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Election '08

"Come on....NOBODY is voting Republican this time around. The only way another republican is getting elected is if the Democrats put up a ticket with like, a black man or a woman on it."

*5 second pause*

Hysterical Laughter from all parties

If you don't get why this is funny, just close the browser and go away.

HAS THE WHOLE WORLD GONE CRAZY??? AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO GIVES A SHIT ABOUT THE RULES???

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As I'm not one to editorialize much, I'm just going to paste the press release here. This has me livid beyond words. Scroll all the way down, as I am adding new articles as they hit.

-cyl, 5/15/07

XM Radio has announced the suspension of the "Opie & Anthony Show" effective immediatly. XM will not broadcast the show for the next 30 days. The suspension follows comments aired on the Opie and Anthony Show last week by Homeless Charlie.

The desision to suspend Opie and Anthony was a response by the management of XM Radio to comments made by Opie & Anthony on yesterday's broadcast which "put into question whether they appreciate the seriousness of the matter." The decision was an effort "to make clear that our on-air talent must take seriously the responsibility that creative freedom requires of them."

The Opie & Anthony Show appears on one of XM's explicit language channels. These channels are noted with an "XL" on the display, and regular warnings as to the explicit language as well as how to block those channels.

XM Radio Suspends Opie & Anthony

WASHINGTON and NEW YORK, May 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- XM Radio announced today that the company has suspended Gregg "Opie" Hughes and Anthony Cumia, hosts of "The Opie & Anthony Show" and ceased broadcast of the show for 30 days, effective immediately.

XM Radio deplored the comments aired on "The Opie & Anthony Show" last week. At the time, the company strongly expressed its views to Opie and Anthony, and they issued an immediate apology.

Comments made by Opie and Anthony on yesterday's broadcast put into question whether they appreciate the seriousness of the matter. The management of XM Radio decided to suspend Opie and Anthony to make clear that our on-air talent must take seriously the responsibility that creative freedom requires of them.

As a company, XM provides customers with tools to control what they listen to on XM. "The Opie & Anthony Show" appears on one of XM's explicit language channels (XL). Whenever a radio is tuned to an explicit language channel, the letters "XL" continuously appear on the screen. XM frequently mentions on its explicit language channels that the content may be inappropriate for certain listeners and tells how to "block" channels that feature this type of content. Channel blocking is available through xmradio.com or by calling 1-800-XMRADIO.

About XM Satellite Radio

XM (NASDAQ: XMSR) is America's number one satellite radio company with more than 8 million subscribers. Broadcasting live daily from studios in Washington, DC, New York City, Chicago, the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Toronto and Montreal, XM's 2007 lineup includes more than 170 digital channels of choice from coast to coast: commercial-free music, premier sports, news, talk radio, comedy, children's and entertainment programming; and the most advanced traffic and weather information.

XM, the leader in satellite-delivered entertainment and data services for the automobile market through partnerships with General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan, Porsche, Subaru, Suzuki and Toyota, is available in 140 different vehicle models for 2007. XM's industry-leading products are available at consumer electronics retailers nationwide. For more information about XM hardware, programming and partnerships, please visit http://www.xmradio.com/.

SOURCE: XM Satellite Radio

CONTACT: Nathaniel Brown, +1-212-708-6170, nathaniel.brown@xmradio.com;
Chance Patterson, +1-202-380-4151, chance.patterson@xmradio.com

Web site: http://www.xmradio.com/

Retaliation
5-17-2007

Listeners shocked by XM hosts' suspension

Many cancel the service. Some suspect a proposed merger with Sirius is a factor in the punishment.

By Jim Puzzanghera and Amy Kaufman, Times Staff Writers
May 17, 2007

WASHINGTON — Satellite radio bills itself as the Wild West of the airwaves, an uncensored outpost beyond the reach of federal regulators where expletives fly with impunity and the banter can get as raunchy as at a strip club.

But the decision this week by XM Satellite Radio to suspend shock jocks Opie and Anthony for 30 days for crude sexual comments about First Lady Laura Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Queen Elizabeth II has listeners wondering whether there's a new sheriff in town.

Some XM listeners were outraged — not at the comments but at XM's reaction.

"I signed up for XM because it's uncensored. I like these guys because they are so unfiltered," said Placentia resident Paul Hebert, who canceled his $12.95 monthly XM subscription Tuesday in protest.

He wasn't alone. Hundreds of angry subscribers have flooded XM's operators with calls to cancel since the suspension was announced Tuesday. About 60 listeners smashed their XM receivers Wednesday outside the WFNY-FM studios in New York, where Gregg "Opie" Hughes and Anthony Cumia continued to air their tamer, over-the-air broadcast for CBS Radio.

