Christopher Ruddy, NewsMax.com
Thursday, Oct. 2, 2003

During his keynote address to the National Association of Broadcasters, the country's largest radio industry group, Limbaugh said he did not make his comments about McNabb off the cuff during ESPN's "Sunday NFL Countdown."

Standing in front of a replica of the Liberty Bell, he told his audience the night before he appeared on ESPN he thought carefully about what he planned to say. He felt so strongly at the time he even considered “doing an essay” on the subject.

He expressed dismay over the controversy, as his comments were "just an opinion." He emphasized, "It was not a racial opinion; it was an opinion on the media."

Limbaugh criticized ESPN for flip-flopping in support of his comments. Earlier in the week, ESPN "vigorously defended me. They said nothing was wrong with it."

But that changed as the media-fueled controversy grew, and some of the program’s "cast members felt uncomfortable they had not challenged what I said."

Limbaugh couched his comments in a longer speech about his career in radio.

He stressed to his audience that his success was based on being honest and candid. But increasingly the dominant culture is placing "codes on speech, codes on thought," he lamented.

He promised his audience, many of whom carry his syndicated radio show, that radio "is a love I have" and that he had no plans to leave the medium for television.

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