Res Ipsa Loquitur

I have to agree. I used to like him, but he just gets on my nerves _way_ too much. If he didn't take himself so seriously then I might be able to watch it. Personally, I have a lot more fun listening to the O'Franken Factor on the radio. He freely admits that he's biased and he's just really freakin' funny (IMHO).

I haven't listened to Al's show, but from everything I've seen he's turned into the commentator that he used to parody on SNL. Like I've said before, there seems to be something about radio that brings out the ass in people. I wonder if it isn't due to the feeling of anonymity that comes from talking just to the mike. Like posting on the internet, there's no face-to-face interaction, so people feel 'safe' to say things they'd never talk about in public.

Now there's an interesting study for some enterprising sociologist/behavioralist.

You're right. Anonymity allowed the creation of that format and is essential to its continued use. Check out the CB culture across America. The conversations are almost exactly like, and are often fueled by, radio talk shows. The main difference is that CB Hosts often punctuate their statements with threats of physical violence ("pull over and I'll stomp you into a mudhole.") rather than conversational repartee ("and we need to remember, you have read that one book.").