellasalma, said Bruce
seeks compensation for "back pay, front pay, pain, suffering and emotional
distress."
Bruce, 36, who is openly gay and a former president of the Los
Angeles chapter of the National Organization for Women, was suspended by KFI
last July 10, following her July 8-9 broadcast that criticized the Cosbys and
prompted them to complain to management. Hall and Neal went on the air Aug. 19
and 20 to apologize for Bruce's remarks. Later, the station said that her
contract was not being renewed.

In her suit, Bruce charges that she was "disparately treated" in the
Cosby case, contending that KFI had neither suspended nor apologized for male
hosts who had been the subject of complaints or civil actions. She also charges
that, independent of and long before the Cosby controversy, she had complained
to Hall about derogatory remarks and harassment of her by various employees
regarding her sexual orientation. The behavior did not cease and constituted a
hostile work environment, the suit says--extending even to KFI's Web site, where
it says derogatory remarks were made about her even after she was no longer on
the air.
Among Bruce's charges is that Hendrie both made and attempted
unwanted physical contact with her at his wedding in July 1997, that thereafter
he called her a derogatory name when passing in the hallway, and that he used
other crude language about her sexual orientation on his program.

Reached at her home, Bruce said filing the suit was "an important thing
to do, not only for the unfairness that occurred directly in that environment
but because this is what I have stood for in all my activism, to encourage women
to stand up for themselves."
http://articles.latimes.com/1999/mar/26/entertainment/ca-21075

Yes, sexual orientation. For you see, Tammy Bruce is not just as right-wing racist harpie. She is a LESBIAN right-wing racist harpie.

She is openly Lesbian, though you would not know it by what she says on the radio, being anti-GLAAD and all.

But this same so-called "Progressive Lesbian" cut her teeth as a member of ACT-UP. You remember ACT-UP, The uppity gays who protested loudly and sometimes violently to promote....wait for it....THE GAY AGENDA!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tammy_Bruce#Career

Yes, every time Mzz. Bruce tries to stick a new one into the President about his involvement in ACORN, let us not forget that Tammy was involved in a organization that many believed was linked to domestic terrorism (http://www.virusmyth.com/aids/news/actupsfpr15.htm).

In our neighborhood, there is a phrase used for people whose walk and talk seem more than slightly hypocritial. That phrase seems well suited to Ms. Bruce.

"Tammy, you should talk...."

Talk show hosts voice alarm at McCain's rise

By Matthew Bigg
ATLANTA (Reuters) - Right-wing radio hosts who are influential in U.S. politics expressed alarm on Wednesday at the lead established by Sen. John McCain in the race to become the Republican presidential candidate.

Leading host Rush Limbaugh warned that McCain spelled danger for the party on ideological grounds, and callers to his show deplored his "liberal" views, saying he lacks the bedrock convictions of former President Ronald Reagan, a Republican hero.

Their fears present a stiff challenge to McCain's efforts to unify Republicans along conservative lines.
The Arizona senator won nine coast-to-coast primary races in states on "Super Tuesday" to become the most likely candidate to secure the party's nomination ahead of November's election to succeed U.S. President George W. Bush.

"We are trying to stop the wanton destruction of the party, the wanton dilution of the party," said Limbaugh, whose daily show is syndicated on radio stations across the country.

"We are sick and tired of how the people who seem to be triumphing in our party are precisely the people who seem to be selling this party out in terms of its ideology," said Limbaugh, who criticized McCain for reaching out to Democrats.

Conservatives say they disagree with McCain on issues including taxes, free political speech, immigration and the treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay and other prisons.

In one indication of doubts about McCain, evangelical leader James Dobson said this week he would not vote for McCain if he became the nominee, raising the possibility that some Republicans would sit out the November election.

Limbaugh's views on McCain reflect wider disquiet that Bush and Republicans have squandered years in power by failing to institute principles such as individual freedom and small government or to sufficiently write Christian values into law.

