» "We All Should Be Fair And Balanced!" That's what U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) said in an interview on FOX News earlier today when asked if he favored a return of the repealed Fairness Doctrine. On the eve of what polls predict will be a Democratic majority in Congress and a Democrat in the White House, Schumer was asked if he supports the idea of government intervention into what broadcast radio -- primarily Talk radio -- programs. "The very same people who don't want the Fairness Doctrine want the FCC to limit pornography on the air," said the NY Senator. "I am for that, but you can't say government [should be] hands off in one area to a commercial enterprise, but you are allowed to intervene in another. That's not consistent." Schumer's remarks come in the wake of recent indications of support for a return of the Fairness Doctrine by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and other congressional Democrats.

» Dude, The Mic Is Always Live! Words to live by for anyone in a broadcast studio as KGO/San Francisco host Karel Bouley was reminded of last weekend. In a story first reported by veteran talk host and Radio Equalizer blogger Brian Maloney, Bouley reportedly let fly with an angry and profanity-laced tirade when he thought he was off the air during a newsbreak. During the rant Bouley wished death on the infamous "Joe The Plumber" who has been the subject of much discussion in the presidential campaign's recent weeks. NTS Aircheck Today has confirmed that the talk host's F-Bomb-peppered outburst did go out over the air, a fact Karel acknowledged during an on-air apology immediately following the break. No big surprise that KGO management could offer only an official "no comment" to inquiries about the incident while things are investigated and sorted out. Bouley currently hosts evenings and weekends at the Citadel Bay Area News/Talker from his home base in Los Angeles. Karel and his late partner Andrew Howard made headlines in SoCal and nationally in 1998 when they became the first openly gay couple to host a drive time radio show together on KFI.

» "World F-Ing Champions!" That was the enthusiastic cheer by Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley that slipped out on several Philly TV stations carrying the team's World Series victory celebration in the City of Brotherly Love last week. Utley's fleeting expletive can now be added to the "Ooops Hall of Fame" list alongside similar on-air utterances by Cher, Bono and Nicole Richie. Those last three will be the subject of the just begun U.S. Supreme Court hearing of the FCC vs. FOX Television case to decide whether or not stations that inadvertently air such spontaneous and fleeting incidents are subject to punishment by the federal government. The FCC is hoping the high court will overturn a federal appeals court decision that previously ruled in favor of FOX on the matter. Another federal court also ruled last year to rescind the FCC's $550,000 fine against CBS-TV for the now infamous "wardrobe malfunction" incident at Super Bowl 2004 involving Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake.

» Final Campaign Media Report Card: For weeks Media Monitors has been tracking the radio and TV spending habits of both presidential candidates over the course of the campaign. In the final days before Election Day, stations in Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Virginia were among the greatest beneficiaries of radio spending by both Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain. According to Media Monitors' latest report, the Obama campaign aired a whopping 166,523 ads during the month of October vs. McCain's 46,372 radio ads. The wide spending gap between the candidates reflects the general pattern of media campaign ad spending that has reportedly topped $1 billion overall. See more final political ad spending numbers HERE.

» Salem Gets Down To Biz In Seattle: The Camarillo, CA-based broadcaster has dropped its conservative Talk lineup at KKOL in favor of a new business and financial news format featuring Bloomberg Radio, syndicated talker Ray Lucia and business updates from CNBC. That leaves Salem Radio Network hosts Dennis Prager, Mike Gallagher, Bill Bennett and other syndicated conservative talkers looking for a new radio home in the Emerald City. Salem also owns and operates Hispanic Christian Talk KNTS and Regional Mexican KKMO in the market.

» Let's Give 'Em Something To Talk About! A final encouragement to you to get out and vote today, no matter your preference. Regardless of who wins the White House, when all is said and done both conservative and liberal Talk radio hosts will have a daily diet of fresh topics to talk about for another four years. And as one industry colleague reminded me recently, "Hey, when this election is over, we can start talking about 2012!"