Eugene Kane Speaks

In this week's edition of the Onion, one of the few things besides Whallah! that is worth reading, there is an interview with Eugene Kane. Unfortunately, the AV Club doesn't have it's local stuff on the Internet yet, but, in further service to our public, Whallah! provides you with the pertinent parts:

AVC: Conservative talkers dominate Milwaukee radio. Does this reflect where the city is at politically, or do right-wingers just have bigger mouths?

EK: On most things—the war in Iraq and President Bush’s incompetence—I’m more in tune with people than they are. That’s what’s interesting to me, that they still have a platform. I want them to have a platform; I wouldn’t want just one part of this political debate to have all the dominance in town. But right-wing radio, it has its slice of the market, but it’s never been as huge as a lot of people thought it was. There are politicians in this town who are just afraid to ever hear their names on Sykes or Belling, but these guys don’t have that much influence any more.

AVC: You and Charlie Sykes work for the same company. Have you ever run into each other at a Journal Communications mixer?

EK: No, thank God. We never invite Charlie Sykes to our Journal Communications mixers. Actually, I’m not even sure if they have mixers like that.

AVC: Have you ever met?

EK: I’ve actually been on his show a couple of times—I’m sure it’s been more than 10 years—and I think he got the sense right away that I’m not the kind of black guy that’s going to go on Charlie Sykes and just smile and agree with him all the time. So, I’ve never gone back to the show.

AVC: Talk-show host and journalist Jessica McBride was fired by WTMJ in 2007 after airing a bit where she portrayed you as a squawking chicken in a debate over the death of a 4-year-old Milwaukee girl. What was your reaction?

EK: She wasn’t fired for that. She got fired because it was a lousy show and they were looking for a way to get rid of her. But it did amuse me that she felt it was so important to tweak me with this bit that wasn’t really all that funny, and it ended up ruining her radio career. Karma, I would say that is.

The rest of the interview is a good read as well. So after you get done enjoying your daily dose of Whallah!, get your butt out and pick up a copy, available at many areas around Milwaukee.