Air America goes Green... hallelujah

Posted by Don Hazen at 8:24 PM on February 4, 2007.

In case anyone has missed the story, NY real estate mogul Stephen Green has stepped up to make an offer to buy majority ownership in Air America Radio (AAR) and take it out of bankruptcy. (It's conceivable, but not likely, that a higher bidder could step in at the Chapter 11 Court auction this week.)

And in case any one has any doubts, or has lost faith, this is a very good thing. Having someone with deep pockets and good politics putting their money on the line, giving us a megaphone against right-wing radio dominance, is excellent news. Oh, and Green's brother is Mark Green, who will likely be involved in the network's future. That's also a Good Thing. Green would have been Mayor of NYC in 2001, if billionaire Michael Bloomberg didn't opt out of campaign spending rules, resulting in his outspending Green by an astounding 5-to-1 margin -- $73 million of his own money.

Even if you don't like talk radio, we need Air America, an important asset in the progressive media ecology. In Sam Seder, Tom Hartman, Laura Flanders, Rachel Maddow, Randi Rhodes, et. al. AAR houses some of the left's best talent, and it gives countless more progressives the airtime to make their case.

But some are not so sure about Air America. Take MoJo editor/ blogger Clara Jeffries, who plays it snarky by making fun of the Greens, and by using right wing radio attack blogger -- and Bill O'Reilly favorite-- The Radio Equalizer to bash the departing Air America star Al Franken, with very stale news that he made too much money at AAR Radio.

Maybe so, but there were staff and talent at AAR who thought Franken got what he deserved, financially. The point is there is a new era dawning at AAR. Mark Green's media talent and experience will be a big plus for the organization, and its staff, who have been limping along for quite some time, are on the verge of being paid... and very happy.

Tagged as: radio, air america, progressive

Don Hazen is the executive editor of AlterNet.