I just got some spam from Air America confirming that this story is true.. but I doubt Chuck will lose any sleep over it, since he is rarely heard at all on the show anymore. The show's website has a 39-line bio for Chuck and only two lines for co-host Rachel Maddow, but the actual show is about 97% Maddow..
The original third co-host Lizz Winstead got canned last week, which Air America handled with a real creepy corporate vibe, pretending nothing happened and allowing almost no on-air discussion or explanation of her sudden disappearance.
AAR needs to learn that the key to (talk) radio is its intimacy, the intimate connection you make with those voices.. that's why Howard Stern's approach, letting this type of in-house drama play out openly over the air, is so effective.. it reinforces the audience's feeling that they are part of the family. Air America's silent stonewalling approach just ruins that magic, and they'll have trouble keeping their listeners if they keep that up.
