"Radio Equalizer" Slam of Stephanie Miller is a Stretch

Image from Crooks and Liars

UPDATE 09/08/09:

I was delighted to hear the following blog post read by Stephanie Miller herself on the radio this morning! Thanks for deeming me worthy!!!

ORIGINAL POST 08/27/09:

This little clip just goes to show you how different people can hear the same thing, and come to completely different conclusions. The Stephanie Miller Show is a morning radio talk show, starring Stephanie Miller, Jim Ward and Chris LaVoie. The show is political in nature, but also revels in the supremely silly. Miller herself has referred to the format as "Senator. Fart joke. Senator." She is also the daughter of Barry Goldwater's running mate, Bill Miller (Republican). Stephanie is um. . .not a Republican.

The show takes a little getting used to, with its regular bits, celebrity voices, frivolity and sound effects. And to the untrained (or irony/humor/sarcasm-deficient) ear, a person might not pick up on every joke. For the clip below, you must know that: a) Miller has referred to Keith Olbermann as "one of my future husbands" for many years, b) Rachel Maddow is a radio host too, c) Ed Schultz is both a host and a colleague of Miller's, and d) Miller and crew hosted the MSNBC morning show for a few days after Don Imus got terminated.

Thus there is context to this clip, and the "MSNBC is the Vatican to a liberal" bit is a typical over the top throw-away line, intended to overstate things in the way a conservative might see it. How do I know this? I'm a regular listener, and this is often the case.

So to me--and any other regular listeners--the analysis of this clip on The Radio Equalizer (or Tranquilizer as I've seen it called elsewhere) is just silly. Note to Brian Maloney: Stephanie Miller does not worship at MSNBC. She doesn't really think that gay people "have the gay." And there really isn't a Senator named Squeezy McFeelpants.

[Excerpt]

OLBY-WORSHIP



Now, imagine for a moment the state-run media's reaction if a conservative were to equate the FOX News Channel studios with any major religious site or institution. The mere mention of "licking the chair" of a FOX host would bring months of ridicule. . .

Source: RadioEqualizer