First published March 3, 2012 @ 3:21 pm Pacific; 34 comments on original post
I asked Friday if there were a line that, if crossed, would cause Rush Limbaugh’s sponsors to leave.
As a result of the Sandra Fluke fallout, the answer seems to be a qualified yes. It’s a start. Of course, several companies have been falsely pegged as advertisers on anonymous websites … and staff have had to spend a great deal of time answering POed customers on Twitter.
As a reminder: the Rush Limbaugh show is syndicated by Premiere Networks, Inc, part of Texas-based Clear Channel Communications. In 2008, Limbaugh signed a multi-year contract worth $400 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. Clear Channel is the largest owner (850 stations) of full-power AM and FM stations in the country; @ClearChannel has been silent. The three-times-divorced/four-times-married Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich, who, on Sunday, declared that Limbaugh is not the GOP, are two of a kind.
The embedded Storify provides a current accounting of Rush Limbaugh Show sponsors who have ceased or suspended advertising and those that were improperly indicted. It also provides a list of companies that may be sponsors and their lack of response to the weekend bloodbath.
- Carbonite
- Citrix GoToMeeting
- LegalZoom
- ProFlowers
- Quicken Loans
- Sleep Number Beds
- Sleep Train Mattress
If you think that Limbaugh’s comments are every bit as offensive as those of Howard Stern, then sign my petition to have the FCC investigate (and, hopefully, fine) Limbaugh. The FCC fined the stations that carried Howard Stern’s program more than $2.5 million.
Crowdsourced sponsor list
Help us accurately identify the sponsors, national and local:
First published March 3, 2012 @ 3:21 pm Pacific as Advertisers Begin Dropping Limbaugh; 33 comments. Updated: 4 March @ 2:45 pm Pacific.
- Other stories: Irony: Wednesday Is International Women’s Day, Politics, Comedy and Women’s Bodies, Breaking: Rush’s Non-Apology Apology (UPDATE III), Advertisers Begin Dropping Limbaugh, Is There No Line To Be Crossed That Would Turn Limbaugh’s Sponsors Against Him?
:: Talk to me on Twitter!
:: Follow me on Facebook
:: Circle me on Google+
Known for gnawing at complex questions like a terrier with a bone. Digital evangelist, writer, teacher. Transplanted Southerner; teach newbies to ride motorcycles. @kegill (Twitter and Mastodon.social); wiredpen.com