"The reaction is mind-blowing," said Ryan Saghir of North Branford, Conn., who runs a blog about satellite radio called Orbitcast. "One of the main attractors to satellite radio is the unregulated content. Once you take away that … you're going to have some upset subscribers."

But industry observers said XM might have been more worried about offending federal regulators, who can block the company's proposed merger with its only rival, Sirius Satellite Radio, than staying true to its slogan, "Beyond AM. Beyond FM. XM."

Sensitivities have been heightened in Washington since the controversy over veteran shock jock Don Imus' racially offensive comments about the Rutgers University women's basketball team, which led to his firing last month by CBS Radio.

"It's hard to read anything into it other than that they're catering to federal officials," said William Kidd, a media analyst with Wedbush Morgan Securities in Los Angeles.

XM spokesman Nathaniel Brown would not comment on whether the pending merger was a factor in the suspension and would not say how many people had canceled their subscriptions. XM has suspended on-air personalities before, he said, but none with as high a profile as Hughes and Cumia.

It's not the first time a skit has landed the two shock jocks in trouble. CBS Radio, then known as Infinity Broadcasting, fired them in 2002 for broadcasting two listeners apparently having sex in New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral. The Federal Communications Commission fined Infinity $357,000 for the stunt.

XM, which does not fall under the FCC's indecency rules because it is a pay service, hired Hughes and Cumia in 2004. Their program, "The Opie & Anthony Show," airs from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. on XM and 24 CBS radio affiliates, which picked the duo back up last year.

It continues until about 11 a.m. only on XM, a segment that the show's website touts as "uncut, uncensored and totally filthy."

On May 9, the XM portion of the show aired a skit featuring a character called Homeless Charlie, who graphically described having sex with Bush, Rice and the queen. Hughes and Cumia played along, laughing and asking questions.

XM issued a statement condemning the comments, and Cumia and Hughes apologized on the air Friday.

On Monday's show, Hughes and Cumia complained about "dumb rules" and an "umbrella of morality and decency" that led Imus and some other hosts to get fired. XM officials suspended the pair Tuesday, saying the comments "put into question whether they appreciate the seriousness of the matter."

Satellite radio followers said the suspension was unprecedented. Some XM listeners were stunned and angry when they heard about it.

Ed L. Kelley of Wagoner, Okla., said he spent six hours on the phone Tuesday night trying to cancel. He's talking to an attorney about a class-action suit, saying that because "The Opie & Anthony Show" appears on one of XM's "explicit-language" channels, the company has violated its promise to deliver uncensored content.

"These guys make me laugh and they make fun of everybody equally," Kelley said.

Debbie Wolf, co-founder of People Against Censorship, called the suspension "outrageous" and organized the demonstration outside CBS Radio's studios. Christopher Lewis of Glenmoore, Penn., quickly registered http://www.cancelxm.com , and the message boards there and on other satellite radio sites have filled up with dozens of angry comments.

"I will not support a company that has decided the one true reason they exist no longer matters," wrote one poster on Orbitcast.

Howard Stern, who left traditional radio in 2004 after battling regulators, also weighed in from his new post at Sirius.

"If you want free speech," he told his listeners Wednesday, "walk in a closet and talk to yourself."

Kidd said the suspension could make it difficult for XM to attract edgy radio personalities who have viewed satellite as a haven for their outrageous acts.

"This will probably be a decision that XM will have to live with and, I suspect, likely regret over time," he said.

The suspension would be as surprising as HBO pulling "The Sopranos" for offensive content and will reverberate through the industry, said Tom Taylor, a former program director who edits the trade journal Inside Radio.

"People in the satellite world have felt safe … until this week," he said.

Opie & Anthony Fans Cancel XM and Destroy Their Radios in Response to Suspension

May 16

XM Satellite Radio is finding out first hand that Opie & Anthony have quite a few dedicated fans, fans who are now canceling the service en masse in response to the duo’s recent 30-day suspension. XM suspended the pair in response to so-called outrage stemming from a segment that aired on the program last week. (Well, really because, supposedly, there was an agreement in place that they wouldn’t discuss or even hint to the incident while on-air. XM apparently felt they did.) In fact, I was jogging around my idillic neighborhood when I heard the show and segment in question. Annnnndddd….

