Is #StopRush a Liberal Media Conspiracy? Rush Says So
Rush Limbaugh, whose show is broadcast daily on News/Talk 790 KFYO, alleged in an article posted to his website yesterday that the #StopRush media campaign is not a grassroots effort, as its organizers claim, but in fact an orchestrated effort by "hardcore political activists." But do the numbers add up?
You can read Rush's full case, including the names, locations, Twitter handles, and sometimes even email addresses of the ten individuals rush claims are behind the effort, on his website, as well as his "Top Ten Facts" about the movement. The short version goes like this:
Angelo Carusone, Director of Online Strategy for Media Matters for America, is the mastermind behind #StopRush, and he and the other nine names on Rush's list account for "almost 70%" of all #StopRush tweets sent to Rush's advertisers. Further, "almost every communication" to these advertisers originates from outside of the advertiser's State, and therefore, Rush suggests, this movement is politically (and not consumer-) driven.
For his part, Carusone disagrees with Rush's claims: "After initially insisting there were no troubles with advertisers, two years later Limbaugh's crisis team comes out with a report attributing [losing millions of dollars in revenue] to just 10 people? The numbers just don't add up."