How Did Mark Levin Get on Radio?
22 June 2007 2:16 pm by Taylor Marsh
How Did Mark Levin Get on Radio? updated
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Ah yes, Mark Levin is attacking American Progess. Yes, Woody, Paul “Woody”
Woodhull, had something to do with the American Progress radio report. His name is on it, so no one is trying to hide anything. He is involved with both the
Ed Schultz and Bill Press shows. Does Mr. Levin think Sean Hannity or the American Enterprise
Institute are going to spend money to find out the truth about talk radio? Only
a wingnut talker would be so dense. But as long as we’re talking about disclosure,
I’ve always been curious how Mark Levin got on radio.
Did Mark Levin start in local radio like everyone else?
Did he bank ratings before being catapulted on to New York City’s ABC network?
As a matter of fact, how did Levin get on ABC’s network in the first place?
Mark Levin just popped from The Sean Hannity’s radio show to ABC talk radio suddenly one day. Where did he
come from?
I’ve had a conversation with Woody Woodhull about helping me get back on the air, but I didn’t get Levin’s kind of help and immediate access and I’ve had a radio show before (still do, streaming on the web). Maybe because Woody doesn’t have access to Levin’s kind of clout. I wonder why?
But who is Mark Levin and what makes him so special that he can go from radio oblivion to ABC syndication in a snap? Well, not a snap, but eighteen months. Levin is the president of Landmark
Legal Foundation, which is also known in
some quarters as the “conservative’s American Civil Liberties Union,” and another friend of Exxon-Mobil*. Among Landmark’s funders is the now infamous Scaife
Family Foundation, which helped target President Bill Clinton, as well as
First Lady Hillary Clinton, in the 1990s. Oh, and did I mention that Levin is good friends with Sean Hannity of ABC talk news fame, as well as Fox “News?”
Mark has been a frequent guest and substitute host on The Sean Hannity Show,
and has also been an advisor to Limbaugh, who frequently refers to him on
the air with the nickname “F. Lee Levin.” He is perhaps more well-known
for his nickname, “The Great One,” coined by his friend Hannity.Mark Levin is one of America’s preeminent conservative commentators and constitutional
lawyers. He’s in great demand as a political and legal commentator, and has
appeared on hundreds of television and radio programs. Levin is also a contributing
editor for National Review Online, and writes frequently for other publications.
Levin has served as a top advisor to several members of President Ronald Reagan’s
Cabinet—including as Chief of Staff to the Attorney General of the United
States. In 2001, the American Conservative Union named Levin the recipient
of the prestigious Ronald Reagan Award. He currently practices law in the
private sector, heading up the prestigious Landmark Legal Foundation in Washington
DC.
But it’s really curious how Mark Levin went from obscurity to a wingnut radio
host who is now syndicated across the ABC radio network. How’d he do it?
Could Levin have gone from nowhere to everywhere without Sean Hannity?
Can one single progressive host claim such a bounce from radio obscurity to
syndication? Having worked to get back on the air for over 3 years now, I have
to say that it’s not easy. No, in fact, it’s near impossible for this to happen
and absolutely impossible for it to happen if you’re a progressive talker.
Mark Levin and ABC networks boast that he’s #1 in NYC in the 6-8 p.m. time
slot. But how did he get on the air in the first place? How
did he go from no radio show to syndication in a flash? Seriously, I’d like
to know, because I’ve been doing radio for a while and want to know Levin’s secret. I mean, since Mark Levin is interested in disclosures it seems only
fair that he disclose how he got on radio in the first place. But just as important is how did Mark Levin get all those stations to join up in a syndication deal that’s really sort of a miracle?
So what do you say, Mark? How’d you get on the air? If you’ve got a secret, a magic plan or some wizard making it all happen, please share. Inquiring minds would like to know.
A listener on the Ed Schultz show called in today to say that Sean Hannity is using his clout to get stations to program his show and yours, which is how you got your syndication to grow so steadily. Is that true? I have no idea, but as an owner of the public airwaves I’d sure like to know.
UPDATE: Think Progress has the transcript of Ed Schultz yesterday. He said the same thing today. Wingnuts need to read it and try to understand reality, instead of parroting Sean Hannity’s talking points.
SMERCONISH: CBS would fire me in the morning and replace me with a communist if that communist would get them more revenue. It’s all about the scratch.
SCHULTZ: That’s not true. Michael, that is not true. I have got one of the top talk shows in Seattle, and I am only on one station in the country with Infinity. That’s not true. We are not being given the fair market opportunity.
SMERCONISH: I just don’t see it that way. I think it’s totally demand driven. And if were there a demand for whatever the program happened to be, believe me, they would put it on the air, because all they want to do is sell advertising and there is nothing wrong with that.
SCHULTZ: You know, Michael that’s almost insulting me. I beat Sean Hannity in Denver. I beat him in Seattle. I beat him in Portland. I beat in San Diego. How many markets do I have to beat Hannity in before I get 200 or 300 stations? It’s an ownership issue. Salem Radio, Infinity does one, ABC owns Hannity. It comes down to ownership. Actually, Clear Channel has been better than any of them.
The fact is, it’s market opportunities and liberal talkers, progressive talkers are being held to a totally different standard than conservatives.
Open the airwaves. Own a station.
