Talk Radio Tuneout
Substack,
by
G Frank Ferris
Original Article
Posted By: Boomer in the Basement,
12/15/2025 11:45:08 PM
Now that we’re firmly in December, I can comfortably drive around in the truck with Jimmy Durante’s gravelly crooning of Frosty the Snowman for the eighteen-millionth time in my life, rather than tune into what passes for talk radio these days. To be sure, I’ll even turn up The Chipmunks—poor old Alvin being screamed at by Dave—before I switch over to the local AM station carrying Clay and Buck, or, God help me, Sean Hannity.
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Reply 1 - Posted by:
Christopher L 12/16/2025 12:21:03 AM (No. 2041783)
I listened to the Clay & Buck Show for a while, but it didn't seem like it was really hitting the mark. I gave them a break since no one could replace El Rushbo. But they never seemed to get better. I switched over to Dan Bongino, who was great, but he went on to bigger and better things. So, now I listen to The Vince Show and he is doing a very good job. Terrible name for a show. But I've heard him say since no one could pronounce or spell his last name, Coglianese, he just went with The Vince Show.
10 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
wilarrbie 12/16/2025 12:24:05 AM (No. 2041784)
Thank you, Boomer for posting, Substack for publishing, and Mr Ferris for saying. Bo Snerdley (James Golden) would have been a wonderful replacement voice for Rush. Clay & Buck, and Hannity - this guy just nails it. Siiiigh.
11 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
crashnburn 12/16/2025 12:31:49 AM (No. 2041789)
I was never a big fan of Rush, even though he made talk radio talk radio. I liked his guest hosts better.
I listened to Red Eye Radio for a while, but those guys are occasionally right, but never in doubt. I quit listening to them when the completely ignored Katie Lake getting shafter in AZ. I liked Dan, and his replacement, Vince, a lot.
0 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
DVC 12/16/2025 12:44:00 AM (No. 2041794)
I gave up on the Sexton and Clay show very quickly. Just not interesting. Hannity, I got my fill of while Rush was still alive, always turned Hannity off after Rush was over.
No national talk show hosts worth the time any more. Rush was very, very special. I miss him frequently when I'm driving and there's nothing on worth the time.
31 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
john56 12/16/2025 1:05:28 AM (No. 2041802)
It's too bad Mark Steyn couldn't be convinced to take over Rush's chair at the EIB Institute for Conservative Studies.
35 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
Newtsche 12/16/2025 1:08:59 AM (No. 2041803)
Jesse Kelly, give him a listen.
Levin may have gone nuts.
10 people like this.
As time passes, it becomes more obvious how absolutely brilliant and astute Rush was - about everything. The only one who ever came close (although I didn't get to listen to him much) was/is Bill Cunningham. Does he still have his edge?
10 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
Flyball Dogs 12/16/2025 2:49:12 AM (No. 2041814)
Hannity has been unwatchable and unlistenable for more than 15 years.
I’ve decided he’s not a particularly bright bulb. But he has the gift of gab (and gab and gab and gab etc), which makes him attractive to program managers, I suppose.
I miss El Rushbo so much.
23 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
franq 12/16/2025 6:00:40 AM (No. 2041833)
The problem with talk radio and podcasts is that the presenters talk a lot, but say very little. At this stage of my life, time is precious.
8 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
joew9 12/16/2025 7:09:21 AM (No. 2041863)
Over the time Rush was on I would estimate I listened to greater than 95% of his shows. Before streaming I setup a tape recorder at home. The next day I would bring that tape into work. At another workplace I discovered I could pick up the station way at the other end of the building. I put a radio above the ceiling tiles and ran an ethernet cable all the way over to my desk. But it didn't really have ethernet, it just had audio. The IT people just thought it was ethernet and left it alone. Then I discovered a Biloxi station was streaming so I listened to that every day and got used to the ads for their restaurants. Then another fellow at work began bringing in CDs of previous day's broadcast and set them up as Windows shares. There were several other tricks I did to not miss Rush. Just the other day while cleaning out my car I pulled a list I had made of all the Rush stations from Atlanta to South Florida. As one faded out I would consult my list for the next one.
8 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
RussZilla 12/16/2025 7:22:49 AM (No. 2041870)
Boston radio has good locals, like Howie Carr. Good show, WRKO. A newspaper reporter at the start of his career, he came up on radio following Rush’s show. He does a lot of local stuff and does very well with the national news. Hes on in the late afternoons against Hannity, and beats him every time with with and insight and sharp detail. hannity was always Rush lite, and his bumper music has always sucked.
