Questions About Rush Limbaugh

[FayeW]

I don't listen to Rush Limbaugh...as far as I know he isn't carried on radio stations in Canada, at least not in my area, so I don't have an opportunity. I do sometimes see clips of his programs. Can somebody explain to me what his purpose is? He seems like a complete idiot. Does anybody actually take him seriously or give any merit to his opinions? In seems like he is getting paid to just make outrageous remarks. Do people just listen to him for the entertainment value so they can laugh at his foolishness? Who pays this guy's salary?

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

He is one of the more bombastic spokespersons for conservatism. Yes, there is plenty of bluster and foolishness, but much of what he says has merit.

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

He is very difficult to listen to, it's all "me" this, or "I" that. To be honest I tried years ago, and this ego stuff was such a turn off, I couldn't listen anymore.

 

[lisadr]

He has no use except to rile up conservatives into a frenzy with ridiculous inflammatory statements.

Basically he's a

 

[mkingdomlvr]

He is one of the more bombastic spokespersons for conservatism. Yes, there is plenty of bluster and foolishness, but much of what he says has merit.

I'm not a fan of his style, but when I have listened to him I found myself agreeing with the points he was making.

He must be doing something right-all you have to do is say his name and the Left starts freaking out.

 

[designermv]

Al Franken wrote a book on him. You can find it here.

It may be a bit left-leaning , but I found it amusing and accurate.

 

[JARNJ3]

He really gives conservatives a bad name.......

Sees no compromise in government......

And is taking it all the way to the bank.

I tried to listen to him (in an effort to see the other side's point of view) - but its impossible for this liberal to listen .......

I prefer to listen to George Will, Pat Buchanan, even Tucker Carlson......

 

[JARNJ3]

Al Franken wrote a book on him. You can find it here.

It may be a bit left-leaning , but I found it amusing and accurate.

That is my favorite political and comedic book!!!!

Sending senior citizens to outer space? Classic!!!!

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

He really gives conservatives a bad name.......

Sees no compromise in government......

And is taking it all the way to the bank.

I tried to listen to him (in an effort to see the other side's point of view) - but its impossible for this liberal to listen .......

I prefer to listen to George Will, Pat Buchanan, even Tucker Carlson......

This is why I was trying to listen. I don't think you can disagree with someone unless you understand their stance. He makes it impossible, all he wants to talk about is himself.

 

[perdidobay]

I view Rush Limbaugh the same as Jon Stuart, as they are both entertainers, working as political commentators. They are not to be taken seriously, even though from time to time when they aren't being outlandish, they speak nuggets of truth.

 

[need_a_Disney_fix]

OP, in regards to your question who pays his salary, Rush has earned his money the hard way...by being a hard working American entrepreneur. I would never begrudge the money he makes.

 

[FayeW]

He is one of the more bombastic spokespersons for conservatism. Yes, there is plenty of bluster and foolishness, but much of what he says has merit.

I am sure that he might have some good points occasionally, but wouldn't people grow tired of trying to pull the grain of truth from the pile of bull ****? Why would Conservatives embrace somebody like that as their mouthpiece? Doesn't he cause more harm than good for their cause?

The clip I saw last night was particularly outrageous and inflammatory. I can't believe anybody can take him seriously.

 

[designermv]

Anyone want some popcorn?

 

[FayeW]

OP, in regards to your question who pays his salary, Rush has earned his money the hard way...by being a hard working American entrepreneur. I would never begrudge the money he makes.

So is he self employed and paid directly from selling airtime during his show, or does somebody actually write him a paycheque? I don't care how much money he earns, nor begrudge him his money. I just want to know who he works for, if anybody.

 

[mkingdomlvr]

I am sure that he might have some good points occasionally, but wouldn't people grow tired of trying to pull the grain of truth from the pile of bull ****? Why would Conservatives embrace somebody like that as their mouthpiece? Doesn't he cause more harm than good for their cause?

The clip I saw last night was particularly outrageous and inflammatory. I can't believe anybody can take him seriously.

