When Rush Limbaugh called Sandra Fluke a slut, he probably thought it was just another incendiary remark: the latest in a four-decade career full of – and, arguably, built on – incendiary remarks.
In February 2012, Fluke, a 30-year-old graduate law student at Georgetown, appeared before Washington lawmakers to explain why her university ought to offer free contraception under its student health insurance plan. Limbaugh, 62, the cigar-chomping king of conservative talk-radio, described her on his show as a “slut” and a “prostitute”.
When his comments proved controversial, rather than back down, he doubled down, suggesting: “If we are going to pay for your contraceptives, thus pay for you to have sex, we want something for it … We want you to post the videos online so we can all watch.”
But this particular incendiary remark, and the ensuing controversy, were different to the others. A year later, observers believe his “slut” moment may prove to have been the beginning of the end for Limbaugh. Not only has the big beast been wounded, but some say the right-wing shock-jock’s entire species may be facing extinction. Radio industry expert Jerry Del Colliano, the editor of Inside Music Media, says, “When Limbaugh attacked Sandra Fluke, everybody said, ‘he’s killing himself’ – but he was dying off years before that.” » | Tim Walker | Sunday, May 19, 2013
