Larry - there is no question, Air America has only a handful of stations and it is minor compared to the huge numbers that Limbaugh gets. You need to understand that Air America is starting from scratch, buying time on INDEPENDENT stations - stations that are not owned by Clearchannel or one of the remaining media conglomorates. It is very difficult to get a voice on commercial radio when large corporations control what we listen to.

Of course they are having HUGE financial problems. That does not mean they are doomed for failure. They have restructed their managment. Their initial plan was to lease time on stations and keep all the ad revnue for themselves. They are now adopting a more traditional approach which will enable them to create deals with station groups and share ad revenue.

Ratings in New York for April have shown that Air America has more listeners in the 25- to 54-year-old demographic from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. than did WABC, where the Limbaugh is heard. Air America also beat WABC among the 18- to 34-year-old group. Not a bad start.

Whether Air America suceeds remains to be seen. The fact is, they are disproving a belief that liberal radio voices are not marketable. Limbaugh is a genius at working his audience and building his show. He has to be given credit.   The left never had a voice to counter that.   Al Franken alone has proven that it can be done.