Someone fill me in, please (re: Ed Shultz)

[journalist3072]

Randi Rhodes just mentioned some "Bill O'Reilly style" meltdown that Ed Shultz had on his show. She said she was reading about it on her message board, but she's not going to engage in that.

Someone pls fill me in. What happened on Ed's show?

[LisaM]

1. I heard part of it. He sounded crazy but I also think he got tired

of Mike Malloy's calling him a Repbublican. He started a rant on how poorly run Air America has been run compared to the Jones Radio Network (true enough, but I listen to shows from both and I want them both to stick around).

[drmom]

2. Did he also say something about Randi?

Sounds like he might have...

[LisaM]

5. I didn't hear all of it. They've been taking pot shots at each other for year

heck, for all I know, it's all staged so they both do better! No idea. I think we need them both.

[Cleita]

28. A post here on DU last night said that he called her a slut.

I didn't hear the meltdown because I make a point of turning the radio off when he comes on. I tried to give him a chance but I just don't like his attitude.

[MamaBear]

8. Randi talks about a host she won't name ...

Randi talks about a host who she won't name who, she says, was not a democrat or a liberal but took money from the DLC? DNC? (my memory doesn't get that precise) to push democratic campaign talking points. Randi says she refused to take the money and went on to build an audience. She claims somebody else did.

She has said this more than once that I can remember hearing, although there were a lot of "best-of" shows in the early days.

The field of nationally-known left talkers is still fairly small, so I suppose we could debate who she meant to talk about. I have never heard Ed until recently when I got Sirius to hear Malloy again, and I have to admit I wasn't very impressed with Mr. Ed. I even liked Jerry Springer better.

If Mr. Ed heard her comments, and was in a situation similar to the one she described, he may have taken offense.

AAR evidently had a poorly designed business plan, or so say most of the radio people I hear and read. :shrug:

[shireen]

18. AAR may have had a bad business plan

but they've got some great talent. Even novices like Sam Seder, who was completely new to talk radio, has become really good at it. I hate that AAR tossed out Mike Malloy, that was a very bad business decision, but AAR needs to be supported for the sake of its other hosts. Hopefully the new owners will do good.

[MamaBear]

22. Agreed.

Sam has really come along ... Mark Maron was a natural, Rachel Maddow grows into every new situation. I hope their financial problems can get worked out so they can spend more money on talent in the future. I think their evening programming right now (David Bender/EcoTalk) is a bit weak.

[smokey nj]

30. I've never heard Ed Schultz's show, but if you're saying that

you prefered Springer's show to his - I'm glad to have missed him. Whoa, that's bad!!!!
How are you feeling, MamaBear? I miss you!!!!
:hi: :hug:

[xxqqqzme]

9. does he know AAR fired Malloy

If that is the source point for his rant - too late. Ed's too far right for my tastes - but bashing AAR is stoooopid; it's an AAR station that carries him in the LA market. But he is adept at the circular firing squad. Stopped listening to him after he was snotty to Howard Dean during a guest spot one day. He regularly bashed Howard - don't know if he still does or not.

[Cleita]

27. Our AAR affiliate carries him too. They are bringing back

Mike Malloy, so I hope they dump Schultz. Besides not being a leftie, he doesn't research his statements very well and has aired some RW talking points and out and out misinformation. I'm waiting for him to start talking about the Democrat Party soon. I find him good on labor and unions but that's about it.

[LSK]

3. listen to it

http://audio.wegoted.com/podcasting/021307HourOne.mp3

[twilight_sailing]

4. It went on and on and on and on and on.

If he had wanted to devote only 2 or 3 minutes to it, that would have been OK. I don't care what he thinks anyway. But he went on and on and on and on and on. I had to turn it off.

[LisaM]

6. Yes, it was getting pretty bad

and I think the callers started complaining.

[Felinity]

10. I called the local affiliate.

He was just pissed as hell at Air America, when he is on lots of Air America stations, unfortunately for folks in Austin.

Today's show started with him railing about Iraqi refugees-I didn't stay long enough to find out his take on it.

