The Structural Imbalance of Political Talk Radio

Abstract:

This report documents in detail the fact that conservative talk radio undeniably dominates the Radio broadcast format. Our conclusion is that the gap between conservative and progressive talk radio is the result of multiple structural problems in the U.S. regulatory system, particularly the complete breakdown of the public trustee concept of broadcast, the elimination of clear public interest requirements for broadcasting, and the relaxation of ownership rules including the requirement of local participation in management.