Politics

Limbaugh’s “Slut” And “Prostitute” Comments Lose Him Advertisers

There are consequences to calling someone a “slut” and a “prostitute” on national radio.

Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh, who has been making headlines all week for using these colorful words to describe Georgetown student Sandra Fluke, has lost several advertisers for shaming her publicly.

“We don’t condone negative comments directed toward any group. In response, we are currently pulling our ads from Rush with Rush Limbaugh,” the company Sleep Train Mattress Centers wrote on its Twitter page Friday. Sleep Train received some supportive tweets and was praised for “doing the right thing,” but some criticized the company and other businesses for “[b]owing to political pressure.” Sleep Number also announced Friday that it would “suspend all advertising on [Limbaugh's] program” immediately because his words “do not align [with their] values.” Virtual computing company Citrix pulled ads from Limbaugh’s show that same day, saying in a statement, “Over the past day, we’ve heard from many great Citrix customers about our advertising on The Rush Limbaugh Show….While Citrix obviously does not control any show’s content or endorse opinions of their hosts, we do take the concerns of our customers seriously. When they are upset about something, we listen. After careful consideration, we have decided to discontinue our advertising on The Rush Limbaugh Show.”

It seems businesses and groups are becoming guilty by association, even if they’re not actually tied to Limbaugh. Dating site eHarmony tweeted at dozens of Twitter users Friday to clarify that they’re not sponsors of Limbaugh’s show: “We’ve never paid for ads on Limbaugh. We’re looking into the matter of ‘network buys’ & will let you know what we discover.” Sears experienced the same misunderstanding , as it tweeted to numerous people Friday that the company did not buy media for Limbaugh’s show.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told the Washington Post this week that she was surprised more conservatives hadn’t come out against Limbaugh’s statements, but what they think may not matter as much as what advertisers think at this point. With the #StopRush campaign and advertisers dropping like flies, calls for Limbaugh’s resignation could be in the near future.

TAGS: Rush Limbaugh | rush limbaugh prostitute | rush limbaugh slut | Sandra Fluke

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