WMEX/Boston Says No To Picking Up Rush Limbaugh

Limbaugh

As one option for RUSH LIMBAUGH's show to find alternate carriage in the BOSTON market now says that it will not pick up the show, a blog post by former CLEAR CHANNEL News-Talk format chief DARRYL PARKS indicates the kind of cash and barter stations have been paying to carry LIMBAUGH's show in various markets.

DALY XXL News-Talk WMEX-A/BOSTON confirmed to the BOSTON GLOBE that it will not be picking up LIMBAUGH's show after crosstown ENTERCOM News-Talk WRKO-A drops it, going instead with a local show hosted by TOWNSQUARE MEDIA News-Talk WIBX-A/UTICA morning host BILL KEELER in the time slot. DALY XXL co-owner MARY CATHERINE REMMER told the GLOBE that LIMBAUGH has "been offered to us four times, and we’ve said no."

But while REMMER did not disclose what PREMIERE NETWORKS was asking in payment for the show, PARKS had plenty to say about the situation, saying that WRKO was paying about $500,000 per year plus an annual 3,900 commercial minutes for the show and 780 minutes for the "RUSH LIMBAUGH MORNING MINUTE," amounting to about $1.2 million in cash and barter.  He said that iHEARTMEDIA News-Talk KTLK-A/MINNEAPOLIS is paying about $300,000 and iHEARTMEDIA News-Talk WFLA-A/TAMPA is at about $250,000; another station that has announced it is dropping the show, EMMIS News-Talk WIBC/INDIANAPOLIS, he estimates, is paying $150,000.

PARKS also noted that the issue with LIMBAUGH being dropped in some markets is not that his advertisers dropped the show in the wake of his comments about law student-turned-political candidate SANDRA FLUKE, because, he pointed out, the advertisers cited as pulling their ads were not specifically LIMBAUGH's advertisers in the first place. Instead, he said, those advertisers putting any station with the show on a no-buy "toxic" list led to reduced revenues for the stations and, combined with the rights fees, led to the decisions.

But PARKS closed by adding, "While his paycheck may be smaller in the coming years, as long as co-owned stations are forced to pay his rights fee, ditto heads will be happy to know he’ll be around for a while … unless he too yells, 'No Mas. No Mas.'"

Read PARKS' post by clicking here.

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