Left of the Dial

Documentary • NR • Directed by: Patrick Farrelly & Kate O'Callaghan • 97 minutes

Alarmed by the growing multitude of conservative talk-radio shows, a group of investors set out to launch a liberal radio network for those whose opinions skewed more to the “Left of the Dial.” The result was Air America Radio. This engaging, fast-paced film charts the long-anticipated rise, scandalous near-fall, and subsequent salvation of the liberal-leaning radio network. Told through verite footage shot at the New York-based station over the course of nine months, the film follows the network’s evolution and features interviews including TV satirist and author Al Franken, liberal radio host Randi Rhodes, stand-up comics Marc Maron and Janeane Garofalo, National Public Radio pioneer Katherine Lanpher, and radio personalities Mark Riley and Rachel Maddow.