Ed Schultz Backs Down on Conservative Talk Show Debate Challenge

On August 28, radio talk show host Ed Schultz, who has proclaimed that he became "converted" from conservative to liberal while eating a baloney sandwich with his future wife in a Salvation Army cafeteria, loudly issued a challenge to all conservative radio hosts to debate him. Since his show that day was simulcast by C-SPAN, the Big Eddy Challenge can be both seen and heard at almost 20 minutes into the third hour of his show:

...We'll stand up to any conservative talker anywhere in America who wants to have the guts to go head to head with me on your radio show, on your TV show, you conservatives, you're absolutely a bunch of damn liars and we're right back on the Ed Schultz show.

So what happened when a conservative talk show host took up the Big Eddy Challenge? Apparently Schultz hides behind his show's producer. Such was the case when Brian Craig, producer and co-host of The Steve Kane Show on WWNN 1470 AM radio in South Florida, attempted to arrange such a debate between Ed Schultz and Steve Kane. Your humble NewsBusters correspondent heard Craig on the radio yesterday talking about the difficulties in arranging this debate with the Ed Schultz Show producer, James. I subsequently contacted Craig who gave me the latest account of James ducking the Big Eddy Challenge on behalf of his boss today:

I called James, Ed's producer right after our conversation. When he answered the phone and I told him who I was he took a deep breath, meaning why are you calling. I asked if he had talked to Ed about debating Steve. He said, "Look, I know what you all are about."

I said, "Really?"

"I know what you are trying to do, you are a bunch of scam job artists and Ed's not interested in that."

He started to hang up and I said, "Do you want me to pass that message along on the air?" He then hung up the phone.

Through the whole conversation he was annoyed.