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Camille, the reason Air America is a dud is pretty obvious to me. Liberals don't fall for the simple screeds and scapegoats that are more effectively used on conservative reactionary listeners, and which are the main pillar of AM radio: "Today's villain is..." All the liberals I know want engagement, not bullshit. In modeling their programs on the right-wing ranters, they failed to identify a more satisfying mode of listening than hate. I hate Bush and his cabal of criminal assholes, but I don't want to listen to someone hate him all day (Randi Rhodes). The opposite is true with conservatives. They have a bottomless appetite for vilification. People who are full of shit turn on the radio to hear that they're right about everything. Any liberal worth a damn instead wants thoughtful, believable answers, which is why they may be completely unsuited for radio, where that product doesn't sell. (To be sure... there are brainless liberals also)
