The very last Guy James Show ever is this evening.

[benburch]

Because we failed to support him. :(

[stepnw1f]

1. Somebody Has to Hire Him

He's just too valuable an asset. I will miss him.

[JanMichael]

2. I feel sick about this.

We (I mean myself and Stephanie) just don't have the resources to make a dent in the cost of airing the show...Not a dent.

[benburch]

3. Nor do I or White Rose.

I sent $100 in addition to the $20 I send monthly, but that was literally ALL I could do at this time.

[Montauk6]

4. He's going off the air???

[benburch]

7. He needed to raise $12,000 to stay on the air through the end of '05

And people did not come through.

And I know that there are at least 8,000 active DUers - That is how many different IP addresses I see when I post something with a picture in it.

All it would have taken is half of those people sending $3 with PayPal and the Guy James Show would have been secure.

And we posted here for weeks that this was necessary. And I was even on the air last week making a plea to the listeners. But people tend to tune out pleas for donations any more.

Sad.

[KharmaTrain]

14. $12,000 For Airtime?

That's $1,000 a week for weekend air time in medium and small markets? Sound a bit steep to me. Or are there other expenses? Just curious why so much.

(BTW...I did throw money in Guy's tip jar at one time...I'm still waiting for the thank-you).

Sorry to hear of the difficulties...these are not very good times in the radio biz.

Peace...

[JanMichael]

17. It's a going rate in the Ft. Myers/Naples market

Plus streaming, phones, and some other incidentals adds up.

PowerTalk 1200 has, I believe, the biggest talk audiance in SW Florida ie. The Heart of Darkness.

[benburch]

20. And nobody else is willing to carry him.

The political negatives for any station that carries Guy are immense.

[derby378]

29. I had literally no idea...

A group of us welcomed Guy James when he swung through Dallas a couple of months ago, and I had no idea he was so strapped for cash.

I do hope he's able to come back on the air someday.

[Desertrose]

5. I'm so sorry to hear this....damn.....

I really wish I could send more, but I am having the usual challenges making ends meet myself.

Someone ought to pick him up...he's too good to lose.

damn
damn
damn
:cry:

[JanMichael]

6. Who is the radio host that gives his show to small stations for free?

Doesn't he broadcast from his home and have 800 numbers there as well?

Maybe this is the short term solution? It'll be a hell of a lot cheaper.

[benburch]

8. I could syndicate him. I am doing that for Bob Kincaid's new show...

And in a small way I do that for Thom Hartmann. (AAR syndicates to real radio stations, I feed the online guys and one or two community low-power FM guys)

But Guy would need a home studio. And that is about $10,000 right there if you do it right.

[acmejack]

9. Is that a best case estimate?

Meaning is that the lowest cost we could get away with for the studio? Aren't there studio facilities which could be rented? What would he need to equip his studio?

The syndication is a great idea, the majority of his listeners are on the net anyway, I would bet. I really don't want to lose him either.

[benburch]

10. Well, you could probably make do with less...

There are likely people here with more expert knowledge than I have; I do streaming and transport and archiving; Studio work is not my forte. Heck the last time I was in a studio doing radio was 1977 at WHPK-FM in Chicago, a 5 watt station.

[scarletlib]

11. I gave what I could. I hate to hear this

This comes at a bad time. I tend to think the hurricanes and one disaster on top of another may have had an impact on this.

I want to wish Guy all the best. He has a great show. I hope somehow someway we will be able to continue to hear his show. (I am one of his on-line fans.)

[CountAllVotes]

12. same here

I've been contributing to Guy James for a long time now. My income per year is less than $10,000. Seems rather pathetic that some of the "haves" can't cough up a few bucks now and then.

I am really sad to hear about this. :( :( :(

:kick:

[benburch]

15. All it would take would be ONE "Limousine Liberal"...

Limousine Liberals could change the online media community with a couple hundred thousand dollars. And I know that some of there guys have so much that they would never miss it!