[OwnedByFerrets]

14. Yeah, I had to turn it off also.

Especially when he started dissing the on-air personalities. Its one thing to talk about the bad management of AAR, but dont cut down "fellow" progressives. I dont have any proof of this (because I dont listen to them) but I'll bet that the righties dont cut each other down like he did on Tuesday.

[librechik]

7. on the forum yesterday, someone said Ed called Randi "slut"

although I didn't hear it personally--we thought it was funny cuz Stphie is the slut, Randi is the wallflower. Mythically speaking.

Shultz blows. But he does get the good guests...

[myrna minx]

11. Ed called Randi a slut a few years ago.

I'm sorry that I wasn't clear with my post in that thread. As far as I know, he didn't call her a slut in his rant this week.

[ellacott]

12. Unfortunately Sam Sedar gave him ammunition

I listened to the clip and it started with an email he received from a listener who said that Sam encouraged his listeners to write XM radio and ask that his Ed's time slot be given to a AAR host.

Ed went off on AAR's mismanagement and other things.

[shireen]

15. That XM station is called" Air America XM 167"

since Thom is officially an Air America host, he belongs there, not Shultz. If XM is going to be carrying Shultz instead, they should not be calling it "Air America". Ditto for other independent stations who call themselves "Air America" but use programming from other networks. They're using the Air America name but carrying programs from competing networks.

Sam discussed it on the air today, and wrote more about it in his blog, read it at http://www.majorityreportradio.com/

[MamaBear]

20. Self delete.

Oops. I found the blog. It was way, way down on the page, and evidently not linked? Anyway, it's there. Whew.

Edited to remove bad information.

[ConsAreLiars]

35. Schultz, like you, failed to fact check, and instead just exposed

his hostility toward AAR and Seder. Either he got suckered by some troll or he just went off on some odd self-stimulated tantrum.

[shaniqua6392]

13. I heard him say

that everyone on Air America sucked. He said that they have no good people. He was screaming like a crazy man. Even when he got someone to call in to agree with him, they could not even get a word in because he was going nuts. I had to turn him off. I usually like him, but I did not care for that at all. Just what we need...progressive radio hosts going at each other. United we stand and divided we fall. What he did yesterday was totally unnecessary and obnoxious. Just shut up already Ed. I am turning him off for awhile. He even said XM should drop Air America totally.

[madinmaryland]

16. I heard him take three callers, and he screamed

at all of them. Or just screamed period, maybe not at the caller, but just screamed. Kind of odd. I only listen to him in 15 minute bursts, unless I am on the road on business.

[Jane Austin]

17. It went on and on and was really ugly.

He must have said "Air America sucks" fifteen or twenty times.

He also said all their programs are "crap".

He said they have never sold one spot (which I doubt)

He said that Sam Seder had said to his listeners Tuesday that they should call XM and tell them
to get rid of Ed Schultz's show.

I heard Sam's show, and I'm pretty sure he asked his listeners to call XM and ask them to put Sam's show back on Channel 167, which is the AAR channel, where they had put Schultz who is not Air America.

He repeatedly conflated the bad management practices of the ownership of AAR with the on-air talent.

He said all the AAR hosts were "fringe-lefties" who do nothing but tear people down. (Guess he's never listened to Al, or Thom Hartmann or Rachel Maddow. He said they were "haters".

He tore into Al Franken for being on the air and going around telling people he was thinking about running for the Senate, asking " How can you get a station to carry your show when you're saying you're going to leave?"

He said he likes Al and told people at a Minneapolis dinner to support him for Senate. Then he turned around and said "And now they tell people to get me off XM", as if it had something to do with Al.

That's a real misrepresentation of what Sam Seder said and I don't think Al Franken has ever said anything negative about Schultz. In fact, he had Schultz on his program to push his book.

As for AAR management, he said they are "dirty underhanded who stole from everybody".

He asked over and over why any stations "carry that crap",

It was an ugly, self-indulgent, screaming, prima donna rant, and it was worse than anything Bill O'Reilly has ever said about AAR.

AAR has lots of room to improve, but Schultz should carry out his ambition in the ratings race, not on the air, and certainly not by misquoting Sam Seder or attacking all the hosts at AAR.

