Charlie Sykes is a conservative talk radio host for 620 WTMJ.
Content referencing Charlie Sykes - Page 2
An Open Letter to Milwaukee Talk Radio
Dear Talk Radio Hosts Mark Belling, Jay Weber, Charlie Sykes and Jeff Wagner.
Aug 6th, 2014 by Chris Moews
Is David Clarke “Sheriff Spends a Lot”?
Attack ads blast Clarke. Another targets “dysfunctional” Marina Dimitrijevic. Who’s buying all these nasty ads?
Aug 5th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
How Buyout Could Hurt the Journal Sentinel
10 ways the deal will impact the newspaper, the media world and this city.
Jul 31st, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
How Republicans Cause Voter Fraud
False claims of rampant voter fraud by GOP and talk radio prompt their followers to vote illegally.
Jul 1st, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Walker, Sykes and Belling
The New Republic feature story on Scott Walker and talk radio is juicy stuff. But is it true?
Jun 19th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
The Remarkable Impact of the Deep Tunnel
Once widely maligned, the project was the key to transforming the Milwaukee River.
Jun 12th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Why Walker Has Split With Conservatives
He’s at odds with the right-wing and Wall Street Journal over John Doe probe. But why?
May 30th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Why Moderates Are Extinct
The retirement of Petri, Ellis and Cullen suggests neither party has room for moderates.
Apr 17th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Dan Bice’s Role in the John Doe
What did he know, when did he know it, and how has he affected the probe of Scott Walker?
Mar 25th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
The Troubled Legacy of Tom Ament
Former county exec’s lucrative pension plan caused scandal, transformed Milwaukee politics, and led way for Scott Walker.
Mar 11th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Why Didn’t Chisholm Go After Democrats?
Republicans say the John Doe probe proves bias. So does the federal suit against DA. Are they right?
Mar 6th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
How Walker Handled Open Records Request
Emails show his staff irked by requests and responding slowly, except when it benefits Walker.
Feb 21st, 2014 by Bill Lueders
Recall Effort Targets John Chisholm
DA targeted by right wingers outraged by John Doe and liberal blacks angered by suspects killed in custody.
Feb 6th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
John Doe II Is Anything But Partisan
Scott Walker’s defenders call the probe a partisan witch hunt. But newly released court documents say otherwise.
Feb 4th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Democratic Wedge Issues
Republicans are out of step on issues like same sex marriage and medical marijuana.
Jan 16th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Republican Spat Exposes Party’s Divisions
Fight between Sensenbrenner and Ron Johnson over Obamacare is fascinating, revealing.
Jan 14th, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Crystal Ball for 2014
25 predictions that are certain (well, maybe) to come true this year.
Jan 3rd, 2014 by Bruce Murphy
Crazy Casino Politics
Both Gov. Walker and Mary Burke have mishandled the Kenosha Casino issue.
Dec 30th, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
New Probe is Big Trouble for Walker
Both the first and second John Doe have focused on his campaigns, suggesting a disturbing pattern.
Nov 19th, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
The New Right-Wing Media
The state is a national leader in creating new conservative publications.
Oct 22nd, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
Why Kimberly Walker Was Fired
The county board had ample grounds for dismissing the Corporation Counsel.
Jun 28th, 2013 by Dominique Paul Noth
An Attack on Student Journalism?
What lesson does legislators attack on the Center for Investigative Journalism teach young journalists?
Jun 11th, 2013 by Bill Lueders
Don’t Mess with the Press
The state budget bill has huge consequences, but the media is most concerned about its impact on... the media.
Jun 7th, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
Who’s the Conservative for Circuit Judge?
The race between Rebecca Bradley and Janet Protasiewicz is hard to call.
Mar 28th, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
Democrats in Disarray
The firing of its state spokesperson is just another sign the party has lost its way.
Mar 12th, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
How to Crush Milwaukee
Ending the residency requirement will deal a devastating blow to Milwaukee’s property tax base.
Feb 21st, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
School Switcheroo?
Maryland Avenue Montessori might swap buildings with Cass Street School. And poor Sweet Water's building is available for lease.
Feb 20th, 2013 by Michael Horne
Evers Vs. Pridemore
The battle between State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Evers and challenger Don Pridemore.
Jan 28th, 2013 by Michael Horne
Bill to Cut Supervisor Pay Likely
Despite Republican delays and opposition by the board, the bill has a good chance of passage.
Jan 17th, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
Republican Road Rage
Romney was the choice of exurban road warriors while slower-moving urbanites picked Obama. How we move through the world is a key difference between the parties.
Jan 16th, 2013 by Tom Bamberger
Biggest Taxer in Town
Over the last five years property taxes have been driven by just one of the five local taxing units: Milwaukee Public Schools.
Jan 15th, 2013 by Bruce Murphy
The Curious Case of Stephen Einhorn
The man who “feared” for his family’s privacy is a political activist and capital insider grabbing government funding for his company.
Dec 13th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Walker’s Freeway Farce
After blaming Barrett for "delaying" the Zoo Interchange, Walker is now stalling it, while rejecting a gas tax hike to pay for it.
Dec 4th, 2012 by Dave Reid
The Rise of Chris Larson
Is he a young liberal heavyweight? Or a punching bag for Republicans?
Nov 27th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
25 Winners and Losers
The list is long (and fun). This was a campaign with real consequences.
Nov 8th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Did Journal Sentinel Censor Story?
