Morning Sedition plugs Sirius on XM
Taking my life (or, at least, the life of my mind) in my hands, I listened to the Randi Rhodes program on Air America on the drive home last night.
Think of a know-nothing Kim Komando crossed with Dr. Laura minus the moral compass and you'd begin to approach the shrillness and moonbat cluelessness of this broad.
I loved it. I'll be back. She has a sort of spittle-flecked charm, like she's purposely adopted the worst caricature of a right-wing host to make some kind of point. But her snark is at least somewhat witty (usually not more than "somewhat" but you have to take what you can get) and she knows who she's dealing with: she kept reminding her audience that, even though it's hard and all, they might actually have to read a book in order to learn something. Of course, the first book she recommended has to do with the Bush dynasty's desire to bring about the Apocalypse by manipulating the Middle East. So she's, you know, insane, but hey, it was enjoyable. Somewhat.
Rhodes also walked into a wasp's nest of irony when she was talking about the conservative media news - you know, NBC, CBS, etc. (No, I'm not kidding.) She advised her listeners to stick around for the commercials on their favorite news shows - those are the people who are really running things! I decided to try the same thing for the Randi Rhodes show. Now, since I'm listening on XM Radio, I'm assuming that XM is selling the commercial hole. So far, the advertising consists almost exclusively of XM Radio "news byte" promos, some of which are sponsored. The only non-XM-specific commercial I heard was for an herbal weight-loss supplement or some other nostrum.
I figured out one of the main problems with the Morning Sedition crew: they're just not that bright. It's not their politics that tells me this - heck, there are brilliant people all over the political spectrum. No, it's their humorous bits. I enjoy good satire regardless of whose ox is getting gored. These numbnuts (Mar[c|k] Maron especially) ain't gorin' nothin'. They're a bunch of know-nothings who think that having a snarky attitude toward things they hate is enough. This morning's allegedly "comic" bits featured a fake "Morning Devotional" (in which they prayed to 'God' for President Bush to adhere to the 12 Steps, which apparently cannot be squared with national defense and opposition to partial-birth abortion) (no, really) and something else equally stupid. At least the other two hosts were with the program, laughing uproariously. They must have adopted a hand signal of some kind, or maybe they've learned to read Maron's body language to determine when he thinks he's being funny, and the bits seemed better-rehearsed. Still, pathetic.
Oh, I just remembered the single most utterly pathetic thing I heard on the show this morning. The three were doing that staple of morning zoo shows, the wacky news stories, and the female cohost chose a story about a woman's advertising group that's condemning a Sirius Satellite Radio ad featuring a scantily-clad Pamela Anderson.
Not only did they mention Sirius Satellite radio several times during the bit, they also bitched about how they're "only on a few broadcast stations."
Situational awareness, people. Situational awareness.
I should point out that I'm well aware that a lot of these same criticisms can be levelled at right-wing hosts. I've posted before about how I usually only listen to Hannity until he embarrasses himself, which doesn't usually take long. No, I'm not saying they're *uniquely* stupid; just that they're stupid. Hey, I thought this was supposed to be nuanced, super-brain-powered radio for people who were tired of conservative hatah hacks.
I'll try Morning Sedition in another month or so. Right now, they sound like conversations I had with my know-nothing stoner friends in high school. Ho-hum.
XM Radio's display for Air America features an older version of the name of the network: "America Left." Yes, it looks like an epitaph. So sue me.
UPDATE: My comment on Sirius radio above was apparently mistaken. The network is carried on that network after all.
Comments
One wonders, however, what we'd hear if we listened to some tapes of Rush Limbaugh's first week on the air with his political program, back in the '80s.
Posted by: Dean Esmay | April 2, 2004 03:09 PM
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Well, if one was going to wonder that, and if one were to make the presumption that they were probably amateurish, I think one would also be inclined to wonder whether he could have gotten backing for a brand new network just for himself and a few like-minded people to embarrass themselves nationwide.
Hey, my point isn't *just* that they're amateurish and lame. It's that, after all this buildup and millions of Soros-dollars and all the hype about how finally there was going to be some thinking people talking on the airwaves, the best they can come up with is mockery of religion, a hyperventilating afternoon drive-time harpy, and Ed fergodsakes Schultz.
Posted by: Brian Jones | April 2, 2004 04:49 PM
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Marc Maron? I went to college with that guy. Supposedly I know him - at least that what my other college friends tell me - but I don't remember ever having a conversation with him.
Posted by: Farmer Joe | April 2, 2004 04:53 PM
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Rush was a radio professional before he started doing his talk show. I'd be willing to bet that his first few weeks on the air were maybe a little rough, but certainly not downright amateurish.
Posted by: Farmer Joe | April 2, 2004 04:54 PM
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Thanks, Joe, and I seem to recall that Rush also gave away his show for people to try so as to give it a chance to take off. Odd that no liberal has been able to do that kind of ad hoc networking based on the strength of his product - no, they have to put in place a monster machine that burns money in order to produce airtime for them. As many have pointed out, that says something about their historical ability to keep shows on the air and about their confidence in their future. I think it was Mitch Berg who posited that they're just hoping to last through the elections.
Rotsa ruck.
Posted by: Brian Jones | April 2, 2004 05:02 PM
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I've noticed when people refer to the Rush Limbaugh Show, they usually haven't actually listened to it. And after listening to it for awhile, you appreciate what his niche really is-He's a political scientist.
Posted by: FF | April 6, 2004 11:33 AM
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When I tried to email Air America today I got the following reply - - - - -
The following addresses had delivery problems:
Permanent Failure: 550_5.2.1_Mailbox_unavailable._Your_IP_address_204.127.202.56_is_blacklisted_using_SORBS-ALL._Details:_Spam_source._Spam_Received_See:_http://www.dnsbl.sorbs.net/cgi-bin/lookup?IP=204.127.202.56.
Delivery last attempted at Wed, 7 Apr 2004 19:36:54 -0000
My message was the following:
In your program this morning an error was made in discussing the Atlanta Archbishop's banning women from the ritual of washing of the feet. According to the New York Times article running today the ritual represents Jesus washing his disciples' feet at the Last Supper. Your commentator mistakenly attributed the ritual to Mary Magdalene washing Jesus' feet and drying them with her hair.
I trust this was an unintentional error on the commentator's part and not a deliberate attempt to distort the facts. Not off to a very good start if glaring errors such as this undermine your credibility and provide fodder for those who wish your efforts to fail.
Posted by: Isabelle | April 7, 2004 06:22 PM
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To Bovious, i don't get your rant. I enjoy AirAmerica because it is different on all fronts. They are not toning down their opinions for fear of alienating listeners or for ratings hooplah, like other shows do.
The format of the show(s) may be something you're not used to, big deal, but it sure is refreshing to listen to. I particularly despise Rush Limbaugh, a confirmed DRUG ADDICT, who is also a racist...er, conservative. This is a man who does ''hill billy'' heroin.
Posted by: Jon Doe | May 4, 2004 07:57 AM
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Hi, Jon Doe. Welcome to the site and I hope you find a lot to enjoy here. I wish you luck in "getting" my "rants." However, I don't think I have a lot to say to someone who posts anonymously and believes it's some kind of height of wit to "mistakenly" subsitute "racist" for "conservative." It makes you look like you don't know what you're talking about. Not my problem, obviously, but do keep reading. Who knows, maybe someday you'll "get" my "rants."
Posted by: Brian Jones | May 4, 2004 10:18 AM