No, not Mr. Echo from "Lost." Mr. Echo as in Echo Chamber, the proverbial poli-buzz-buzz that follows any announcement such as that of Mark Larson yesterday morning.
Larson, an oft rumored candidate but never yet the bride, announced on the air Friday morning that he is leaving his KOGO Radio talk show effective immediately. Mark posts on his blog, "This is fully my decision, based on many factors. It’s no secret that the programming change a couple of months ago has been a difficult transition, and something that was increasingly difficult to do with all of my other business interests. The day felt like it was two days long." (As that probably wasn’t enough of a toughie, he and his wife later in the morning found one of their dogs had died.)
As there has been much conjecture about Larson’s possible run for an open Duncan Hunter seat (C.D. 52), especially considering Duncan’s son is in the mix, the announcement drove Mr. Echo into high gear. I came home last night to several emails — from reporters, consultants, and fellow hacks — asking what I had heard. Red County/San Diego posted that Larson was resigning to run for Congress, implying the possibility that Duncan D. is now not doing so (Larson is close to the Hunters).
Obviously, the conjecture from some (many?) is that the KOGO resignation must be due to a bid for Congress. However, no question the Clear Channel programming change was having a negative impact on Larson, so it may not be as simple as folks want to believe.
Sometimes, timing is simply coincidence. Sometimes, not.
I thought to myself, "Why don’t I ask Mark?" A novel approach, something the political blog community should consider more often.
Mark’s answer: "I’m sorting it all out. I”ll tell you more soon. I’m going to make a decision regarding Congress by July 4 at the latest."
OK, he’s not out, he’s not necessarily in. As simple as anything in politics. More to follow.
In the meantime….
Mark Larson’s Blog: http://larsonblog.blogspot.com/
Red County/San Diego: http://www.redcountysandiego.com/
June 17th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Barry:
The way in which this was handled, by KOGO program director
Cliff Albert, and by Mark Larson, reflected credit on both.
They talked, on air, for an hour explaining that Mark had an option
to leave at this time, and was doing so for personal reasons
relating to business and family. Mark praised Cliff Albert and
KOGO with obvious sincerity.
Usually, when personalities leave a radio outlet, they simply
disappear and are never mentioned again.
Cliff Albert is known in San Diego for his annual “you are there”
news cast of what Christmas would have sounded like if radio
were in existence 2,000 years ago. It is brilliant and inspiring.