Conservative columnist Christian Schneider hides his erroneous story, hurting his -- and the paper’s -- credibility.
Nov 1st, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Sykes’ Suspicious Smokescreen
Charlie Sykes uses anonymous interview to claim the “family” putting up voter fraud billboards fears for its safety.
Oct 23rd, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Stealth Conservatives
Bradley-funded think tank changes its polls and subsidizes Journal Sentinel’s right-wing columnist.
Oct 11th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
The Mighty County Board
A doormat a decade ago, the board is now far more powerful -- much to Chris Abele’s chagrin.
Sep 25th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
The Latest Journal Sentinel Purge
Some big names could be leaving the ever-shrinking newspaper.
Sep 18th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Abele vs County Board — Again
Someone leaked the info on Abele's plan for a 44 story lakefront tower, leaving him apologizing to the board.
Jul 12th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Will Allen Goes Viral
From ABC News to Colbert, everybody is celebrating Will Allen.
Jun 20th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Why Walker Won’t Compromise
He now says he will bring us together. But don’t bet on it.
Jun 14th, 2012 by Bruce Murphy
Outing a Bully
It’s a truth many of us learned on the playgrounds of our youth: nobody reacts to criticism worse than a bully. So it’s no surprise that conservative talk show host Charlie Sykes responded to a negative article in the December issue of Milwaukee Magazine with a longwinded, sniveling diatribe that leaves the reader wondering why a guy who makes a living attacking people is so damn thin-skinned. To anyone who listens to the Sykes show on WTMJ-AM, or any of the formulaic right wing radio talk shows, much of the criticism outlined by the station’s former news director seems fairly obvious. Sykes, Mark Belling on WISN-AM and their ilk carefully select topics designed to stir up anger in their predominantly conservative audiences. They seek stories that confirm their world views and look for people to vilify. These could be public officials, bureaucrats, parents, school administrators and run-of-the-mill average citizens. Anyone, really, who provides them with the opportunity to demonize government and show how our hard-earned tax dollars are wasted. And, as Dan Shelley says in the article, Sykes is obviously very bright and very good at what he does. Sometimes Sykes can be very entertaining. He engages in a kind of verbal ju-jitsu that takes the inert energy from the many absurd stories generated by newspapers and elsewhere and builds it into an inflammatory narrative designed to entertain and anger his listeners. I get it and I can actually enjoy listening to it, in small doses, as I do Lewis Black and Dave Chappelle. But what bothers me is how manipulative he can be when dealing with listeners who call in. Those who agree with him are treated with kid gloves; they are thoughtful, insightful, clever. Callers who disagree with him are broken down in two categories. The inarticulate or weak ones are dangled as useful foils who give him the opportunity to throw the sarcastic jabs and belittling blows to diminish the caller. The brighter, more effective and persuasive callers with contrary opinions are quickly dispatched with a “thank you for your call.” It’s a cowardly tactic quite typical of the playground bully. Belling engages in a different tactic that accomplishes the same result; he raises his voice at callers and belittles them to the point you wonder why anyone would ever listen to this jerk. In fairness, it must be pointed out that Belling seems to yell at everyone but in the world of talk radio there are significant gradations to screaming. It’s also revealing (and disturbing) that Sykes is given his platform by Journal Communications Inc., which owns the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WTMJ-TV and WTMJ-AM. Sykes regularly attacks the newspaper as a part of the liberal media though the same company pays his salary and profits from his success. Sykes is also given a platform on television every Sunday morning through a show that purports to be public affairs programming. He surrounds himself with mostly like-minded fellow travelers from conservative media as well as a token, usually […]
Nov 20th, 2008 by Ted Bobrow
Selig Take A Hit
Washington Post Trashes Commissioner and Journal Communications. Plus: The Mea Culpa of Charles J. Sykes and Thompson’s Boycott of Miller Park.
Jun 28th, 2004 by Michael Horne
Why Unions Don’t Like Scott Walker
Given that Jim Ryan has not closed the door completely on privatizing some government functions, you might wonder why he was endorsed by labor for county executive.
Apr 12th, 2002 by Bruce Murphy
Why Jim Ryan Could Be In Trouble
Speaking as someone who predicted the one-two finish of Scott Walker and Jim Ryan, the big surprise of the county executive race was Tyrone Dumas' strong fourth place finish, just behind Tom Nardelli.
Apr 3rd, 2002 by Bruce Murphy
Why Scott McCallum Is In Big Trouble
It was amusing to see the photo of Gov. McCallum that ran on the front page of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last week.
Mar 25th, 2002 by Bruce Murphy
Is Scott Walker Qualified To Be County Exec?
Rep. Scott K. Walker (R-Wauwatosa) was the first candidate to announce for county executive, and is widely considered one of the front-runners for the position.
Feb 27th, 2002 by Bruce Murphy
Could Bob Ott Be Investigated For Ethical Conflicts?
Milwaukee County is beginning to resemble the plot of And Then There Were None. One by one, top officials are disappearing from the courthouse.
Jan 24th, 2002 by Bruce Murphy
What Karen Ordinans Really Thought About Ament’s Pension
It’s been amusing to hear County Board chair Karen Ordinans declare her outrage about the county pension plan.
Jan 11th, 2002 by Bruce Murphy
Where Have You Gone, Ken Lamke?
Ken Lamke still has vivid memories of the atmosphere in the old Milwaukee Sentinel newsroom.
Oct 1st, 2001 by Bruce Murphy