In fact I wrote an essay on this some time back;

I am FURIOUS ANGRY with the Limousine Liberals

Friends,

Do you really think that the Right would own the freaking media if the rich criminals that seem to lead it had not opened up their pocketbooks and supported vermin like Rush and Drudge and Coulter?

Where is the similar effort on our side?

Yes, I know, Al Gore has a TV project, and Soros boasts that he is helping out. But nothing whatsoever has happened at all in the last 6 years except Air America.

And what is the Liberal Media? You're soaking in it.

We have to support our voices with funds drives and bake sales and selling T-shirts.

Case in point is my own effort, WhiteRoseSociety.org; There are many others as worthy, but I can only talk firsthand about my own efforts.

I work seven days a week trying to keep on top of recording, archiving and hosting 23 hours of material every weekday, and keeping three servers running in the face of constant hacking attempts. I have served MILLIONS of hours of Liberal and Progressive talk radio since 2002, and recently was forced to make this a full time job for myself as it could no longer be done while I was trying to pull down a "day job".

What supports me? Donations from a small percentage of the people who visit my site daily.

I have tried to contract with AAR to be their official archive, and they are nice enough to me, but they always say "No", because they have their own archive plans, some day.

Here we have (and it is only an example, I am not the only guy doing Liberal Media professionally and on a shoestring) an effort that is established and has a great reputation and which really only needs funding, but I survive on small donations from you fine people while the Limousine Liberals wring their hands over right-wing control of the media.

An insurgent Liberal media based on the Internet and on Radio is not that expensive to do right, but also beyond the personal means of those of us who do it, and the means of those who now make up the donor base.

Look, I know somebody is reading this now who could make a major difference. Somebody who could spend an amazingly reasonable sum and fund LOTS of Liberal media efforts. My message to you; WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

[benburch]

13. Well, I will do whatever I can.

Were I Guy James, I would be pretty disheartened by the lack of support. I would not blame him if he would want to be done with this phase of his life now.

[CountAllVotes]

16. I don't think he is done with this phase of his life *yet*

and I curse AirAmerica for NOT hiring him and ignoring him! :grr:

Guy James is definitely one of the best in the business!

I really don't get it. They hire some stoop like Franken (sorry Franken lovers but I find him to be incredibly b-o-r-i-n-g) and not someone like Guy James who has lots of really good information. I never miss his show and I never bother with Franken nor many of the other on AirAmerica. The only person I like on AirAmerica is Mike Malloy and he was unemployed for months before they finally got smart and hired him.

:( :( :(

This is really really very very SAD!

:kick:

[GOPS Worst Fear]

23. Guy James Will Be picked up by Someone..

Peter Weirbe and Mike Malloy lost previous jobs. They got new ones.Guy is too good to stay off too long.If we all keep the pressure on Air America or contact the Jones Network, perhaps one of two will pick him up. We all need to organize.

[benburch]

32. Peter Werbe was never, ever "picked up"!

That weekly gig is the one he had BEFORE ie America!

And Mike was only picked up due to immense pressure on AAR.

[sellitman]

45. Hey....Franken is funny how about axing that weeny Springer?

Imagine Guy James instead of that dope Jerry? Wow!

[Drewskie]

18. So long... ;) (nt)

[scarletlib]

19. kick

[soup]

21. damn it.

Is there any way Bullwinkle can pull a rabbit out of the hat?

:(

[CountAllVotes]

22. kick for a "limousine liberal" out there

<eom>

:kick:

[YouthInAsia]

24. What about Air America?? Would they hire him??

I woulda contributed, but I dont have any money

[JanMichael]

25. It's not even a "hiring" thing!

Just play the fucking show!

He'll front costs he's got his own means of support.

I guess he's just not "connected" well enough for AAR.

[benburch]

33. Nor am I...

Though I know almost all of the people who were there at AAR in the beginning, back when it was AnShell Media.

