Winning in the fly-over states
The UK's excellent newspaper, The Guardian, profiles Salt Lake City's liberal mayor - Rocky Anderson - and then draws some big conclusions about the red/blue divide in America.
Cities like Salt Lake offer a few lessons beyond political demography. First, they show that the tendency for coastal liberals to write off as rednecks those who live in "fly-over states" is not just patronising and counterproductive - it is flawed in fact.Second, they suggest the understanding of the US as a nation riven by a binary divide between Democrats and Republicans is in desperate need of nuance. Not that there isn't some truth to it. But because that truth is limited to the very narrow field of party allegiance rather than the broader sense of how people understand their lives and their politics. Gena Edvalson, a lesbian whose partner Jana is pregnant, says her neighbours in Salt Lake City couldn't be nicer. "They're going to have a baby shower for us," she says. "But that won't stop them from legislating the hell out of us." That is depressing (two-thirds of Utahns voted for a gay marriage ban in November). But it also suggests potential.
Which brings us to the third, and most important, lesson. If those coastal liberals decided to drop in rather than fly over once in a while they might actually learn something. Rather than duck tough issues because of the hostile political environment, progressives here have tried to reframe them in a way that resonates with potential allies. "We don't talk about gay liberation in Utah," says Anderson. "We talk about healthy families and strong communities and say that in the most intimate aspects of our lives the government ought to butt out. You have to stand up even at the risk of losing races - some things are more important than winning a race."
Couldn't have said it better ourselves.
Kari Chisholm | October 5, 2005 | Comment on This Post (14 so far) |
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Comments
Brilliantly said. I especially like the last part. "Gay liberation" sounds like something you do in San Francisco; "standing up for families" sounds like something you do in San Antonio. But we're talking about identical concepts.
Posted by: Ian | Oct 7, 2005 8:44:17 AM
Better yet, why not allow Democrats in the fly-over states to define their party as something other than the alternative lifestyle and abortion rights party ? Since two thirds of Utahans favored a gay marriage ban, maybe Democrats in Utah should focus on becoming the party of traditional working families.
Posted by: Right Democrat | Oct 8, 2005 7:24:30 PM
KSL Radio, a 50,000 watt station in Salt Lake City, Utah, has added the Ed Schultz Show to its programming lineup. Schultz replaces Bill O'Riley in the 7 to 10 pm Mountain Time slot.
Ed Schultz is a moderate-left Democrat, based in Fargo, North Dakota.
KSL's powerful signal at 1160 AM covers virtually all of the West at night.
On the West Coast the Ed Schultz Show can be heard live from Noon to 3 pm Pacific on KTLK/Los Angeles, KLSD/San Diego, KQKE San Francisco, KRXA/Carmel-Monterey, KOPT/Eugene, KPOJ/Portland, KPTK/Seattle, and KPTQ/Spokane.
In the Rocky Mountain West, Ed Schultz is heard live from 1 to 4 pm MT on KKNS (FM)/Missoula, KKZN/Denver-Boulder, KRMR (FM)/Hayden-Steamboat Springs, KABQ/Albuquerque, and on KXXT/Phoenix and KJFK/Reno.
Posted by: Don | Oct 10, 2005 12:05:44 AM
I heard big Ed on KSL while in the Bay Area recently. Don's comment inspired me to email KSL thanking them for their programming change. You can reach them at http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=205
Posted by: Leo Brown | Oct 10, 2005 1:22:06 PM
Thanks Leo, but it seems this was another case of "too good to be true." KSL has already pulled the Ed Schultz Show.
This is from Paul Rolly's column Friday, Oct. 7 in the Salt Lake Tribune:
Right or wrong: Listeners of KSL Radio who are accustomed to a steady diet of Sean Hannity, Doug Wright and other conservative pontificators were shocked out of their euphoria recently with the addition of a liberal commentator in the 7-10 p.m. slot.
KSL Radio News and Program Director Russ Hill said when the station began airing Ed Schultz's syndicated program recently, more than 150 listeners sent e-mails to complain.
Schultz raps on President Bush, the war in Iraq, the deficit and all things considered contraband subjects to devoted conservatives.
Hill says Schultz is among the most
successful of the commentators who have a progressive or liberal point of view. He is temporarily filling the slot that had been the territory of Bill O'Reilly, who was dropped by KSL for contractual reasons.
"We are looking for someone local who will be interesting and entertaining," he said, adding that being a liberal or a conservative is not a criterion, even if a bevy of KSL listeners think it should be.
Someone posted a comment on the KSL Radio blog saying he had called the station, and was told that they wanted to get a reaction to a liberal host, and that Ed Schultz "won't be back."
When I tuned in at 7 pm on Monday I heard Lars Larson. Then at 10 pm they put on a rebroadcast of Sean Hannity.
Seems like a stunt to me. Bill O'Rielly was doing poorly in the ratings. So replace him temporarily with a left-leaning Democrat to stir up some controversy, then when the complaints start pooring in, "respond" by pulling the offending liberal off the air.
The idea that they are looking for a local host to fill the slot offers some hope, but I wouldn't bet much on it being anyone even moderately liberal.