They say a McCain presidency would likely move the party further in the wrong direction.
At the same time, many conservatives are angry at what they see as a biased national media that applauds McCain for "moderate" views, relishes division within Republican ranks and misrepresents the influence of talk radio.

INFLUENCE
Limbaugh is credited with fueling the rise of AM talk radio in the United States and opening the way for popular talk show hosts including Sean Hannity, Michael Savage and Neal Boortz.
Hannity said McCain might move to the left if he wins the nomination to try to pick up centrist votes and he defended his own right to point out differences with McCain.

"The problem (with) John McCain ... isn't that he's a moderate Republican. It's worse than that on some issues and that's just a substantive disagreement," he said.

Some see Limbaugh, Hannity and others as extremists servicing an embittered, though powerful, minority. Some commentators said McCain's rise shows Republicans are moving left and the influence of talk show hosts is waning.

But talk show host Herman Cain said the role of talk radio was to influence opinion and not dictate it.
Syndicated talk radio host Neal Boortz, who describes himself as a libertarian, said conservatives should be realistic and recognize that no candidate matched their views.

"I am ... curious about those Republicans ... who are insisting on 100 percent purity in their presidential candidate. That's not going to happen," said Boortz, who voted for former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee.
Conservative frustration showed when one caller to Limbaugh said she would vote for Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton if she and McCain were the party nominees. Another caller reacted to McCain's rise by asking: "What the heck is our choice now?"
(Editing by Philip Barbara)

© Reuters 2007. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.

Al Franken: OUT @ Air America??

Two Progressive talk stations have silently replaced Al Franken on thierAir America scheules with Portland, OR talk host Thom Hartman.

Al is gone on his annual USA tour and while he is out, his producer/sidekick Billy Kimball is running things. Franken's show is still on the AAR Feed, and Kimball promises that he will get Franken on throughout the week eithet via cell or satphone.

Hartmann is a power house in Portland, keeping his AAR affilliate KPOJ-AM near the top of that city's Arbitron ratings heap.

Franken has been working for the finacially-challenged network without pay for months and has been mulling over a Senatorial campaign. Many radio insiders say that AAR would stand a better chance at survival with a more professional sounding and successful host. Having stayed competive with Rush limbaugh many times in the Portland area, Hartmann seems to fit both bills.

AAR has been operating on Chapter 11 bankruptcy rules since October, and has been given extra time to fina a buyer. Reliable sources have identified an investment froup headed by a former AAR boardmember as being close to a buy deal.

Impacting............

Media Matters: ABC, REI respond to Air America blacklist memo

Responding to Media Matters for America's October 31 posting of an ABC Radio Networks memo indicating that nearly 100 ABC advertisers insist that their commercials be blacked out on Air America Radio affiliates, ABC provided Media Matters with a statement in which the company did not challenge the memo's authenticity but instead noted:

"It is not uncommon for advertisers and/or agencies to request that their ads
run or not run in specific programming environments or dayparts. ABC Radio
Networks does not solicit nor encourage these requests from advertisers. If a
request is made by an advertiser/and [sic] or agency we make our best effort to
comply."

However, one of the advertisers included in ABC's list, REI, apparently claims it did not request that its ads not be aired during Air America programming. Several Media Matters readers have sent this response from REI, which reads, in part:

Today, an internal memo on ABC Network letterhead was posted on the Air
America website and picked up by various blog sites. The memo lists companies
that refused to have their radio advertising supporting Air America and Al
Franken's programming. REI was listed as one of the companies declining to
advertise; however this information is incorrect.

The memo posted on the internet is not correct. REI has not refused to
advertise during Air America's programming. In fact, REI has placed radio ads on
stations carrying Air America programming.
It is unfortunate that this
misinformation has been widely distributed. We are currently working with our
advertising agency and the ABC radio network to track down how this happened.

Ok....AAR Files Chapter 11....now the GOOD news!

By now you probably know that Air America Radio has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

And I know that many of you neocons are dancing in the streets right now. But before you get run over by that oncoming bus that should arrive in about three weeks, a few things you should know.

