FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Air America has crashed. The liberal talk radio network is going out of business.
The network that once boasted hosts like Al Franken and Rachel Maddow launched in 2004 during the Bush administration. It was meant as a liberal alternative to right-wing commentators like Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.
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But Air America struggled from the beginning - with several management shake-ups, a bankruptcy, followed by a $4 million sale.
The network described itself as "the only full-time progressive voice in the mainstream broadcast media world" when it launched... saying it offered dissenting views on things like the Iraq War - when such positions were called un-American.
But nearly six years later - and 1 year after the inauguration of Democratic President Barack Obama - Air America says it will file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy – ending programming for good on Monday. The network cites the "very difficult economic environment," pointing to a steep decline in radio ad revenues.
Conservatives suggest the "passing" of Air America is a reminder that the country is center right. After all - tough economy or not, Limbaugh still draws in 10 to 20 million listeners each week.
Meanwhile a recent Gallup Poll shows that conservatives finished 2009 as the number one ideological group in the U.S. for the first time in five years. 40 percent of Americans identify as conservatives, compared to 36 percent for moderates and just 21 percent for liberals.
Here’s my question to you: What does it mean that the country's only liberal radio network is going out of business?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Marc from St. Louis, Missouri writes:
I am from Missouri, which is Rush Limbaugh's home state. While everyone does not agree with him, he does speak for many who believe that extreme liberals have hijacked the Democratic Party. Air America was simply a mirror image of those extreme views. However, in the free market system, you are only as good as the number of listeners that you have and Air America had few. Now we see that the mainstream media – which supports the Democrats at every opportunity – are going the same route. Newspapers are folding or getting ready to, and traditional TV media is losing viewers in droves yet Fox viewers increase every year.
Tom from Florida writes:
It's of little impact since it preached to the choir. I'm more left of center and find neither the far right's programs such as Hannity or Limbaugh nor far left's Air America satisfying. Both sides are lopsided and headache-inducing. I prefer common sense problem-solving over finger-pointing.
Liz writes:
It means that liberals (and moderates) can decide on issues on their own: by reading, listening to others and assimilating the facts. They don't need someone to tell them what or how to think, like many conservatives.
Sue from Los Angeles writes:
Just like The New York Times and Newsweek. There is no need and no market for a far left paper, magazine or radio show. The mainstream media are full of enough biased liberal coverage.
Jeane writes:
Guess we know who works for a living and who listens to the radio for a living, huh?
Diana writes:
I listened to Air America and found it boring. I've listened to Rush Limbaugh and found him boring (and offensive). My motto is "if you can't change your mind, are you sure you still have one?" That's why I like to hear differing opinions very respectfully presented, with no yelling or interrupting. National Public Radio is the best example of this that I can find.
Eric writes:
It means that, unlike conservatives, liberals can't be herded like sheep.