First, what happened. Last week, the boys invited a homeless guy, Charlie, who is not a recurring character on the show as some other outlets have reported, up to the studio to riff, to talk crazy homeless talk. They’ve had a bunch of homeless guys on their show over the years, asking them questions of what’s it’s like to be homeless in New York, why wouldn’t they rather be homeless in Miami (New York’s winters are awful for everyday Joes, I can’t imagine what’s it’s like for the homeless), what are the rules of the streets, etc. Or, in simple English, they put them on the air because it makes for good radio. Charlie said many things that day, like how only brand new, rookie police officers bother him when they find him doing homeless stuff (yes, that’s the technical term) and how Secretary of State Rice looks like she could use a man, implying that she’s uptight and so forth. The audio for that can be found here (NSFW, blah blah). You can decide whether or not Opie & Anthony or Charlie are openly advocating for the woman to be sexually assaulted. I’m going to take a wild guess and say they weren’t.

Now, the show’s fans are upset (to the point where some of them are destroying their XM units) for several reasons. First and foremost, XM is a subscription service. Fans pay their hard-earned $12.95 each month to hear adult language and humor because that’s what they like. Turn around and retroactively censor what they say and XM won’t be seeing their money anymore since that’s not what they’re paying for. Hell, they’ve even formed a Political Action Committee in response to all these recent radio firings. Some people subscribe to HBO to see Tony Soprano murder people, others subscribe to XM to hear Opie & Anthony make inappropriate jokes. Both are creative outlets and not “real,” so to speak. It is, in fact, a comedy show, so for people to scrutinize it like it’s Meet the Press seems a little silly. And besides, if XM is going to start objecting to “deplorable” language, when are they going to remove the explicit language-heavy comedy channel, or the stations that feature all that hip hop with its fine and morally sound depictions of women and society? You might as well just rock an iPod all day long. At least that doesn’t carry a monthly fee.

What should or shouldn’t be on radio aside, XM now has to deal with untold numbers of pests, as the fans of the show are called, canceling the service and destroying radios left and right in protest. Wonder how this affects the merger, a merger that many pests are against? Could it be that XM suspended O&A just to play politics and help the merger go through?

XM subscribers backlash over O&A suspension (digg)

XM subscribers have been reportedly canceling their subscriptions ever since the announcement that Opie & Anthony were suspended mid-day yesterday. The hold times for customer service yesterday escalated from a 30 minute wait, to an 1.5 hour wait, according to those who were on hold to cancel.

People Against Censorship (PAC), a group formed in reaction to recent radio hosts firings, has organized support rallies outside of O&A's CBS studios everyday for the remainder of the week. PAC also has a list of items fans can do to support the show, including canceling of XM subscriptions. They encourage subscribers not to smash their radios, though some angry fans have already done so.

It'll be interesting to see what happens over this...

XM 202 LOSES AD REVENUE WITH SUSPENSION OF OPIE AND ANTHONY

Written by indymike
Thursday, 17 May 2007

Nashville Coffee Company has said it has pulled its advertising from XM Radio (e-mail below). This was done because XM suspended Opie and Anthony for 30 days effective May 16. Besides an e-mail to People Against Censorship (P.A.C.), Nashville Coffee Company has posted this on their own website: As of May 15 at 3:30pm EST, we pulled our advertising spots from XM Radio. We pulled our spots from both Radio Disney (Channel 115) and The Virus (Channel 202). We have done this in response to XM Radio's censoring of the Opie and Anthony Show by suspending them for 30 days. It is apparent that XM Radio is beholden to crybaby special interest groups who cannot separate humor from reality. It is also unfortunate that XM Radio executives don't have the guts to stand up for their on air talent. (full text here) P.A.C. would like to thank the Nashville Coffee Company for sending a strong message to XM and asks all of its members to support them in any way possible. Please visit their website at www.nashvillecoffee.com .

Sponsor Pulls Advertising In Support of Opie and Anthony

Written by indymike
Thursday, 17 May 2007

Adameve.com will stop advertising on XM 202 next week if Opie and Anthony do not return to the channel. In a e-mail to People Against Censorship (P.A.C.) President Debbie Wolf, Libby Lyn of Adameve.com thanked members of P.A.C. for making them aware of the situation. The full e-mail can be read below.

P.A.C. wants to thank Adameve.com for standing behind O&A and asks anyone that agrees with this decision to support Adameve.com in any way possible.