First, the following companies have filed for Chapter 11 as well:

+KMart
+Covad Communications
+Delphi Automotive
+Delta Airlines
+Atkins (the heath food company)
+Pacific Gas and Electric

Shall I go on?

Well, I'll just mentions that all of these companies have been able to continue operations and many have eventually gotten out of BK.

Second, what happens to a company that goes BK11. Here is an explanation from SFGate.com:

The fate of a corporation in bankruptcy — whether it goes out of business
or is reorganizing in order to recover from crippling debt — is determined by
federal bankruptcy law. The bankrupt corporation (i.e., "the debtor") can use
Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code to liquidate or Chapter 11 to reorganize the
business in hopes of turning things around and becoming profitable again.
In Chapter 11, management continues to run the daily business operations,
but the bankruptcy court must approve all significant business decisions.
Publicly held companies usually choose to file under Chapter 11 rather than
Chapter 7 because it allows them to continue to run their business as well as
maintain some control over the bankruptcy. The U.S. Trustee appoints one or more
committees to represent the creditors and stockholders in working with the
corporation. A reorganization plan is developed to get the company out of
debt.

The plan must be confirmed by the court and agreed to by the creditors,
bondholders, and stockholders. The court can confirm the plan over the rejection
of the creditors or stockholders if it finds that the plan treats them fairly.
The plan relieves the corporation from paying a portion of its debt so that the
company can make a recovery. A committee is formed to represent the unsecured
creditors, including bondholders. An additional committee may be created to
represent stockholders. The trustee may also create a committee to represent
other creditors, such as secured creditors and employees.

After the committees develop a plan with the corporation, the bankruptcy
court must find that it complies with the Bankruptcy Code before the plan can be
implemented. Known as plan confirmation, this process is usually completed in a
few months.

More can be found at http://allbusiness.sfgate.com/article.asp?ID=2976053&CenterID=31&CatID=1799

Now what does this all mean, dear lib radio fan. It means that, for the time being, AAR is not going anywhere. In fact, its future may not be brighter. Here's why.

First, the ratings are good. In most major markets, AAR-affiliated stations are either leading or staing competive. AAR has doubled the numbers in L.A. as opposed to the previous sports format. In NY, the numbers are competitive and solid. And they are killer in Portland. That equals money.

And that brings me to second: If AAR is sold, and I would assume that the ownership is going for a sale, there would be at least two interested parties. Jones Radio Networks, which syndicates Stephanie Miller and Ed Jones, two staples at many midwest and western AAR stations would be one. The other.....sit down for this gang....Clear Channel. Yes, the Evil Empire. Well, it seems that we libs have a lot to thank the Mays boys for...you see CC OWNS many AAR affiliates, including the aforementioned ones in Portland and LA. They make a lot of money for CC, and an AAR demise would not be something they would look forward to. Also, Racheal Maddow's show uses a lot of feeds from ABC Radio. Would the Cumulus/Disney partnership be interested?

My prediction: IMHO, Jones, CC, or a partnership will buy AAR, hire programmers to fix things. Al Franken stays until he starts his Congress/Senate run, Randi Rhodes and Rachael Maddow would be kept. The sound would be cleaned up a lot, and AAR would be relaunched with a massive campaign would directly involve its stations. And that won't happen until at least 2007, anyway.

Also, you might note that if Cumulus/ABC to a run at AAR, there is Keith Olbermann, who I think would be a cinch to replace Franken. I say that because ABC Radio has K.O. radio contract.

Oh and another very outside possibility is NBC. Now realizing that exiting radio was a huge mistake, AAR could be thier re-entry point. They have K.O. on contract for TV, and they can simply renegotiate ABC Radio deal, while they take back ownership of their old radio network from CBS. (OK, that one is on the wishful thinking path.)

Meanwhile, my NeoCon friends, the bottom line is that AAR is still on the air, whether you like it or not. And with the coming tsunami that will overtake most non-Teutonic-accented Republicans, the landscape may very well change in the nest few years.

Sorry to ruin that party for ya boys.