Reports: Rush Limbaugh Objects To Being Blamed For Cumulus Woes, May Take Show Elsewhere

Limbaugh

The tension between RUSH LIMBAUGH and CUMULUS MEDIA erupted this weekend when sources described as being close to LIMBAUGH told POLITICO's DYLAN BYERS and the NEW YORK DAILY NEWS that the PREMIERE NETWORKS host objects to being blamed by CUMULUS CEO LEW DICKEY for the company's diminished Talk radio billing and is considering taking the show elsewhere in the 36 markets where CUMULUS carries his show when their contract expires at the end of 2013.  DICKEY has previously pointed at the LIMBAUGH-SANDRA FLUKE controversy as creating a fallout that has cost his company millions of dollars.

In the DAILY NEWS piece, the LIMBAUGH source is quoted as saying, "DICKEY keeps complaining about falling revenue, but his stations have long lagged behind their competitors in sales by a substantial margin. RUSH LIMBAUGH's ratings have outperformed every other program on (Talk) WABC(-A/NEW YORK) and many other CUMULUS stations for years.”  The source gave a similar statement to POLITICO.  LIMBAUGH's representative said that revenue was "very minimally impacted in the short term.”

"CUMULUS owns the premier Talk radio distribution platform in the U.S. and doesn't comment on negotiations with talent under contract," CUMULUS public relations representative DAVIDSON GOLDIN told POLITICO.   CUMULUS launched the MIKE HUCKABEE show in the same time slot as LIMBAUGH in 2012, triggering talk at the time that the company might drop LIMBAUGH's show; the talk was fueled near the end of the same year when CLEAR CHANNEL bought Talk WOR-A/NEW YORK.

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