Email from Libby Lynn at Adameve.comto Debbie Wolf at PeopleAgainstCensorship.org

My name is Libby; I work for Adameve.com. I just wanted to let you know that PAC is making a difference. Today, I received several phone calls from PAC members, asking us to stop advertising on XM202 in light of the recent suspension of Opie & Anthony. After meeting with our marketing team, Adameve.com has decided to cancel our advertisements on XM202 until and unless Opie & Anthony are allowed back on the air. Our ads should stop airing some time next week, and we will be sending out an official press release on Monday, 5/21/07. As an adult company with a long history of fighting for our First Amendment rights, freedom of speech issues are extremely important to Adameve.com and our parent company, PHE. We are a proud member of the Free Speech Coalition, and our founder, Phil Harvey, is a vocal and politically active opponent of First Amendment violations. On a personal note, I would like to thank the many PAC members for taking the time to call and make us aware of this situation. Freedom of speech is worth fighting for at any cost. On behalf of Adameve.com, thank you. Sincerely, Libby Lynn

PLEASE SHOW UP AT CBS STUDIOS WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, & FRIDAY FROM 6-9 TO SUPPORT O&A, 40 WEST 57TH STREET, BETWEEN 5TH AND 6TH

Here is a list of things you can do to help O&A in their time of need. Please do all of these things, then do them again, then find away to get 100 other people to do them!!!!!!!!!!

CANCEL YOUR XM SUBSCRIPTION!!!! IF YOU CANCEL, IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU NOT TAKE THE 30 FREE DAYS OR THE 3 FREE MONTHS. YOU ARE NOT MAKING ANY STATEMENT AT ALL IF TAKE THE 30 DAYS.
Do not smash your radios yet. Wait. We'll come up with a plan to make a statement.

CONSTANTLY CALL XM. THEY HAVE RECEIVED A RECORD AMOUNT OF CALLS ALREADY, AND TONIGHT AND TOMORROW ITS IMPORTANT THAT WE REGISTER AS MANY CALLS WITH THEM AS WE CAN. KEEP CALLING EVEN IF YOU'VE ALREADY CANCELLED OR YOU'RE NOT CANCELLING. ALSO CONSTANTLY EMAIL XM.

CALL CBS AND THE CBS SPONSORS AND THANK THEM FOR SPONSORING O&A AND ASK THEM TO CONTINUE SPONSORING O&A.

CONTACT ANY PRESS WHO WILL LISTEN TO YOU

JOIN PAC AND GET ANYONE YOU CAN TO JOIN AS WELL

CONTACT ANY COMICS/MUSICIANS/PEOPLE WHO HAVE APPEARED ON O&A. WRITE THEIR EMAILS AND MYSPACES AND ASK THEM TO STAND UP FOR O&A IN THE MEDIA. TELL THEM O&A PROMOTED YOU--- PLEASE HELP THEM NOW.
Here are some examples of people to myspace/email: Jay Mohr, Tracy Morgan, Carlos Mencia, Joe Rogan, Otto and George, Bob Sagat, Ralphie May, Dr. Ian Smith, Louis Black, Audioslave, Louis CK, Mila Jovavich, WWE personalities, Quentin Tarentino, Jim Breuer, Brian Regan, Steven Lynch, Sherrod Small, Judah Friedlander, Carolines Comedy Club, etc.

JOIN US TO DEMONSTRATE IN FRONT OF THE TODAY SHOW THIS THURSDAY AND THIS FRIDAY! 6AM TO 9AM AT 30 ROCKERFELLER PLAZA! TAKE OFF OF WORK! BE THERE! FOR O&A ITS WORTH IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BRING SIGNS WEAR SHIRTS.

MOST IMPORTANTLY- GET OTHERS TO DO THESE THINGS TO: TELL YOUR FRIENDS, REACH OUT TO OTHER MESSAGE BOARDS. POST ON THE BOARDS OF SEAN HANNITY, RUSH LIMBAUGH, GLEN BECK, THE DOGHOUSE, THE RADIO CHICK AND ANYONE YOU CAN THINK OF. AS THE NIGHT GOES ON, I WILL SUPPLEMENT THIS LIST WITH MORE IDEAS, AND TRY TO FILL IN THE EMAIL ADDRESSES YOU NEED. ENCOURAGE ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE TO COMPLETE EVERY STEP ON THIS LIST!!!!

GO TO ATLANTIC CITY THIS WEEKEND AND SUPPORT THE O&A POKER TOURNAMENT EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT PLAYING.

SEND OUT MYSPACE BULLITENS AND POST COMMENTS IN THE PAGES OF FAMOUS PEOPLE TO GET THE WORD OUT TO SUPPORT O&A! SEND THEM TO WWW.PEOPLEAGAINSTCENSORSHIP.COM. TELL THEM TO REGISTER.
REACH OUT TO OTHER FREE SPEECH ORGANIZATIONS, THE ADULT INDUSTRY, ANYONE WHO HAS AN INTEREST IN THIS ISSUE! REACH OUT TO THE PRESS.

GO BACK TO STEP 1 AND DO IT ALL AGAIN!