Paul Finebaum I Hate

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Defending Finebaum: a reply to an open letter Posted by capstonereport on April 25th, 2011 filed in Commentary 108 Comments »

Despite what some have told you ( see here ), the state of Alabama has more than its fair share of idiots. Sure, most of them wear orange and blue—evidenced by the fact these are the only people who believe Cam Newton—but that fact should not move you to pity them. You could protect them from themselves by banning the Paul Finebaum Radio Network , but they would only find other outlets to embarrass themselves and the state of Alabama. They might call Tim Brando’s show out of desperation for attention! Imagine the carnage if that were to happen. Poor old Tammy.

Nor should you entertain pleas to muzzle free expression on your satellite airwaves. As long as your programming is not indecent, then the marketplace should determine what it likes. Clearly, the state of Alabama likes Paul Finebaum.

You might ask yourself, “Why does the state of Alabama like Paul Finebaum?”

The answer is simple; he is not locked into the groupthink of local media. He does not defend Auburn the way some major newspapers do. He is fair. And that fact angers Auburn fans. They are accustomed to biased coverage through outlets like the Birmingham News or sad radio like WJOX’s Opening Drive—from which many have fled to listen to national shows like Colin Cowherd’s excellent program from ESPN.

In fact, Paul Finebaum’s radio program is the closest thing to fair media available in this state. Everyone has a voice—and that scares some. It frightens the elites because they have never understood talk radio; this is the same fear that consumes some elites about blogs—it gives voice to the masses. In some ways, these are analogous to the development of the printing press. The printing press provided information to many without the cost associated with the production of manuscripts. It sparked a revolution. While on a much smaller scale, sports talk radio and now the Internet have redefined reporting and entertainment. It isn’t all good that comes from talk radio or the Internet. But to muzzle something because Auburn fans are upset that the truth is told, would do harm to the state of Alabama.

Do not pity Auburn and its fans. Let the nation mock if it must, but that is a small price to pay for truth.

Sincerely, An admirer of free markets

PS: You might ask yourself, what is Auburn afraid of today? What are its fans afraid of today? Why not last week or last August? Is something different today? What is their agenda? That answer might tell you the best is yet to come.

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