[happynewyear]

26. oh no! We cannot let Guy go!

pssssssttttt ... AirAmerica - dump someone and HIRE GUY JAMES!

:kick:

[GOPS Worst Fear]

27. Call The Jones Network on Monday!

http://www.jonesradio.com/NewsTalk/index.html

The phone numbers there..

Or.. Call Corporate Offices of Air America Radio:
http://www.airamericaradio.com/contact


If enough people call..they will have to check Guy Out!

[CountAllVotes]

28. thanks for the links/tips/etc.!!!

I'll give them all a piece of my mind too!

:kick:

[derby378]

30. Maybe AAR should dump Franken and hire Guy instead

With Katherine Lampher headed out the door, it's going to be hard to find someone to wrangle Al on the air. Tina Fey comes to mind, but her hands are already full with writing for SNL, and she's not a radio person, either.

If Guy James were to get on AAR, he'd broadcast live on up to 70 stations across America. Now that's progress.

[CountAllVotes]

31. hahaaa!!

I just emailed AirAmerica radio and told them to hire Guy James to be live rather than these "best of" shows. I also told them that I did not care for Franken and that Guy James is a valuable asset to liberal talk radio.

We'll see if I get a reply, or better yet if the decide to pick-up Guy!

:D

:kick:

[I Have A Dream]

I've RECOMMENDED it & it's now on the GREATEST page! (5th vote)

Maybe we'll have a miracle. I wasn't even aware of the problem. Maybe there are many others like me. (Maybe they also missed your previous posts.) I'll make a donation!

(I've never heard him, but given what you've said, I'm sure that we need to keep him around.)

:kick:

[CountAllVotes]

36. thank you thank you thank you for doing that!

Thanks!!!!!! :D :D :D :D !!!

:kick:

[Generic Other]

34. Is all internet based radio listener supported?

I don't understand why Guy has to raise the money for his own show.
Is he on the air somewhere or just on the internet?

Sorry, I really know very little about the radio biz. I never even think of listening unless someone leaves a link at DU.

If Guy's show goes off the air, does he have to go get a job at some other station doing weather resports, or something drastic like that?

Are there other independent groups who could pool resources to keep Guy's show on the air as part of their line-up? I want more liberal voices not less.

Why haven't a bunch of groups not formed partnerships like you did at Camp Casey this summer? The pooling resources, talents, etc. seemed to work really well even though I know you really only did it because everyone was in a pinch, but it proved that it could be done.

Then again, what do I know? I did enjoy listening to all the radio programs that aired out of Crawford this summer.

[CountAllVotes]

35. Guy James pays for the air time out of his own pocket

Guy James does not "work" for anyone.

He has been footing a huge chunk of the bill for a very long time. It seems that there are a few listeners that do contribute to him, myself being one of them and I am about as close to being flat broke as one can get.

Fuck that pack of cigarettes or that six pack of beer or even ONE GALLON OF GASOLINE and contribute that money to Guy James' show to keep him on the air!

He submitted a resume to AirAmerica and they COMPLETELY IGNORED HIM! :grr:

I guess he isn't as stoic as Franken is or as idiotic as Lanfer is. I would not even bother to listen to AirAmerica if there was no Mike Malloy to listen to. Mike Malloy has a difficult time getting them to hire him!

Guy needs money to be able to pay for the air time. He makes ZERO off of this program which is only on once a week and should be one every day IMO for what it is worth. !

:kick:

[nonconformist]

37. I'm really sorry to hear this.

:(

[Swamp Rat]

38. Bill Bennett:

[Utah_liberal]

39. Urgent. Donate to Guy Now! It's so easy

To those with Paypal accounts. You can shoot off a donation to Guy in less then two minutes. If you are on this message board. Donate! There's no excuse not to donate. Give what you can afford.

A little off topic here but is it just me, or does Jerry Springer on Air America suck. I agree with his politics, but his show is awful. If something happens to Guy, I would love to see Air America Springer with Guy James. Just a dream I'd like to see come true.

