From the Wire: Good luck, Air America

On Wednesday, the Air America Radio network began its first broadcast. Air America combines… On Wednesday, the Air America Radio network began its first broadcast. Air America combines the talent of political satirists, commentators and various liberal pundits. The stated goal is to combat what they call the right-wing monopoly of AM talk radio. Is this a good idea? A more important question in the for-profit talk show circuit is whether it can catch on and turn a profit.

As it is, the Air America squad is cooped up in a piece of cramped New York City office space. The fledgling station is broadcast by half a dozen carriers in scattered locations. These are not test markets; these affiliates are simply all the airtime the station could afford. The producers are relying on out-of-pocket money and donations to stay afloat for the moment.

If you don’t live in one of these small broadcast areas or own a satellite radio, your only way of getting a feed is online at www.airamericaradio.com. At the time, the Web site is hard to access because of high traffic. Their signal strength is lousy, but the programming itself is not that bad. Al Franken, Janeane Garofalo and company have put together some professional-sounding shows.

But how can this tiny network compete with such staggering competition? Self-proclaimed right wingers like Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Neil Bortz and a cast of dozens more are, frankly, very successful. Say what you will about them, but they have found their niche in radio — they fairly dominate the medium. Who will succeed in the end? It’s not a matter of who’s right and who’s wrong; it has more to do with where people go for their news, information, entertainment and infotainment (that being entertainment’s bastard cousin).

Most people who consider themselves conservative listen to the radio or watch TV news to get their fix. More liberals go online or read the papers. Besides that, the format of modern talk radio fits conservative dogma like a glove. Facts matter little, opinions don’t need to be respected, and it’s all about who can scream the loudest — or in O’Reilly’s case, who can cut the mic off quickest. Liberals don’t belong in this environment as it exists today. I understand what they’re trying to do here, but does the left really need a Limbaugh of its own? Limbaugh isn’t despised by the left simply because he’s a conservative, but because he has no respect for opposing voices, he doesn’t challenge his audience to think, he’s rude, and he weaves most of his arguments from insults and exaggerations.

Is that what liberals want? Most lefties I know are willing to concede that most issues are too complicated to be boiled down to sound bytes and childish name-calling. It isn’t necessary to resort to their methods — at least, I hope not. I’d expect the author of “Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot” to understand that you shouldn’t sink to that level.

I hope that the folks at Air America are attempting to change talk radio instead of just imitating all the worst behavior of the Ann Coulters and Michael “Savage” Weiners that they’ve come to resent. That’s not going to inspire any thought — just more bitterness. There’s nothing to gain from that, except maybe money.

There are two possible paths for Air America to take, as I see it. One: They can stick true to what it means to be liberal and respect other people’s views rather than insulting them. This will probably result in dismal failure, because no one wants to hear intelligent discourse on talk radio — not yet, anyway. Or two: They can become “Limbaughs of the Left,” catering to people’s expectations of the talk radio industry by being abrasive, demeaning and putting style over substance in the content of their shows.

More likely, since they will have to compete viciously if they want to get their station off the ground, they will take the second route. This might help keep them alive, but it would defeat the purpose of having liberal radio.

I’m not saying that they can’t have fun. If Air America is able to strike a good balance between humor and integrity in a medium where one is often sacrificed for the other, then they will go far. But from what I’ve seen and heard so far, I think anger and vitriol will overwhelm the whole of talk radio, regardless of whether the left is a part of it or not.

I wish Franken and his team the best, but I hope they watch their step. To do what they are trying to do and do it right, they are going to have to change the face of American talk radio forever.

Let’s hope it’s a change for the better, where both sides get a say for a change, individual thought is encouraged and the ultimate goal of it all is to inform the listener rather than pander to ignorance and inflame old hatreds.