Nor is conservative talk radio an uncritical shill for the Republican Party. National and local conservative talk shows have castigated the Bush administration on amnesty for illegal immigrants and rampant government spending.
Furthermore, conservative talk radio welcomes opposing points of view. Dennis Prager debated liberal historian Howard Zinn on his show. Ron Smith regularly welcomes progressives Allan Lichtman and U.S. Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin. There is disagreement, to be sure, but contrary to The Sun's reporting, a cacophony of "shrill voices" it is not.
The main reason that conservative talk radio is more successful than liberal talk radio and National Public Radio is that its various messages resonate with a larger audience. It is one thing to create a liberal copy of conservative talk radio, but Al Franken ranting about racist conservatives and Randi Rhodes waxing poetic about an assassination of President Bush did not make for compelling radio; thus Air America's stupendous failure.
Clearly, Mr. Steiner's show wasn't anything like the fever swamp of Air America. However, according to The Sun, Mr. Steiner's ratings dropped 21 percent, along with a 17 percent overall drop for WYPR. Obviously, something wasn't working.
Mr. Steiner's defenders claim that public radio should be inured from the crass vagaries of commercial broadcasting. However, ratings matter because they are a barometer of the on-air product's success. The infrastructure of public radio, with its government subsidies, creates a disincentive to adapt and compete. Perhaps realizing this reality is the real sin of WYPR's management in the eyes of Mr. Steiner and his fans.
Not surprisingly, the same crowd that bemoans the loss of public radio favors restoring the "fairness doctrine." They complain that the market has failed to bring diverse (read: progressive) voices to the airwaves. They forget that markets are inherently about consumer choices, and as George Will quipped, liberals define market failure as "consumers' not buying what liberals are selling."
To which I can only add: Ditto.
Mark Newgent blogs for Red Maryland. His e-mail is marknewgent@comcast.net.
