Bill O'Reilly, in the late evening, is not as rude as Hannity, but he consistently ridicules those who disagree, sometimes after they have signed off and can no longer object. Lars Larsen is basically an anarchist who believes the only good thing government does is kill foreigners and put lawbreakers in jail — especially minority lawbreakers.

These broadcasters and their followers brand "liberals" as enemies of the state. Like Hitler's mind-bending propaganda, they tell listeners over and over again that anyone with a drop of "liberal" blood is evil.

Their approach tarnishes KSL's image and colors listener reaction to the high quality broadcast services KSL provides locally.

For 22 years, I was honored to write and present KSL editorials — almost 6,000 of them. I was never asked to say anything mean, disrespectful or unreasonable. More importantly, I can't recall a single time when KSL's ownership tried to impose its will on editorial comments. And so it is no surprise that the station's ownership has refrained from meddling in program schedules.

I certainly don't expect ownership to force changes now. And neither should you. But KSL's board of directors could reasonably express concerns. Members of the board are business men and women. They must hear from the same critics who corner me more often than I like. And listeners or former listeners definitely have influence over management decisions. Don't call or write to Hannity and friends; your effort will only be ridiculed. Instead, write directly to KSL. If you like the programming, let them know. But if you don't like it, express your disappointment. Otherwise, station management looks only at the listening "numbers" and the "bottom line."

The real bottom line is that those who entertain with rudeness, incivility and misinformation do more to hinder American progress than to help it along.

Reason and good manners are more important than financial gain.

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G. Donald Gale is president of Words, Words, Words, Inc. He was formerly editorial director at KSL. He earned a doctorate at the University of Utah and was awarded an honorary doctorate by Southern Utah University. E-mail: dongale@words3.com