Air America was shut down in its LA and Chicago markets yesterday.

Arthur Liu, owner of Multicultural Radio Broadcasting, which owns Air
America affiliates WNTD-950 AM in Chicago and KBLA-1580 AM in Los Angeles,

said Air America bounced a check and owes him more than $1
million.

Air America and Multicultural had entered into a time brokerage agreement
in which the network was essentially renting Multicultural's airtime, Liu
said.
"They bounced a check today," Liu said. "It's a default. They have paid
only a very small portion of what they owe us." Liu declined to say how
much Multicultural is owed, but did say he is holding $1 million in checks

that Air America has asked the company not to cash. One the basic rules of

capitalism: no rubber checks. I found that out early. And why aren’t all
those rich leftists helping out their ideological brethren?
"They've been saying, 'We're going to get you the money' for the past two
months," Liu said, referring to a security deposit that he said Air
America was supposed to have prepaid in advance of its launch. "They're
not honoring our agreement. "Sounds like my old tenants.

Oh and don’t you just love this title?

Liberal radio stations silenced…as if Multicultural Radio Broadcasting
were violating Air America’s rights by expecting to get paid.

Unlike the free enterprise model for broadcasting, stations PAY the
program supplier for programs, NEVER does a station GET PAID for carrying
a program. The arrangement with Air America and its stations was of
questionable legality in the first place.

www.worldnetdaily.com



MarkC wrote:

If any of you listened to this show do you know the title of the first
song that Martha played?
Thanks, Mark



David wrote:

Franken's Air America bounces back with Bush win
Wed Feb 2, 2005 08:03 PM ET
By Steve Gorman
LOS ANGELES, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Comedian and political provocateur Al
Franken says the re-election of U.S. President George W. Bush was bad
for the country but good for his fledgling liberal radio network, Air
America, as it strives to rebound from a rocky start.

Much as conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh grew in popularity as he
railed for eight years against Democrat Bill Clinton, Franken sees
Bush as the perfect foil in his mission to amplify the voice of the
political left on daytime talk radio.
In an interview with Reuters ahead of this week's return of Air
America to Los Angeles, the second largest U.S. city, Franken said he
was as disappointed as any lefty by Bush's victory over Democratic
challenger John Kerry.

But in his view, Kerry's loss was Air America's gain.

"Obviously, it's more fun to go after Bush's terrible ideas and
programs than to defend Kerry's not-quite-exactly-what-we -want
plans," said Franken, 53, whose New York-based show and the rest of
Air America's lineup will begin airing on KTLK-AM in Los Angeles on
Thursday, the day after Bush's State of the Union address.

By the end of the month, the network that began in just six cities on
March 31, 2004, then nearly collapsed weeks later amid financial woes,
will have spread to 50 stations nationwide, including outlets in 15 of
the top 20 markets, among them New York, Washington, D.C., Miami,
Boston, Atlanta and Philadelphia.

It will even venture into Bush's home state of Texas with a launch on
a Corpus Christi station later this month.

The network's programming, which includes shows hosted by actress
Janeane Garofalo and commentator Randi Rhodes, also airs on satellite
radio and the Internet on (http://www.airamericaradio.com).

With a new team of executives in charge and investors committing
additional capital, Air America President Jon Sinton predicted the
network could reach profitability by year's end.

"We are as far as I can determine the fastest-growing network in the
history of this industry," Sinton said, adding that its cumulative
national audience ranges from 2.5 million to 3 million listeners per
week.

That pales in comparison to the 20 million so-called "ditto heads" who
tune in weekly to hear Limbaugh on nearly 600 stations nationwide, but
Sinton noted that the conservative commentator has a 15-year jump on
Air America.

The KTLK launch marks a key turning point after the network was
unceremoniously dumped from another Los Angeles station last spring
due to a cash crunch.

Ironically, some of the network's biggest successes have come on
stations owned by Clear Channel Communications Inc. (CCU.N: Quote,
Profile, Research) , the media giant seen by liberals as a tool of the
right and whose subsidiary, Premiere Radio Networks, syndicates
Limbaugh's show.

But Sinton said it should come as no surprise "when businesses behave
in ways that will enhance their bottom line." As one industry insider
who spoke on condition of anonymity put it, "If Franken can deliver an
audience, they'll run to Franken. They don't care about his politics."

© Reuters 2005. All Rights Reserved.