On the same day Neilsen reported competition-dwarfing numbers for Fox News's coverage of the special election in Massachusetts on Tuesday night, Air America radio declared bankruptcy and will cease live broadcasts immediately.

In a statement posted to its web site, Air America's management explained:

With radio industry ad revenues down for 10 consecutive quarters, and reportedly off 21% in 2009, signs of improvement have consisted of hoping things will be less bad. And though Internet/new media revenues are projected to grow, our expanding online efforts face the same monetization and profitability challenges in the short term confronting the Web operations of most media companies

When Air America Radio launched in April, 2004 with already-known personalities like Al Franken and then-unknown future stars like Rachel Maddow, it was the only full-time progressive voice in the mainstream broadcast media world. At a critical time in our nation's history — when dissent on issues such as the Iraq war were often denounced as "un-American" — Air America and its talented team helped millions of Americans remember the importance of compelling discussion about the most pivotal events and decisions of our generation.

Through some 100 radio outlets nationwide, Air America helped build a new sense of purpose and determination among American progressives. With this revival, the progressive movement made major gains in the 2006 mid-term elections and, more recently, in the election of President Barack Obama and a strongly Democratic Congress.

Meanwhile, Fox News's rise into the cable news stratosphere continues unabated. According to Neilsen, Fox News drew an astonishing 6.2 million total viewers during primetime Tuesday night, compared to only 1.5 million for CNN and 1.1 million for MSNBC.

Clearly, those numbers are driven in part by the fact that Fox's right-leaning audience was intensely interested in the outcome of this race. But it also had to do with the fact that Fox simply provided more, and better, coverage of the event. Fox was the only network to cover Coakley and Brown's speeches in their entirety.

And as  Miami Herald TV critic Glenn Garvin points out, while Fox had a stream of liberal pundits on analyzing the race, MSNBC provided little more than spittle-flecked vitriol from its anchors:

Watching coverage of the Massachusetts senatorial election Tuesday night, I wondered if MSNBC was getting ready to cut off its cable signal to the state. Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow, positively enraged that Massachusetts dared to elect a Republican, delivered two hours of nonstop bilious rage toward the state's voters, calling them "irrational" and "teabaggers," engaged in "a total divorce from reality," and hinting that they're vicious racists to boot.

If you watched CNN or Fox News last night, you got a balanced analysis of how Republican Scott Brown pulled off the political upset of the century (or, if you prefer, how Democrat Martha Coakley blew a dead solid electoral lock). Yes, I said Fox News, without irony. To be sure, Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity made it clear they were rooting for Brown. But their shows also included a steady parade of liberal-leaning guests -- former San Francisco mayor Willie Brown, former Dukakis campaign manager Susan Estrich, Democratic party strategist Mary Anne Marsh, NPR commentator Juan Williams and radio host Alan Colmes. And pollster Frank Luntz interviewed a panel of two dozen or so Massachusetts voters, most of them Democrats, about how they voted and why. Practically every conceivable perspective on the election was represented.

Shouldn't Snarlin' Arlen know better than this? And, by the way, who is Arlen Specter to be grilling other people about what they stand for?

(Via Dan Malloy at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

UPDATE: Bachmann responds on Sean Hannity's radio program.

CongressDaily's Erin McPike reports this afternoon that Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) has been tapped to deliver the GOP response to Pres. Obama's State of the Union address next Wednesday.

In tapping McDonnell, GOPers hope to capitalize on the momentum the party has earned from recent electoral gains. McDonnell has been credited with laying out a blueprint for conservative GOPers to compete even in centrist states, and the party believes he is the best face to put in front of the country's surging populism.

McDonnell certainly had to be on the short list for the party, though Sen.-elect Scott Brown (R) had to be given consideration after his big win. McDonnell is the third Virginian in five years to be tapped for the State of the Union response; former Gov. Tim Kaine (D) gave the address just after his election four years ago, and Sen. Jim Webb (D) followed him after his win.

It's no coincidence that this is also the fourth time in five years a governor has been asked to deliver the response. With all things Washington out of favor, opposition parties are looking beyond the Beltway for the marquee slot.

Pat Robertson has met his match.

Achieving peace in the Middle East is "really hard."

Chris Matthews catches a good deal of crap (including from yours truly) for some of the silly partisan things he says. He is a dyed-in-the-wool liberal with a loose tongue who is on television for an hour five nights a week, and we all see the results.

