it's not about market forces- they already subsidized and grew and protected the monoply
REPUBLICAN RADIO MYTHS
MYTH: Republican radio’s primary purpose is to sell product for advertisers.
The advertising pays rent and salaries. Republican radio spreads disinformation and outrage to convince Americans to hate other Americans and to act and vote against their own best interests.
Republican radio’s more profitable purpose is to sell:
war
global warming denial
deregulation- wall street, banking, environmental, media, etc.
tax breaks for the 1%
privatization of the commons and the public sector
excuses, rationalizations, distortions, diversions
sycophant Republican politicians
unqualified Republican judges
lies and distortions used to swiftboat Democrats and liberals, short circuit democracy, and obstruct reforms
MYTH: Republican radio's popularity and success is market-based. Liberal radio fails because no one listens to it and it can’t compete.
When Ronald Reagan got rid of the Fairness Doctrine in 1987, Republicans bought up hundreds of radio stations and subsidizied talkers like Rush Limbaugh. The Fairness Doctrine would have prevented the levels of unchallenged lying and distortion used so successfully today to create alternative realities and made-to-order constituencies.
One of Republican radio’s early successes was the media deregulation that allowed consolidation of Republican radio ownership to fewer companies/owners.
Liberal radio talkers have shown they can compete on an even playing field and even beat the main Republican talkers. That is why the Republican radio monopoly controls most of the loudest radio stations and works hard to limit direct competition by liberal talkers. Republican radio can’t handle the truth.
The argument that 95% of the people who would listen to talk radio prefer the hate and disinformation that the Republican radio monopoly is using to destroy American democracy is an insult to Americans.
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