Here is my fantasy of what I would like Bob Pittman, Clear Channel’s CEO to say at a news conference.<\/p>\n
“Hello,<\/p>\n
My name is Robert Pittman.\u00a0\u00a0 I’m President and CEO of Clear Channel media, the parent company that owns Clear Channel Radio, and Clear Channel Outdoors, and Premiere Radio, the subsidiary that syndicates a number of talk programs, including Rush Limbaugh.<\/p>\n
One of the reasons that I’m proud to be an American and value being the head of one of the largest communications companies in this country is the value we place on the First Amendment.\u00a0\u00a0 The clear statement by our Founding Fathers that government must keep its hands away from controlling the press, and the right of people to gather and discuss important issues was a major part of why this country had a Revolution over 230 years ago.\u00a0\u00a0 The first Amendment is first because without that control over the Federal government, the Founding Fathers\u00a0knew\u00a0that in the future, a\u00a0tyrant\u00a0could be tempted to seize control of the flow of information and ideas, using\u00a0the coercive power of the Federal Government to wage war on its own citizens for its own reasons.<\/p>\n
As I’m sure you heard by now, Rush Limbaugh made some statements on the air a few weeks that were ill advised and many people found objectionable and for which he\u00a0has expressed his regrets\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
There is no asterisk on the First Amendment* that says<\/p>\n
*unless you don’t agree with what\u00a0people are saying.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
I personally don’t agree with\u00a0Mr Limbaugh’s\u00a0remarks, but a free and open exchange of ideas without fear of retribution is necessary to prevent a government from slipping into tyranny.\u00a0\u00a0 If people express ideas that are wrong, the listeners can make there own judgments about the person making the statements and challenge their ideas or simply choose not to listen.<\/p>\n
It’s been made clear to me through various contacts I have\u00a0and long term friends and associates\u00a0that government employees inside the White House\u00a0are actively involved in promoting the nationwide boycott of\u00a0 Rush Limbaugh and all other controversial news talk shows that air on radio – not\u00a0 only on my stations –\u00a0but all radio stations in the United States.<\/p>\n
The result is that advertising agencies who represent large national corporations are demanding that all ads of their clients be excluded from airing during “controversial” programming.\u00a0\u00a0 Those companies apparently fail to understand that once the voices of rational discussion are silenced, their company\u00a0will become the next target for total government control in response to\u00a0 the irrational “discussions” that will\u00a0begin, usually accompanied by violence and calls for retribution.<\/p>\n
My company is very deep in debt – a legacy from the prior management who got carried away with paying much more than necessary to acquire radio stations in the late 1990s.\u00a0\u00a0 That debt burden leaves my company with a substantial risk of failure if the government continues to pressure advertisers to boycott radio shows because of their political points of view.<\/p>\n
If my country becomes a tyranny where the government defines what is “acceptable” thought and uses its coercive power to dictate to what private companies can\u00a0or can’t do or say\u00a0– the central principle of fascism – then it really doesn’t matter if Clear Channel survives or not.\u00a0\u00a0 The 1934 communications act that founded the FCC has a core principle that the United States will not use its control over radio station licensing to coerce radio station owners to carry certain types of programming, unlike most other major countries in the world.<\/p>\n
Therefore, my opinion is that any advertisers who cooperates with this government sponsored boycott is behaving in a way that is as unacceptable and repulsive as saying “We won’t advertise on a radio station that plays songs by black people”.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Any advertiser who joins this boycott will not be welcome to advertise on ANY Clear channel radio station –\u00a0including our “non controversial” music stations.\u00a0\u00a0 This direction to my sales staff\u00a0may cost us so much revenue that we will fail as a company.\u00a0 I want to believe there are still enough people and small businesses\u00a0in this country who understand freedom and liberty\u00a0and who will fill the void left if national advertisers\u00a0agree to\u00a0 be puppets of the government and dependent on\u00a0bailouts.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
I would urge Lewis Dickey of Cumulus Media and other Radio Station\u00a0Executives and the NAB\u00a0to make a similar stand for the entire radio industry, even if they don’t agree with Mr Limbaugh’s politics.<\/p>\n
This directive to my sales staff and management is a huge risk for my company, and I may not survive long in this job as a result.\u00a0\u00a0 But some things are more important to this country and the future than next quarter’s revenue numbers.<\/p>\n
Thank you for coming.\u00a0\u00a0 Any questions?”<\/p>\n
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Here is my fantasy of what I would like Bob Pittman, Clear Channel’s CEO to say at a news conference. “Hello, My name is Robert Pittman.\u00a0\u00a0 I’m President and CEO of Clear Channel media, the parent company that owns Clear … Continue reading