What is Rush Limbaugh?

An article in the Aug. 10, 2008, Sunday Des Moines Register had the headline, “20 years later, Limbaugh is still on top.”

The article, by Chuck Raasch, a political editor for Gannett News Service, seems to indicate Raasch has high respect for Rush Limbaugh, the controversial conservative radio personality.

Now, I must admit I have only listened to Limbaugh’s radio show a couple of times as I realized he’s not my cup of tea. My husband used to listen to him quite often which spurred many “discussions” around our house which usually started with him spewing forth verbiage I knew wasn’t his own. The discussion usually really got going when I inevitably said, “You’ve been listening to Rush again, haven’t you?”

The article stated, “Twenty years into what is still the most listened-to political talk show, Limbaugh still enrages, entertains and – here come the e-mail – enlightens.”

So, the question popped into my mind: what exactly is Rush Limbaugh?

Is he a political expert, a shock-jock or just a guy with a high opinion of himself and a low opinion of women?

Is he a journalist?

At this point, I conducted a limited, unscientific query – I asked my husband, “What is Rush Limbaugh?”

Still wary of Rush Limbaugh discussions, my husband carefully said, “He’s kind of a political commentator.”

I think that might be a more accurate statement than one quoted in the article from Talkers magazine publisher Michael Harrison: “Rush Limbaugh has been the leading political talk show host in America, and talk radio has been one of the leading forces in American politics…Limbaugh is to talk radio what Elvis Presley was to rock ‘n’roll.”

At least no one is calling him a journalist.