Saving Liberal Talk?
Listeners howl over changes at KTLK-AM, but station says this shows strength of 'progressive talk'
By Dean Kuipers
Radio industry observers sounded the alarm last week when "Progressive Talk" KTLK-AM 1150, L.A.'s standard-bearer for liberal talk radio, suddenly signed on popular local host Marc Germain, a man so identified with his last employer that he was known as "Mr. KABC," the call letters of a station from the opposite side of the political spectrum.
One local radio blog, Talking Radio, called the move "probably the most significant shake-up of a liberal talk radio station since the [Air America Radio] launch three years ago. Lib talk stations around the country will probably be watching the move and possible some them will doing similar makeovers."
The implication was that the more radical voices on KTLK were being sidelined in favor of moderates who might bring in better ratings, thus undercutting the stated political mission of the station. To make room for the moderate Germain, who will now be known as "Mr. K" and who blew the schedule apart when he took the four-hour live drivetime slot from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., KTLK Program Director Don Martin shuffled most of the other hosts and dumped one of those most identified with activism in the L.A. community: live-and-local host Cary Harrison of Harrison on the Edge.
Germain, however, sees his arrival in a somewhat different light.
"A, I'm a progressive, and B, I'm going to save the format. Without sounding completely immodest," Germain chuckles. "The station needs new listeners. They need to bring in some fresh blood, and hopefully my old listeners from the old station. And it has to happen for the station to succeed. If anything, it shows a commitment to the format, and to the political leanings."
Martin echoes that assessment, saying, "Mr. KABC, when he was over there, they always bitched and moaned that he was the progressive one on an otherwise conservative station."
Germain is a 14-year veteran of L.A. radio, with 10 years at KABC and several with conservative station KFI before that. His show at KABC was not set up to engage politics directly. Most of the show consisted of his signature "Ask Mr. KABC" segment, in which he answered any question for callers. At KTLK, he says that will be one hour of the show, but the rest will be "newsmaker and celebrity interviews, and the big issues of the day."
Regarding his politics, Germain says he's happy to be challenged. "Have I ever voted for a Republican? Have I ever supported a cause that was in opposition to traditional liberals? Yes. And I fully face those and talk about 'em. But on the big issues - abortion, gun control, affirmative action - I march in lockstep with liberals, and I always have."
KTLK listeners will be forgiven for being suspicious, given the more ebullient and even outrageous in-your-face political activism of hosts like Harrison, who challenged his listeners with regular features like "Activism A-Go-Go" (which provided ways to plug into local issues), regularly interviewed leftist icons, used the Bush administration as a punching bag, and organized a huge peace march with the grandson of Mahatma Ghandi which was attended by 10,000 listeners. He was also one of the only openly gay hosts on a major commercial talk radio station.
Within two days of the announcement, Harrison's fans organized a website, peaceteam.org, where listeners have now left more than 900 posts that will reportedly be delivered to Clear Channel. They have also received thousands of e-mails. A source close to the cancelled host says that this was not organized by Harrison, but by loyal fans.
One of those who posted in support of Harrison was Rick Banales, a board member for the local church-based activist group Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace. In a separate e-mail to CityBeat, Banales wrote: "I do think that there is a really big divide on Los Angeles radio between the real activist network that KPFK and Pacifica overall is trying to provide, and the 'Progressive' programming that a few major media corporations are trying to ride to increased profits. Unfortunately, even NPR and PBS have become shadows of the journalistic giants what they once were, mostly from the pressure put on them by appointees to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting."
Martin sees only an upside in the possible commercial success of liberal talk, pointing out that it's expensive to bring in a major local star like Germain, and that this is a good indication that Clear Channel believes there's a growing mainstream audience.
"There's not a better way to prove that this format is going to be okay than to see a company like this, in their largest market, invest in an afternoon drive talent," says Martin. "Not in Paducah, not in Charlotte, but in L.A. That's a huge statement. It's never been healthier."
Also dropped from the KTLK were The Lionel Show, which originates from WOR in New York City, and the Young Turks Air America morning show, which was replaced by former state Democratic Party chair Bill Press. Martin notes the station retains many Air America shows, but that not being an actual affiliate (only the New York carrier of Air America remains an actual affiliate, running only AAR programming) is a sign of health.
"A year and a half ago, everybody was saying that if Air America went bankrupt and went away, the format would die. There weren't enough progressive talk show hosts to keep it alive. Today, we've got more progressive talk show hosts than we have time to put on," Martin says.
Harrison's fans won't be so easily placated. A source at the station says listeners have barraged KTLK sponsors with calls, asking them to boycott the station. Whether that will counteract the big-money sponsors who reportedly come with Germain is hard to calculate. Before any of that happened, however, Martin was already saying he was hoping to find Harrison a weekend spot on the station sometime in the future.
Until then, he will have to tolerate e-mails like that sent by Linda Krausen of South Pasadena Neighbors for Peace and Justice, who wrote: "Let's call a meeting and march on Clear Channel. I am serious. The airwaves belong to us and we want HARRISON!"
Published: 03/08/2007
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