I wonder what the chances are of getting Ed Schultz back on the air in Utah? A station in Price, Utah, KOAL 750 AM has a pretty decent signal, and carries a daily commentary from Jim Hightower "America's most popular populist." The former Texas Agriculture Commissioner is heard weekdays at 7:15 am. Also heard in SLC on noncommercial KRLC 90.9 at about 12:30 pm and in Moab on noncommercial KZMU 89.7 at Noon.
More on Jim Hightower here: http://www.jimhightower.com/jim/
Posted by: Don | Oct 12, 2005 4:32:18 AM
We need an email campaign to KSL to counteract the rightwing emails.
Posted by: Leo Brown | Oct 12, 2005 7:04:12 AM
Right Democrat is correct that the Utah Democratic Party cannot define itself as the party of gay marriage and abortion and expect to win. It can, however, define itself as the party that fights for the interests of Utah against the programs of the Bush administration. See http://www.utdemocrats.org/ht/display/ReleaseDetails/i/661403
Utah Democrats Challenge Hatch to Protect Utah, Not the President
Republican members of the “Utah Congressional Delegation” that have shifted their stance on nuclear waste issues over the past months and finally joined Congressman Jim Matheson [D-UT] in his vocal, and previously quite far-sighted, opposition. Congressman Matheson was the only member of the Utah Congressional Delegation to oppose the Yucca Mountain project in 2002.
Posted by: Leo Brown | Oct 12, 2005 10:33:34 AM
As a conservative I was interested in listening to Ed Schultz because it's always good to hear other views. One thing I noticed after listening to him for several hours over a few days time was that he never took a call from someone with an opposing view. It seems like he's a little gutless when it comes to debating his views. One night he was talking about how the Dennis Prager show had invited him on his show to debate a topic and he went on about how he didn't need to go on other shows to get publicity for his own show. I think he just realizes that Prager would tear him up intellectually.
Posted by: Breck Sheffield | Oct 12, 2005 9:51:26 PM
Looks like Breck was Googling for places to make negative comments about Ed Schultz.
The truth is that Ed Schultz does not screen his calls. That's unusual among the national talk show hosts. And I've heard him take on people with opposing views on a number of occasions. If they are at all articulate he will give them plenty of air time too.
Ed wrote recently on his website, "Debate is one of the great tools in America. I have always loved them... I have never, never backed down from any debate for any reason."
By the way, Ed Schultz beat both Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly in the recent ratings here in the Denver-Boulder market.
Posted by: Don | Oct 13, 2005 2:45:18 PM
As dull as Ed Schultz show is, he could use some call screening. Every time I listened it sounded like a big love fest between Schultz and the callers. Most conservative talk show hosts screen calls to get articulate people with varying opinions and those who disagree are put to the head of the line. If Schultz takes calls from those who disagree with him, they're few and far between compared to the conservative talk show hosts I listen to.
By the way, Don, I was googling Ed Schultz and KSL Radio because I was curious to find out why his show had been pulled. Personally I preferred "The Radio Factor" but unfortunately it was pulled for contractual reasons. However; I didn't have a problem with KSL replacing it with Ed Schultz. It's too bad he didn't have a chance to prove himself in the ratings.
Posted by: Breck Sheffield | Oct 13, 2005 10:19:12 PM
I was interested to see a column in the Deseret News by Lee Benson with the headline:
"Iraq isn't like Vietnam — it's much worse". Check it out at
http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,615156513,00.html
Posted by: Leo Brown | Oct 24, 2005 8:44:16 PM
A problem not faced by the Democratic Party nationally and locally is its divorce from the white working class, particularly working class white men. Speaking as a working class white male myself (and a life long Democrat) the Democratic Party only offers me employment sanctions. I've grown tired and distressed over the party's racial/gender spoils system. Affirmative action works differently at different levels of society. Upper income white males have nothing to fear from it, and so the white male party brass see it as a non-issue. Believe me, down here in stearage affirmative action works with devastating efficiency. If we're going to have affirmative action, start at the top and work down, instead of from the bottom up. Let's start with a Latina national party chair for example. Get lost, Howard Dean!
Posted by: Lew Jeppson | Oct 26, 2005 8:31:34 AM
Dean has picked up the wrong demographic and the wrong image with “Merlot Democrats.” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/17/AR2005101700682.html?nav=rss_politics
Merlot won’t sell well in Utah, and it won’t sell well in the dry land West either, or in the Midwest or in the South. The theme we want is more meat and potatoes, i.e. the broken contract with America, the Republican leadership working systemically on behalf of the privileged at the expense of the people.
Howard is doing some good things, but we will need a mid-course correction if we are to win elections.
Posted by: Leo Brown | Oct 26, 2005 10:25:54 AM
my family needs help DHS statments are lies we have proof that the DA and DHS of Deschutes county have given false statements in court and in writing, we need someone to help our family, My grandchildren are at risk of DHS false allegations, false statements and my grandaughter could end up with her real father who is the real sex affender. Please help my family and e-mail me or call 541-815-4794
ASAP court is tomarrow March 28 at 11:15
Posted by: mary clum | Mar 27, 2006 2:39:21 PM
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(and yes, we know that sometimes they're very, very wrong. Other times, they're right on.)
