What happened to shannon burke?

It might have begun when he agreed with his Clear Channel handlers to switch from being a liberal Texas talk host to a right-wing Central Florida "mouthpiece."

What happens to a man after he swaps out his soul to fill a market niche?

Talk host Shannon Burke walked out of the Seminole County Jail, Wednesday.

The judge let him out on condition he post $25,000 bail, gets psychological help and stays away from drugs, alcohol, guns and his wife.

Burke, 44, a popular, conservative, mid-day host on  Orlando’s RealRadio 104.1, had been jailed since May 6 after he was arrested for ragefully, drunkenly, shooting his wife's dog in their bedroom. The bullet wounded the dog and hit Burke's wife, grazing her head.

He's pleaded not guilty to shooting into an occupied dwelling, animal cruelty and violating the terms of his pre-trial release. The maximum possible penalty: 21 years in prison. An aggravated battery with a deadly weapon charge was dropped.

Photos of Burke's wife and dog's wounds, here.

The Orlando Sentinel's Gary Taylor follows up in a fascinating feature chronicling the decline of a conservative of convenience who fell rather swiftly into a self-indulgent swamp of violent alcoholic behavior.

Burke was a free-wheeling, left-wing talk-show host in Austin, Texas, when Clear Channel brought him to Orlando in 2001. Three years later, after Burke cultivated a local following as a staunchly conservative — though not highly rated — host on 540 AM, the company promoted him. Burke moved down the hall to Real Radio 104.1 FM, a popular blue-collar show that did well in the ratings.

Clear Channel encouraged Burke to develop a "bad guy" image.

He took to it like a rat to cheese, getting tattoos, and riding motorcycles, and drinking like a pig despite his well-known allergy to booze.

"They [managers at Clear Channel] enabled it by making excuses, and sending him to bar gigs, knowing he would drink, even if he knew he shouldn't have," [friend and talk host Jeff] Duncan said.

Taylor describes a suicide attempt and alcoholic acting out as far back as 2004 in a bitter divorce. His ex-wife is asking a judge to keep him away from their 9-year-old daughter after his "erratic, volatile and escalating behavior."

Another girlfriend accused him in court records of biting and choking her and firing a gun in her presence. He also "has issues with drugs and alcohol," she said. 

Of course, Clear Channel, with their signature sociopathic see-no-evil management fired him only after this very public incident shooting up his wife and her dog.

Shannon Burke is at fault. He's the alcoholic, violent asshole. But we've seen this enabling too many times before: whether it's Entercom ignoring Mike Webb's deep problems and misdemeanors; or WTKK letting Jay Severin run at the mouth with violence-encouraging hate-speech. Media management frequently lets stuff go until their bottom line is threatened of somebody gets hurt and it makes the papers.

How many more talk hosts are out there, hollow and seared inside because they took up a political, attitudinal stance alien to their natures because market management demands it.

Easy to see how it might make a man drink hard into the night and crave the taste of gun oil.

Comments

[leopardgrrl1]

One correction: I'm from Austin, and remember Shannon Burke's show from the lat 90s. He was employed by a short-lived FM talk station here, and had an afternoon drive-time shift. The station was conservative, and he was a sort of squishy Libertarian, not left-wing as the newspaper story says.

[Upton]

Mike Webb was the most entertaining talk show host I've ever heard...his death was a great loss.

His story is not comparable to that of this right wing pig Burke.

[Mark C.]

The crime is the attitude, disrespect for the process, politicians, and government in general he inculcates in young white men. Burke and others like him make "fuck-you" a legitimate political statement.

[Cyn]

"Easy to see how it might make a man drink hard into the night and crave the taste of gun oil."

nice. sad.

[KSR]

Mike Webb was a man with a problem (not necessarily his sexual orientation). By many accounts, a lot of them dutifly, if not obsessively recorded on this here blog, Webb was a challenge to work with/around. Personally, I didn't care for the guy's politics or his self-built niche, limiting his program predominately to Bush bashing.

Still, the guy's dead. Let's not forget that Bla'M made a special point to publicize every single problem in Webb's life, much to his annoyance. This point should be remembered; that whatever issues Webb may have had, Bla'M got a lot of mileage out of them. Dryly commenting on them now, or acting the slightest bit sympathetic in his absence seems a bit hypocritical.

[joanie]

Shannon Burke? Old news.

Check out a new government website intended to increase government transparency. I heard the story on NPR/PRI? All Things Considered.

Obama is already a breath of fresh air because he's young, savvy and tech-literate. What could be better! He's really making some innovative changes.

Of course, the one I'm waiting for is single-payor you-know-what. But, keep those youthful ideas coming because I'm tired of the same all jingoism and junk from the over-fifty white guys. Might that be over-sixty? Over-seventy?

And on that note, I'm off to BB!

[joanie]

Shrub and "the handled" talking the Presidency?

Ew! Well, at least it's not a highs school audience. Or is it?

[Puget Sound]

"And on that note, I'm off to BB!

Posted by: joanie | May 29, 2009 at 07:22 PM"

BB? Oh you mean a Beer Break...

[Drew]

Joanie-
Enjoy the weekend. As for single payer, it's what the country needs, and the majority of people want it (once it's explained to them how it works, without all the usual right-wing propaganda thrown in). But I'm afraid that what we're about to do is strike a deal with the insurance carriers, so they continue to make a profit at our expense.

[Buzzard Barf]

Well damned, I was so looking forward to warm friendly social intercourse with the old pus machine. She is off to BB for the week end and next week I will be hauling freight to Texas.

[Puget Sound]

Just be thankful that BB doesn't stand for Buzzard Barf...

[Vulture Vomit]

That thought inspired an immidiate name change.

[wilbur]

Joanie and others are helping us with our plan to exterminate the right wing, we will deal with them when the time comes. BB is just one location in our Final Solution.

[KS]

As Ho Chi Minh stated: The real key to the future of the country is who gets the Hispanic vote. The libertarians and GOP have to pick its battles wisely to take back the Hispanic vote (Bush received 42% in 2004 & McCain 29% in 2008) in order to keep the liberal progressive narcissists from keeping the upper hand to the detriment of this country's future.
One party rule will prove to be a disaster - those of you who don't believe, stick around - you ain't seen nothing yet.

What goes around comes around. The left won't realize that they have created a monster until its too late. Beware of unintended consequences - if Obama is successful in ramroding single payer health care through, it will devestate this country financially and give China domination over this country that will be nearly impossible to shake. Why ? Because of the skyrocketing deficit that this Administration has created in the name of carrying out its progressive agenda and underneath a progressive are fascist intentions.
Attempts to destroy the right wing will ultimately come back to destroy and transform the USA into the USSA.

[KS]

If you don't believe this, take a close look at California.

[The John Report]

Who'd believe a manic depressive like you? Ramble on, though.

[KS]

Do you care to debate this or are you a drive-by coward ? How do we know you are not mentally ill ?

[LIBDOOSH]

KS..Save your breath. It's obvious that anyone with an opinion that is not leaning left will be referred to as a conservative pig on this blog..lol
Socialism is the flavor of the day, get used to it. God I miss my country already. Bow down to the king Obama. I'm not sure of a good idea he's came up with yet, but evryone loves him!! That's all that matters. :)