Some might wonder about how his ratings will look compared to those of Rush and Sean, but I wonder how this affects his potential gubernatorial candidacy in 2010:
EVERYONE knows Bill O’Reilly is quitting his radio show to concentrate on his Fox News TV program. Now, Page Six has learned the leading candidate to succeed him is Rudy Giuliani (above). Westwood One, which syndicates the O’Reilly show, is negotiating with the former mayor. Giuliani, who doesn’t suffer fools gladly, famously ridiculed a ferret owner on the radio in 1999, calling him “deranged.” Some wonder if Rudy could sit for three hours a day chitchatting about politics. The other question is how it might affect his possible gubernatorial run in 2010. Giuliani’s office did not return calls.
On the one hand, a radio show isn’t a bad platform for keeping yourself in the public eye — particularly in New York, where AM talk radio remains extremely popular. On the other… I hope his contract has an out clause after a year or two.
Bad idea for Rudy
chemjeff Wednesday, December 17th at 11:03AM EST (link)It’s not the callers that have as much to fear from Rudy as Rudy has to fear from the callers. And his audience. Look, he’s obviously not stupid enough to try to compete directly with Rush or Sean. But why would conservative talk radio nation choose Rudy over, say, Mark Levin? Or Michael Medved? Or Glenn Beck? His show’s ratings are going to be compared to those of O’Reilly’s and they are going to be worse, and this will of course be played up in the gubernatorial election (”Look, even right-wing talk radio rejected him, why should we sophisticated New York elites even consider him?”). The show will be an anchor around his neck.
Besides, we are all told by the establishment Republicans that it takes different types of conservatives to be elected in different parts of the country, and we should be tolerant of our conservative brethren who are wobbly here and there on conservative issues. I take exception to it, but that’s the argument. Since New York is a very blue state, why am I in Nebraska going to want to listen to a social lib from New York trying to justify abortion in the name of conservatism? Rudy will have to choose between pandering to the SoCon base to improve his ratings, or pandering to the liberal New York electorate and trashing his ratings.
AM talk radio is popular in NY
peg_c Wednesday, December 17th at 1:17PM EST (link)because it is the only evidence of sanity here. I don’t know if I’d listen to Giuliani but I never miss Rush and Mark makes me howl with both rage and hilarity.
As for Rudy’s gubernatorial chances in 2010 - let this total idiot Paterson in Albany control things for 2 years and we’ll be begging for the sense of a potted plant as governor.
Government cannot be the solution when government is the problem.
Good timing for Rudy
renegade Thursday, December 18th at 8:07AM EST (link)This is a smart move by Guillianni. This set up is custom tailored for him for a 2010 gubernatorial run. The way Patterson is destroying NewYork is similar to the way Dinkins destroyed NYC in the early 90’s. High taxes, fleeing corporations, rising crime rates, nanny statism, riots were the norm in NYC before Rudy was elected. Patterson so far is following suit winteesed in his latest budget. Rudy already had a weekly radio show while he was mayor, and is comfortable behind the mic and as told by the ferret incident he doesn’t pull any punches. His type of republicanism doesn’t play well in the red states but in NY he fits the bill.