Mike Malloy On the "I Don't Know What It's Name Is" Radio Network

Tonight on the Malloy show, Mike gave the listeners a scare by imitating an old man who was asked to sub at the last moment.

It had me for a few seconds because I tuned in in medias res as it were.

Mike, as expected, gave nothing away about La Rhodes; indeed it's incredibly possible that Mike has little or no information other than the knowledge that Randi's show is off Nova M.

But I think there's a tell in the way Mike said he was on the "I Don't Know What Its Name Is" Radio Network.

Mike has always been a big advocate for NovaM (and I've always like it because they make it possible for me to listen to Malloy and other things that AAR just feels it's too good for), but I just can't shake the thought that Mike's trying to tell us something, and maybe that something is that NovaM's got bigger problems than they just can't keep Randi on.

But being the quintessential media outsider, I realize that just about everything in radio is as it looks but not as it seems.

Thoughts, anyone?

whereever Mike is, that's where I'll own a membership (and he will be broadcasting somehow).

I'll also continue supporting Pacifica (www.kpfa.org) and Democracy Now; and, of course, Thom Hartmann (I'll buy a membership in his podcasting dealie).

Most of all, I'll let others enjoy the drama.

a network with two personalities and it fires one of them....i think nova is history

Nova M seemed to be doing fine until it hired Rhodes at a cost of $600,000 a year, much too much for a little startup company. Before she arrived, it ran a fairly successful station in Phoenix and syndicated Mike Malloy, who was much less costly than Rhodes. The new version might very well succeed. There's no reason why it has to syndicate more than one host...Thom Hartmann syndicated himself for years before he got involved with Air America.

Mike has REALLY been pushing the "founding member" thing lately. And I never hear any real national ads on there, except the crap that only buys "remaindered" time a huge discounts, like nightskin and buying gold and credit repair, and a couple of local advertisers who are probably paying local rates, even though they're being played on the national stream.

Mike's hinted that he doesn't make a lot of money (was it less than six figures) so he might be cheap enough to keep, especially if he has an airtight contract. But I'm guessing Randi is demanding top dollar, and if they missed a paycheck (or three) for some reason, I can see her walking out until they came up with the money. Her message said something about how she'd like to get back on the air, which sounded like a hint to me that the Drobny's needed to do something, like come up with back pay.

The above is PURE unfounded speculation on my part... not to be taken internally.

Or, is this something that is also being hushed?

I was an original founding member of NovaM and would have gladly continued to be one, but then I changed from making more money and hating it to making far less and getting into local politics. So, though I donate some, can't do it there.

I'm hoping RR returns and they figure it into their business plan. She's not material for MSNBC, so she's got to land somewhere.

This could be interesting...

Randi Rhodes' lawyer claimed that Sheldon Drobny "attempted" suicide, but that hasn't been confirmed by anybody else. Drobny's wife said that he suffered a "breakdown." But in any case, he's very much alive.