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| Controversial talk radio host Michael Savage’s show began
airing on WSB 750 AM in Atlanta on Sept. 7. (Photo by Russ Weiner) |
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HOME > VIEWPOINT > ACTION! ALERT
By: DYANA BAGBY
COMMENTS |
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“The Savage Nation” is now attacking Atlanta’s airwaves.
Controversial radio host Michael Savage, fired by cable television’s
MSNBC in July 2003 after wishing AIDS on a caller who identified himself as
gay, had his radio show picked up by WSB 750 AM beginning Sept. 7. The show
airs weekdays from midnight to 3 a.m.
“Clearly we’re well aware with the incident [with MSNBC] when he
went over the top, and we’re hoping there won’t be a reoccurrence,”
said David Meszaros, WSB radio station manager.
WSB is owned by Atlanta-based Cox Communications, which also operates the Atlanta
Journal-Constitution. WSB 750 AM is the most listened to station in metro Atlanta.
“Other than that, he’s pretty popular,” Meszaros said.
There’s no denying Savage’s popularity. According to Talk Radio
Network, which distributes Savage’s show, the nationally syndicated program
airs on more than 350 stations.
Talkers magazine, a leading trade publication for talk radio, ranks Savage
at No. 4 with more than 7.5 million listeners each week. Savage ranks behind
conservative heavy hitters Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Dr. Laura, who tied
with Howard Stern, according to the magazine. Talkers has also included Savage
for several years as one of its “Heavy Hundred” — the top
100 talk radio hosts in the country.
Savage did not respond to interview requests.
WITH SAVAGE’S SHOW so new to Atlanta, Meszaros said it’s too early
to comment on any public feedback received by WSB. But he did say he expects
Savage to be a polarizing figure.
“People either love the guy or hate the guy,” he said.
WSB selected Savage’s show because “we’re always out there
looking for new talent,” Meszaros said. “We put Savage in a time
slot where we used to rerun the Hannity show [which airs weekdays 4 p.m. to
7 p.m.] for something new and different.”
Michael Harrison, who founded Talkers magazine in 1990, said Savage’s
popularity continues to rise because, quite simply, he’s entertaining.
“He’s like a Borscht Belt comedian on acid,” Harrison said.
“Plus many of his listeners agree with his conservative opinions.”
Savage’s opinions include anti-gay sentiments, but Harrison stressed
Savage is not an anti-gay host.
“That’s not his main thing,” he said. “Gay marriage
is a different issue [with all talk show hosts] because you can be against gay
marriage but not anti-gay.”
GAY RIGHTS ACTIVISTS MIGHT BEG to differ. When Savage’s TV show aired
on MSNBC, he called the gay rights movement an “attack on the family.”
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, a national media watchdog
group, led a boycott that prompted all national advertisers that paid for spots
in the TV show’s first two weeks to pull the.
Andrew Borchini, Southeastern regional media manager for GLAAD, said he was
surprised to hear the “Savage Nation” was picked up by a station
in Atlanta.
“People like Michael Savage make Rush Limbaugh look like he’s left
wing,” Borchini said.
The midnight to 3 a.m. time slot for Savage indicates WSB must not put a lot
of value on the show, Borchini added. Whether or not advertisers pull their
ads from that time slot will also be something for GLAAD and other progressive
activists to watch, he said.
“It will be interesting to see what happens, to see if Atlantans will
decide they won’t put up with his hateful rhetoric,” Borchini said.
Dwight Brooks, an associate professor at the University of Georgia’s
Grady College of Journalism who researches radio criticism, said it is noteworthy
that WSB is not publicizing Savage’s show more widely.
For example, on the station’s Web site, Savage is only listed on the
schedule with a link to Savage’s own Web site — there are no pictures
of the host or an individual link, which the station provides for talk show
hosts Sean Hannity and Neal Boortz.
“It’s a risky decision [to pick up Savage]. They seem to be handling
it discreetly,” Brooks said.
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