Ignoring the Hand that Feeds You

I'm a little miffed right now.  Five days before the Minnesota Caucus, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton's campaigns seem to have zero time or advertising for the only progressive radio station in Minnesota.

Let me make sure I clarify my frustration.  This has nothing to do with any other radio station or radio group in town.  Absolutely not; more power to them!  Someone comes to your door with a handful of cash, you shouldn't turn that down.  My frustration also has NOTHING to do with the Minnesota DFL Party.  Ken Martin, and everyone there, have been exceptional to us.  No, this is about the individual campaigns themselves, in both their national and local offices.

You can try to sell ice fishing houses in Phoenix, and, you might stumble on the occasional sale, but you're not going to get a lot of interest.  As a matter of fact, you're going to get a lot of people laughing at you.  I know both campaigns probably have national media buyers, who are only looking for large radio groups to buy air time with.  That's fine, but don't they realize most of the large radio groups are either right wing, or heavily leaning towards the right?  It's hard to hear the Democrats buy commercial time on radio stations where they're openly being mocked before and after the commercial breaks their ads are playing in.

Fine.  You don't want to buy ad time time on the only progressive radio station in town because the national buyers can't see the small, independent, locally owned media outlets from their perches up on high (it doesn't explain why the local campaign offices, who DO know of us, are purposely excluding us, but hey...), do me a favor, don't ask why there are four or five conservative stations in town and not more progressive ones.  I guarantee the Republican candidates are saturating the right wing media in town with their ads, helping to bankroll their conservative message for 2016 and beyond.  The Democrats throwing their money at those same right leaning media outlets, for a caucus where the goal is to appeal to the base, doesn't help their progressive cause, in any capacity.

What really chafes my hide is the unwillingness of the Democratic campaigns to give us interviews.  I've personally called both the Clinton and Sanders campaigns to do interviews.  I've told them we can do them live, or record them when convenient for the guest.  I understand it'll be hard to get Hillary or Bernie themselves, but as long as it's not the Assistant Junior Youth Outreach Coordinator for North Dakota, I have time.  Their response?  Crickets and tumbleweeds.  Actually, I did have someone scheduled to come on the air from the Clinton campaign, but they never showed up and I never heard back on why they didn't call in.

That's why it really stings to hear the candidates and their mouth pieces show up on other radio stations in town.  I was told by a friend, who produces locally at another station, the candidate's people called them and begged to get interviewed on air.  Nice.

(Quick note - my Iowa political guy, Jeff Stein, works for a VERY conservative radio station in Iowa, and he was able to interview as many members of the Clinton and Sanders campaigns as he wanted.  He even interviewed Hillary herself.  Granted it is Iowa, and it's different than Minnesota on a Super Tuesday, but it, justifiably, compounds my frustration.)

To anyone who says, "well Matt, maybe they're trying to avoid 'preaching to the choir'."  It's the Caucus!  This is when they need the choir to sing the loudest!  You'd think, for these campaigns, desperate for the most loyal Democratic supporters to show up, the easiest interview to coordinate, the easiest check for them to write, would be with the only Progressive radio station in the freaking state!  Damn...and these campaigns wonder why they struggle to appeal to the base.

It's hard enough to get the modern apathetic Democratic voter to show up and vote, but is it a surprise the left has a turnout gap when the candidates ignore their most fervent followers and proudest megaphones?

When people wonder why the left continues to have a problem in the realm of traditional media, it's this whole frustrating cycle, election year in, election year out.  Maybe the Democratic candidates can address this issue when they eagerly show up for their interview with the conservative media in town.