Folks, this is The Blogmother telling you I'm a big fan of The Ed Schultz Show. Ever since Big Eddie made his Treasure Valley radio debut on KFXD 630 AM about a year ago, I've listened in almost every weekday. Schultz, who is based out of Fargo, North Dakota, is a Republican-turned-Democrat with a working-class heart and listener base. In other words, he's a perfect fit for Idaho.
An example: Yesterday, while talking about BushCo, er, the Supreme Court's decision to slice the Exxon settlement, Schultz took a call from a small commercial fisherman in Alaska who called in from his boat. Schultz grilled him on how the corporate-friendly settlement screws over Northwestern fisherfolk, but you could tell his real glee was talking with the dude about what rigs he was using to catch salmon.
The hour before that, two evangelical Christians called in to say that no matter what James Dobson thinks, they'll be voting for Barack Obama this year, and that many other evangelicals will be doing the same. Schultz agreed, noting how Obama is obviously a strong family man as well as someone (like Schultz) who will not necessarily toe the Democratic party line on every single issue.
On issues ranging from veterans (whom he supports with a passion) to gas prices (Schultz frequently gets calls from long-haul drivers whose diesel bills are killing them), Schultz is the real deal. For sure, if the Idahoans who spend their days listening to Rush, O'Reilly, and Savage would give Ed Schultz a few days, they may find they have more in common with this hunting, fishing, and truck-driving guy with a dog named Buck than they do with the pill-popping, sexual-harrassing, hate-spewing GOP talkers, never mind Idaho's low-rent version.
In fact, if we could get Big Eddie on the air in every part of the state, well, there's no telling how blue we might move.
But The Ed Schultz Show is currently only available in two Idaho markets: Coeur d'Alene, via Spokane station KPTQ, where it airs live from noon to 3 Pacific Time, and Boise, where it airs on tape delay on KFXD from 4 to 7 p.m. You can also hear it live on the Big Eddie website from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mountain, or via XM or Sirius satellite radio - but that's not the same as local radio, now, is it?
So call your favorite stations in Salmon, Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Twin Falls, McCall, Lewiston, or Sandpoint and ask about The Ed Schultz Show. I'll also go on record here as saying there'd be no finer speaker for the next big Idaho Democratic dinner - even if he probably wouldn't fit into a dread plaid jacket.
Note: Eddie's guest host, "senior legal analyst" NorMAN GoldMAN, seems to be on tap for today's show. He's good, too, though no real substitute for Big Ed. So if you haven't listened to the show before, be sure to tune in when Big Eddie is back.
Hey, that is really cool. I can't wait to check this guy's show out! You know, I listen to NPR all night when I'm working and this guy sounds interesting enough to fill up the first three hours of my shift. No offense to 'As it Happens' and 'marketplace', but I tend to be more interested by actual commentary. If only my MP3 player could play AM instead of only FM stations. Oh well, guess I'll just have to break out the old radio. . .
Posted by: ReggieH | June 26, 2008 at 10:13 AM
Reggie, I remain a big NPR fan, too, but yes, you need to check out Big Eddie. He gets great, thoughtful callers from across the country, not all of whom agree with him. Imagine that!
His show is also available via podcast for about $6 a month. Details on the website.
Posted by: Julie in Boise | June 26, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Heh. It always looks like I'm some sort of insomniac up all late and stuff, but really I just work until midnight on weeknights and don't get off of work until 2:30 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. So I get home from work and peruse the blogs or read some before going to bed.
Anyway, I couldn't get the darn am station to tune in tonight. I tried everything- Tinfoil wrapped around the antenna. . .adjusting the antenna . . . more tinfoil--everything! I guess that 630 station just doesn't come in very well.
At least I'll have a little time to get it figured out over the weekend.
Posted by: ReggieH | June 27, 2008 at 12:40 AM
Reggie, thanks for trying. I am up on the Bench and 630 AM usually comes in fine, but I've noticed that reception gets really horrible when I am driving near major power lines, like along Overland and Franklin in Boise.
Another alternative, if it jibes with your work/class/sleep schedule, would be to try and catch the show online, either on KFXD which has a live stream on its website, or via any of the other stations that carry it, some of them earlier in the day. I think all the stations listed here have online streams:
http://www.wegoted.com/listen/index.asp
Good luck!
Posted by: Julie in Boise | June 27, 2008 at 11:01 AM