So it's only fair to give Matthews credit for calling Howard Dean on his silly, "black is white" interpretation of Tuesday night's results. Watch:

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Here are some instant reactions to the Supreme Court's 5-4 decision this morning to roll back campaign finance limits:

Senate Judiciary Chair Pat Leahy (D-Vt.): "The Supreme Court's divided opinion is likely to change the course of our democracy and could threaten the public's confidence the Court's impartiality. As Justice Stevens noted in his dissent, the ‘Court's ruling threatens to undermine the integrity of elected institutions across the nation. The path it has taken to reach its outcome will, I fear, do damage to this institution.'"

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.): "For too long, some in this country have been deprived of full participation in the political process. With today's monumental decision, the Supreme Court took an important step in the direction of restoring the First Amendment rights of these groups by ruling that the Constitution protects their right to express themselves about political candidates and issues up until Election Day. By previously denying this right, the government was picking winners and losers. Our democracy depends upon free speech, not just for some but for all."

DSCC Chair Robert Menendez (D-N.J.): "Today's Supreme Court decision effectively rolls back decades of progress we have made towards ensuring the fairness of our elections. Giving corporate interests an outsized role in our process will only mean citizens get heard less. We must look at legislative ways to make sure the ledger is not tipped so far for corporate interests that citizens voices are drowned out."

NRSC Chair John Cornyn (R-Texas): "I am pleased that the Supreme Court has acted to protect the Constitution's First Amendment rights of free speech and association. These are the bedrock principles that underpin our system of governance and strengthen our democracy. This is an encouraging step, and it is my hope that political parties will one day soon be able to speak as freely as other citizen organizations are now permitted."

DCCC Chair Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.): "This is a scandalous decision. This is a decision that equates, for the purposes of expending monies in elections, says that corporations equal individuals. I think it is an un-American decision and think that when the American people understand what this radical decision has meant, they will be even more furious and concerned about special interest influence in politics than they are today."
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Public Policy Polling's (D) latest survey in North Carolina (678 RVs, 1/15-18, MoE +/- 3.8%) continues to see little movement in the Senate race there, even though Sen. Richard Burr's (R) approval rating remains in a vulnerable state.

General Election Matchups
Burr 45 -- Cunningham 36 -- Und 19
Burr 46 -- Lewis 34 -- Und 20
Burr 44 -- Marshall 37 -- Und 18

Only 36 percent of voters approve of Burr's job performance, while 33 percent disapprove and another 30 percent are unsure. His lead can be attributed to the fact that each of the Democrats have low name ID in the state.

Favorable Ratings
Cunningham 6 / 8
Lewis 7 / 10
Marshall 19 / 12

National Democrats had worked to recruit Cal Cunningham into the race. You can read our recent interview with him here.

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The bellwether Show Me State may have another indication of the shifting political wins. Secretary of State Robin Carnahan (D) has held a consistent but narrow lead over Rep. Roy Blunt (R) in the state's Senate race. But a new Rasmussen survey (1/19, 500 LVs, MoE +/- 4.5%) shows that Blunt has now jumped out to a 6-point lead.

General Election Matchup
Blunt 49 (+5 vs. last poll, 12/15)
Carnahan 43 (-3)
Und 5 (-1)

Favorable Ratings
Blunt 56 / 34
Carnahan 49 / 46

President Obama has an approval rating of 41 percent, down six points since the December survey. His disapproval is up to 58 percent, from 53 percent last month. Only 37 percent of voters say they support the health care legislation, while 62 percent oppose.

Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon, also elected in 2008, boasts a strong 61 percent approval rating.

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In the race for only a week, former congressman Tom Campbell has taken the lead in the Senate Republican primary in California. According to a new Field Poll (Jan. 5-17, 958 LV, MoE +/- 3.3%), Campbell jumps out front against previous front-runner Carly Fiorina, while conservative Assemblyman Chuck DeVore trails by a significant margin.

Campbell 30
Fiorina 25
DeVore 6
Und 39

Matched up against Sen. Barbara Boxer in the general election, all three Republicans trail the three-term senator by double digits. Campbell is the only candidate that keeps Boxer under 50% support.

Boxer 48 - Campbell 38 - Und 14

Boxer 50 - Fiorina 35 - Und 15

Boxer 51 - DeVore 34 - Und 15

In October, Fiorina trailed by a similar 49%-35% margin, as did DeVore, whom Boxer led then 50%-33%.

The three Republicans remain mostly unknown to Californians, with at least a third of voters saying they have no opinion about them. The Fiorina campaign, out with a statement before the poll was released, chalks up Campbell's lead to his high name recognition, though it's fairly similar to Fiorina's.

"Once voters learn that Tom has spent the last five years supporting increased government spending, higher taxes and now refuses to commit to not voting for more tax increases in the Senate we expect his numbers to fall fast," said Fiorina's deputy campaign manager Julie Soderlund.
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