Hey, whatever happened to that liberal talk radio network?
Checking in with Air America.

6 months ago Air America started out with approximately 6 radio affiliates. Now the Air America network has 33 stations nationwide including in Sacramento, San Francisco, Portland, Oregon, Santa Barbara and San Diego--not, perversely, in Los Angeles, but I understand that's temporary. Also you can always go to the website and stream it into your computer-- Air America Radio

Click here to see a list of the stations and their call letters and numbers.

In other words, it's growing pretty fast. It's also beating Rush Limbaugh and the radio version of the O'Reilly Factor in many markets--a fact which they spend a disproportionate amount of time discussing on the air (I get it, but jeez).

I still listen a lot but now I can't stand Randi Rhodes. She is just wrong too often for me to take it. Al Franken has gotten a lot smoother after 6 months on the air, sort of found his sea legs.

The best shows at this point though are:
Unfiltered, which airs from 6-9am on the west coast, 9-12 on the east. Their official blurb is pretty accurate:

Unfiltered is co-hosted by The Daily Show co-creator Lizz
Winstead, Chuck D, leader and co-founder of legendary rap group Public Enemy, and Rachel Maddow, a rabblerousing broadcaster with a doctorate in politics from the University of Oxford. This uncompromising program puts politics and culture through the wringer, uncensored and unfiltered.

And The Majority Report which seems to air at 5pm pacific hosted by indie film favorite Janeane Garofalo and Sam Seder--very funny and very political (although all of Air America is political).

Right here in Sacramento we also have a local show from 4 to 5--the Power Hour with Christine Craft at am 1240. She's got an engaging style and earned my respect for organizing and promoting a pretty successful demo against Rudy Guiliani and some other big Bush bigwigs last week.

So listen to Air America in if they're in your town and tell me what you think.