[benburch]

44. Because AAR will NEVER have Guy James, *we* need to support him.

Here is the reason; Guy plays no favorites. He says what he wants to say. He is as hard on the Democrats as he is on the Republicans, and AAR will not tolerate that.

[IndyOp]

47. Ben -

Why does he have to have all of the funds at once to get him through December? (Just a question).

How about if DU starts a phone campaign/petition to AAR to ask them to air Guy once a week - during one of their weekend slots?

AAR is putting on more original weekend shows (fewer repeats of weekday shows) and maybe they would air Guy (especially if he does not need a salary, just facilities from which he can air his show).

I think Guy is milder than Mike Malloy - I like Mike - I listen - I'm just saying that I think Guy is milder than Mike. Mike regularly rips into Dems and he regularly says on air that AAR does not tell him what he can and cannot say.

If AAR ignored Guy's resume in past it might be because they were unstable at that time - they are just now really on their feet. And, then again, they might have ignored his resume because they are inundated with resumes from people who don't have even a tiny bit of Guy's talent.

I'm not saying it definitely CAN be done, but why not try?

Ideas for getting a foot in the door:

Can you generate a letter/petition on his behalf that would provide evidence that he can be successful at AAR? What show(s) has he done in past - where/when? Who has he interviewed on air? How many hits does his website (and your Guy James archives) get per week? Does Guy have any 'big name' admirers who might support his case to AAR?

Can you isolate segments of Guys' show that you and Guy think are his very best and put those in a prominent position on the White Rose page so that people who have never heard him, can listen and decide whether they would want to him regularly on AAR? I listen mostly to AAR - habit - I have also clicked on some of the links to liberal radio shows on the DU homepage and found some below average, way below average and some very good -- it is impossible to know whether someone is worth tuning into without hearing a sample.

I think a phone call and email campaign to AAR would help -- something novel, something that will attract their attention.

Just ideas -- we need diverse voices on liberal radio -- and I like Guy.

[benburch]

48. The radio station demands quarterly payments.

So he needs to come up with the whole $12.000.

[benburch]

49. Also, I will get an online petition going tomorrow.

And I think Guy has an audition tape, but he has sent it to AAR and had it returned unopened.

Maybe it is time to try again.

[IndyOp]

50. The fact that it was returned unopened may be in Guy's favor --

They did not listen to him and dislike him, they just weren't taking auditions at that time. Should they have know about Guy? Maybe. The people running AAR for a long time didn't know much about anything.

If there are just a few dozen people who will call AAR and ask them to air Guy; and there are a hundred who will email them; and there are a few hundred more who will sign your petition -- THAT should get AAR to listen to Guy's tape. If there are really convenient links to a couple of Guy's best segments on White Rose, then we could get people who are emailing them to include a link to those segments.

I would like for Guy to have more exposure - whether or not people come through in the current fund drive or not - he should be heard nationally. He has the 'folksiness' of Jerry Springer, but he actually understands what is going on in our country.

My suggestion for the petition: Make it longer than "We the undersigned want AAR to put Guy James on the air." SELL Guy - give details. If you can allow people to add personal comments to the online petition that would be great - people who have listened can add their own ideas about why Guy's show would do well on AAR.

I'll keep an eye out and do what I can. I am definitely willing to call AAR on Guy's behalf (and send an email and sign the petition).

[benburch]

40. A one week reprieve, folks!

The station agreed to let him slide one more week!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4945769

[Swamp Rat]

41. Thank Oshun!!!

[Swamp Rat]

42. Tom DeLay eats cockroaches

[Swamp Rat]

43. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! THE LIMBAUGH SONG!!!!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!

I must have this song!!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!! :rofl:

[mcscajun]

46. Kick for hope...

:kick:

[Cocoa]

51. will this be the last "farewell tour?"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=3845180#3860177

[I Have A Dream]

52. Kick.

:kick: