» Dear Mr. President: Following this week's historic presidential election, we asked readers to email us with their advice for President-elect Barack Obama. No surprise that several readers included an opinion or two on the idea of re-imposing the repealed Fairness Doctrine. Here's a sample of some of the responses we received. Your contribution to the dialog is always welcome HERE: • "Get more Greek columns, the rights to Jesus Christ Superstar, and recipes for arugula. But, do not try to re-impose the ironically titled Fairness Doctrine unless you believe big media simply will never turn on you like it eventually turned on John 'The Erratic Maverick' McCain (ask Hillary how fickle the media can be). As for spreading the wealth around, would you please send me some of Warren Buffett's money that you'll be redistributing? $20K should be enough, for now. And see what you can do about that thrill going up Chris Matthews' leg. How soon could I have you as my guest on NewsRadio 1020 KDKA? (Seriously, how soon?)" -- Dimitri Vassilaros, KDKA/Pittsburgh • "The last thing you need is to stick a knife in the back of another segment of the economy. Therefore, please tell the return-to-Fairness Doctrine-types in your own party to stifle it. Rush, Sean, Bill and Laura aren't going away. They'd only migrate to the Internet and leave a lot of rusty sticks in the sky. PS: Tell Joe he can now visit Delaware aboard Amtrak One." -- Jim Bohannon, Westwood One • "Surround yourself with the best and the brightest. Remember your job is to do what's best for all 300,000,000 Americans and America, not just the people who voted for you.  This is not the City Council or the Senate. You are not just one of a hundred, you are the one. Live up to it. And please, no 'hummers' in the Oval Office like the last member of your party to reside there." -- Ken Charles, WIOD-WINZ/Miami • "Read Ayn Rand." -- Matt Scafidi, WMMB/Melbourne, FL

» What Do You Think, World?" That's what Air America host Thom Hartmann wanted to know, so on yesterday's post-Election Day program (/11/5) Hartmann encouraged international listeners to call in and tell U.S. listeners just how people in their countries were reacting to Obama's election. "In just the first hour calls came in from France, Armenia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Honduras, Kenya, Mexico, England, Canada, Ireland, Puerto Rico, Belgium, and the US Virgin Islands," says Hartmann. "One of the most poignant was a woman from a small village in rural Mexico -- who listens to the show online every day -- who was openly weeping that America could again be a beacon of hope and a role model for the world. To a person, each told stories of how their country was in a state of celebration at the Obama victory." Hartmann has posted the worldwide calls on his show archive pages HERE.

» What's Next For Talk Radio? In the wake of Election Day's Democratic sweep, Austin-based Benchmark CEO and part-time KLBJ/Austin talk host Dr. Rob Balon thinks the answer to that question is a move to more diverse programming at Talk stations. "Obama won pretty handily," he says. "The daily battering of Obama and Biden from Rush, Hannity, Ingraham, Beck, O'Reilly, Gallagher, Boortz, et al, didn't seem to matter all that much. And while ratings have been good for Talk radio, imagine what they could have been with more lineups like the one here at KLBJ. They have a morning show with two conservatives and a quasi-liberal, an hour-long show with a local liberal and conservative, Rush for three hours, Boortz for an hour, a local Libertarian from 3-6 [for whom I occasionally fill-in] and sports from 6-7. Yes, KLBJ carries Rush and Boortz, but also a wide array of other local opinions and programming. We've analyzed the program content on Talk radio for years and our research suggests that, once again, a lot of Talk stations around the country are blowing the most unprecedented opportunity in years to create new listeners for the format." Look for more extensive comments from Balon in an upcoming issue of NTS Aircheck Weekly.

» In Tomorrow's NTS Aircheck Weekly: An oft-asked question in our industry is, "Who are the next generation of talk hosts that will attract new fans to the format?" Dial-Global's answer is Todd Schnitt, the WFLA/Tampa-based afternoon talker that Clear Channel SVP News/Talk/Sports Programming Gabe Hobbs wishes there were more of. "The Talk radio industry needs more Todd Schnitt's and fewer 'wonks,'" says Hobbs. "His ability to recognize topics that relate to his target and then deliver on that topic in a totally entertaining way is what drives his success." Read our exclusive one-on-one with the host of The Schnitt Show in the November 7 issue of NTS Aircheck Weekly arriving to your inbox tomorrow morning.