Not all Conservatives listen to him, so he's really not a "mouthpiece" for Conservatives. Oddly enough, we can be sold separately and have our own opinions.

 

[Quiksilvr]

OP, I think there are literally millions of people who would disagree with your comment that Limbaugh is a "complete idiot." The man's listenership has always been huge, and it's primarily because the people listening agree with him. My mother listens to him regularly and agrees with most of the points he makes. His style is bombastic and he is definitely arrogant, but the man is also quite intelligent and has been a thorn in the side of the Democratic party for fifteen years. I used to listen to him when I was a teenager, but I haven't heard one of his shows in several years. I can't really speak to how he is now.

What I can say is that Rush was at his most relevant during the Clinton Administration. Rush deserves at least some of the credit for the "Republican Revolution" in 1994 that changed the Congress to a Republican Congress; a change that lasted for 12 years. At the time, there wasn't the easy access to information via the internet and bloggers (and FoxNews) that there is now; most of the conservative Republicans had no other source for information and commentary that agreed with their way of thinking. Limbaugh fed that need way back when Bill O'Reilly was hosting Inside Edition.

I just checked on wikipedia and the guy makes an obscene amount of money; something like $32m a year. And that's on free AM radio!

 

[legalsea]

I frequently listen to Rush. At times he can make very thoughtful observations. At other times he can be amazingly mean-spirited.

One example that still rankles me: Years ago Rush started a television program (now defunct). His very first night he started a spiel about (then) President Clinton. He then said something like “And here we have a photograph of the Clinton’s dog”.

On the screen behind Rush popped up a photograph of the Clinton daughter. Rush smirked.

Then, while he continued to chuckle Rush said “Oh, no, that’s a mistake!”

There was a bit of an outcry over this the next day, as you can imagine. Rush issued some type of ‘apology’, in which he firmly blamed the producers for putting the photograph up. It was Rush Limbaugh’s show, but he disclaimed any responsibility for the ‘mix up’. He blamed the people who worked for him. So, mean-spirited towards a young girl, and then manfully denied any responsibility for what occurred on his television program.

Of course, Rush can be very kind-hearted. Every year he devotes one day of his show towards a charity drive (I’m afraid I forget which charity; I think it comes up in the next month or two).

Anyway, many years ago when he was starting out on radio Rush discovered that when he talked about conservative causes his ratings went up, and so he dove in head first. I think it very likely that if his ratings had gone up when he talked about liberal causes then he would have chosen that path.

Strangely, for a conservative, Rush almost never talks about abortion. He does, but it is a very, very rare occasion.

 

[need_a_Disney_fix]

So is he self employed and paid directly from selling airtime during his show, or does somebody actually write him a paycheque? I don't care how much money he earns, nor begrudge him his money. I just want to know who he works for, if anybody.

He is self-employed and supports a staff. It is his company. Also, Rush hold his annual pledge drive for Leukemia and Lymphoma research and also gives heavily to other charities.

 

[eliza61]

I view Rush Limbaugh the same as Jon Stuart, as they are both entertainers, working as political commentators. They are not to be taken seriously, even though from time to time when they aren't being outlandish, they speak nuggets of truth.

Perfect description. Once in a while I listen to him and I'm probably a left leaning moderate. I never take any of them seriously.

 

[TCPluto]

I am sure that he might have some good points occasionally, but wouldn't people grow tired of trying to pull the grain of truth from the pile of bull ****? Why would Conservatives embrace somebody like that as their mouthpiece? Doesn't he cause more harm than good for their cause?

The clip I saw last night was particularly outrageous and inflammatory. I can't believe anybody can take him seriously.

Actually it's about 99% truth. People don't like his delivery, it can be abbrasive. But that's the intentional part, for the entertainment value. And that value is huge, based on the revenues for his show.

Most left wing kooks get their panties in a bunch because he is so successful and their left wing posers are complete failures in the medium. Very little of what he says is innacurate.