Finally, he said that if you listen to Air America, he doesn't even want you to listen to him.

OK. That's a deal.

[MamaBear]

19. For me, too.

As abrasive as Randi and Mike can get, they never approached the level of bile spewed by Schulz. Ugh. He's a :puke: , all right.

[Richard Steele]

37. "...if you listen to Air America, he doesn't even want you to listen to him."

Waaaaay ahead of ya, Ed!

[dubyaD40web]

21. Screw Ed.

I just switched back to Sirius today. I told XM the reason why I'm leaving (Ed on AAR when he's not affliated with them.)

Among other things, I wanted to go back to Sirius anyway. This was the last straw.

[Maat]

33. Me too!

Originally, I had Sirius (before there was an Air America; I listened to Talk Left, for that's all I could find).

Then, I switched to XM when Air America went there exclusively.

Subsequently, I discovered that I liked Stacey Taylor and Team, of KLSD 1360 Progressive Talk in San Diego.

I switched back to Sirius about 1-1/2 months ago, because I decided I wanted to listen to 1) Stacey and Crew in the morning (Cal time), 2) Thom Hartmann, 3) Stephanie Miller, and 4) Mike Malloy (after he came back to Sirius Left via NovaM. I also enjoy fitting some Randi in there; I can listen to her on 1360 (same with Pap and Bobby, and Rev. Gaddy).

So, anyway, I also switched back.

[MamaBear]

23. I called XM and complained.

As a subscriber, I hope they will listen.

[Liberal In Texas]

25. I'm going to. I have to renew very soon too.

And if they don't get Hartman on, I'm going to complain often.

I don't care if they give the large mouth bass his own channel, Hartman should be on the AAR channel.

BTW, you can email them:

http://xmradio.com/contact_us/customer_support.jsp

[Lex]

24. Schultz doesn't know when to shut up sometimes--he is the king of beating

a dead horse on any given topic.

[Zhade]

31. Not to mention the king of supporting rightwing memes.

And the king of pretending to be on our side.

[Richard Steele]

38. "And the king of pretending to be on our side."

[Nickster]

26. Just one thing to do, send Big Ed another email thanking him for being on Air America, he does love

those emails. I mean really, I have an AAR affiliate that I listen to and he's on there, so he must be AAR as well.

[marlakay]

29. Ed was crazy yesterday

He crossed the line and what pissed me off more than saying AAR sucks is when he kept going on and on about how great he is.

I sent him a long email telling him he should have called AAR and Sam Seder not put out his anger to millions of viewers, just giving the right more crap to say about us.

I told him I turned him off. That he needs to understand we ALL have to work together, some dems are city yuppies drinking lattes and some are country people fishing and hunting....just like race...it shouldn't matter. We are a big tent and if we can't get along we lose again.

I hope he reads some of his emails from yesterday....I told him he needed to have a little humility. Who wants to listen to anyone who goes on and on about how great they are??

[LSK]

32. I wonder if Ed ever heard of Evan Cohen

:shrug:

[Maat]

34. Thanks for this post, by the way.

I had not heard about Ed's rant; I had stopped listening to Ed awhile back, after he spoke about the reasonableness of spying on U.S. citizens without a warrant in some circumstances. That was it; I wrote him an email discussing the Fourth Amendment.

[TheWebHead]

36. wonder how Ed will handle Al Franken's senate run

his rant seemed to include Al for a bit of it. It'll be interesting to see if Al comes on as a guest in the coming months to discuss his candidacy or if Ed will endorse Coleman due to his personal problems with Air America. In any event, I'll be listening to him a lot less now - if there was a different liberal on in his time slot in Seattle besides 1 hr of Reagan I'd shut him off entirely.

[SoCalDemGrrl]

39. I heard it- he spent close to an hour saying how much he hated Air America

and raged on and on about how terrible a network it is and how he no longer

wishes to be associated with AAR. The only thing I can call it is a temper tantrum. It was a very

unbecoming spectacle for someone who calls himself a "veteran broadcaster".

As far as I'm concerned Ed Schultz committed professional suicide yesterday.

Completely uncalled for behavior!!! Shame on you Ed.