Inside Baseball–or Radio
This is usually a time when I comment on something in the news…but it’s also a good chance to update you on things happening at KXEL…so that’s the topic again today.
You’ve heard that there are only two weeks left of the Best of Rush Limbaugh program; the company that distributes the show to stations says it will end June 18. We will begin airing the Glenn Beck program in Rush’s time slot beginning two weeks from today.
You’ve also heard that there will be a new show with Clay Travis and Buck Sexton on instead of Rush on many Limbaugh stations, and you’ve asked why we aren’t airing that. Here’s the answer.
First, regarding EIB…there is no “EIB Network” beyond Rush’s show. He said in interviews it was a name he came up with at the beginning to make the show sound “bigger”…a great marketing move on his part. So the new show is not part of EIB.
In reality, Rush’s program (along with Hannity, Sexton, Beck, and others) are owned and distributed to stations by Premiere Networks. They are the ones who decided when the “Best of Rush” each day with guide hosts would end, and when the Travis/Sexton show would begin.
Premiere Networks is owned by iHeart Media, which owns almost 900 radio stations in the U.S. — including two news/talk stations in Iowa, one in Cedar Rapids and one in Des Moines.
Premiere will not allow KXEL to air the Travis/Sexton show, because we would be competing with the stations they own which will air the show. We were able to continue airing Rush despite the same conflict, because we had been a “Rush” station before iHeart bought Premiere Networks.
So…that’s the answer to a question several of you have emailed me about…the company producing the new show doesn’t want us competing with the stations they own.
Radio is a business, after all.
