$!&$ &$*% @&#& ^$&$

Damn it. It’s been such a good week but there was the marriage amendment passing here and nowthis…

Just three days after Madison’s left celebrated wins by the Democrats, broadcasting behemoth Clear Channel Radio delivered a stunning right hook Friday, announcing it would silence Air America in the Madison market and replace the liberal talk-show format on WXXM-FM (92.1) The Mic with an all-sports format from Fox Radio Sports.

So long, political debate and comment. Hello, serve, set, spike and point.

“I find it puzzling as to the timing given the election results,” said Terry Kelly, one of the founding members of the Air America network and a longtime Madison businessman. “There is no business reason that is apparent to me (for the change), therefore, one wonders what the real reasons may be.”

The move by Clear Channel, which operates 1,140 radio stations in the United States, comes after the radio station posted a solid gain in the Arbitron ratings, going from a 2.3 share in the summer of 2005 to 3.7 this summer, placing 11th in the market for listeners 12 and older. It also means that beginning on Jan. 1, one of the most liberal cities in the country will be without a commercial radio network of the same tilt.

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