4 people like this.
Agree 100% with poster 5. I loved when Steyn subbed for Rush.
9 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
Namma 12/16/2025 7:35:19 AM (No. 2041881)
O’Connor and Company and Chris Plante are great. News right out of Washington. Both on in the early hours of the morning until noon. I don’t miss their broadcasts.
Give these shows a listen. They are much better then the chipmunks getting screamed at by Dave!
2 people like this.
Ferris speaks for me! Anyone who ever listened to Rush cannot settle for these pathetic posers.
I have been turning Sean off for many years, due to his constant interrupting of guests and his boring drivel about his life and that of his sidekick, which is nothing but filler. Rush always had more than enough researched material to fill his show. If anyone could see inside my car they would hear me pushing the button to turn Sean off and yelling, "I can't stand you!"
Clay and Buck are not as annoying, but are equally dull. Their filler is things like what food do you like at Thanksgiving, or sports talk. I guess they think we find them fascinating. I hope Rush is not watching what happened to his legacy EIB network.
6 people like this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
Sanddollar 12/16/2025 7:47:45 AM (No. 2041895)
I agree with what was said about the dim bulb of Hannity and the boring show of Clay and Buck. Rush was a natural for radio. I remember how funny he was during Clinton and Monica uproar. The parodies on his show were hilarious. Rush also knew so many people. He had excellent political analysis. I doubt someone like him will come along again. I listen to music instead of talk radio like the writer of this piece.
8 people like this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
chumley 12/16/2025 7:47:45 AM (No. 2041896)
I liked Rush and G. Gordon, and Hannity for his first few years. Then it just got old. Hannity and Ingram had a very annoying interview style wherein they would keep asking a guest the same question over and over, browbeating, until they got the answer they wanted. If Hannity didnt ever get the answer he wanted he would end it with a disappointed "yowl", which I took to mean "yeah". I used to like Levin but he lost his temper and ranted like a petulant little kid one too many times.
And the endless commercials. It seemed like half of every show was commercials.
I dont listen to anyone anymore.
4 people like this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
cgood 12/16/2025 8:10:32 AM (No. 2041917)
Can't help but miss Rush. Clay and Buck lack historical context. They are certainly not as intelligent as they think they are. Sean doesn't listen to callers or guests because he is only focused on what he plans to say. Also, although it is petty, I want to explode every time he insists on calling the Burna "the Burner" instead. Not sure why the sponsor tolerates it.
4 people like this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
Ja47646 12/16/2025 8:32:48 AM (No. 2041933)
I miss Rush so much! Listened to him as much as I could while raising kids. My adult kids still wince when I mention him! Clay and Buck are a very weak substitute. I now listen to Jesse Kelly on his podcast. He is the only one I really have grown to enjoy on talk radio since Rush left us.
4 people like this.
Reply 19 - Posted by:
Aspen02 12/16/2025 8:38:13 AM (No. 2041938)
Why was Mark Steyn not the replacement?
4 people like this.
Reply 20 - Posted by:
chillijilli 12/16/2025 8:51:19 AM (No. 2041951)
OK, Boomer. You have spoken for me, exactly. Talk is talk and Rush was a first-rate, very polished talker. But he was something MORE, wasn't he? What was that unique, obscure quality that NO ONE could copy? He was precocious and whip-smart---but not in an academic or bookish way. His audience knew they could count on the accuracy of his shrewd and witty observations. He got his point across by poking fun at the opposition, the bureaucracy, and even himself. Above all, he was CLEVER.
Ahhhh. Those parodies. Love you, Rush, and thanks. Sigh.
6 people like this.
Reply 21 - Posted by:
Strike3 12/16/2025 9:10:05 AM (No. 2041965)
Jimmy Failla is the only talk show host I listen to because the man's talent for comedy is tremendous. Hannity is the worst.
1 person likes this.
Reply 22 - Posted by:
BeatleJeff 12/16/2025 9:28:35 AM (No. 2041982)
I was a loyal Rush listener from 1992 up through the mid-2010s. I would listen three hours a day every day. But around 2015 I moved into an office that got really poor radio reception, and I was only able to listen when I was out and about during my lunch hour. After he passed, I gave Dan Oingoboingo a try, but it just wasn't the same. Now that I'm retired, on days when I'm at home not traveling, during the time I would have been listening to Rush, I'm tuned into Dagen McDowell on Fox Business. She's smart as a whip and very entertaining.
0 people like this.
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