Rush Limbaugh is a well-known conservative radio talk show host. His reputation is mostly based on bigotry and hate speech that he delivers on a regular basis through his show. However, he has recently been dropped from WIBC, the Indianapolis radio station that has been hosting his show for 22 years now. Though many stories surrounding this event implied that this is nothing more than a change in direction for the radio station, recent quotes suggest that this is not the case.
Emmis Communications, the agency that gave rise to this radio station, told Premiere Networks, its syndicator based in Los Angeles, that the deal with Rush Limbaugh was to come to an end.
The Indianapolis Business Journal presented a version of the story that was different from most. It featured the viewpoint of Charlie Morgan, the local market manager of Emmis Communications. He made it pretty clear that it was more than a simple change of direction, and they had actually been thinking about doing it for the past 18 months. He understands that some listeners of the radio station will be very disappointed, but he actually believes that getting rid of Limbaugh could bring more advertising opportunities to WIBC. He stated, “There are some, primarily, national advertisers that refuse to air commercials during Limbaugh’s show.” This is not surprising at all, considering how offensive a great deal of Limbaugh’s material is.
It is great that the people who are boycotting bigotry and hate speech are finally experiencing triumphs.