Rush Limbaugh on Wednesday dismissed reports that numerous advertisers were leaving his show, and instead reminded listeners that he has thousands that are sticking with him.
“Everything is fine on the business side. Everything’s cool. There is not a thing to worry about.”
Limbaugh said there are reports that at least 28 sponsors had left the show.
He said that is “out of 18,000. That’s like losing a couple of french fries in the container when it’s delivered to you in the drive thru. You don’t even notice it.”
He also said he's adding more advertisers.
“We have three brand new sponsors that will be starting in the next two weeks. Obviously I’m not going to tell you who they are today, but we’ve got three brand new full-fledged sponsors that will be starting in the next two weeks,” Limbaugh said. “Two of the sponsors who have sponsored have asked to return.
“Whatever you are seeing on television about this program and sponsors and advertisers is just incorrect.”
Limbaugh stirred up liberals and created a firestorm last week when he called Georgetown University student Sandra Fluke a "prostitute" and a "slut" after she testifed on Capitol Hill about women's access to contraception. Limbaugh is against government subsidized contraceptive services.
He apologized to her earlier this week.
Limbaugh addressed the issue of sponsors at the beginning of his three-hour radio show.
“Let me try to explain how this works. Let’s take the claim that we’ve lost 28 sponsors. Sponsors on this program are both local and national. We deal with the national sponsors on this program. We have 600 plus stations. They sell their own commercials. We don’t have anything to do with those sponsors, we don’t get paid by those sponsors, we have no idea who those sponsors are,” he said.
Some sponsors can ask that their ads not run during certain time slots, he said.
“This happens every day. It’s been happening for 23 plus years. And it’s not just me. There are clients, advertiser that tell stations, I don’t want this to run on Beck’s show, I don’t want it to run in Hannity’s, I don’t want it to run on Howard Stern’s. It’s all part of the business,” he said.
“Nobody is losing money here, including us. And that is key for you to understand,” he said.
He also said there is no truth to claims he's being suspended. "I'd have to fire myself," he said.
“The left is so fed up they can’t see straight. They thought they’d have me they thought I would be off the air by now. They can’ understand why I still am,” he said. “It’s just part of an onslaught to try to convince you that this show’s history and our days are numbered. And I’m happy to tell you nothing could be further from the truth.”
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