I saw this documentary for the first time recently on HBO on demand. It totally surprised me because I was expecting the usual talking heads show. Instead I was treated to a really extraordinary story that combined a raw, insider drama with a great feel for the politics of 2004. I'm amazed that I haven't heard more about this movie -- I happened on it because I was more or less channel surfing. This is a classic documentary but it has all of the edge-of-your-seat elements of a thriller. The story takes many twists and turns and I was really taken by how close to the intrigue the film makers got. For anybody interested in the political battles that led to the re-election of George Bush this film will give you a really unique take on what happened. It's full to the brim with great characters like Randi Rhodes, Al Franken, and Marc Maron. I totally recommend it.

Below are two reviews of 'Left of the Dial' -- from the Rocky Mountain News and The Onion -- that give a flavor of this great documentary.Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO) HEADLINE: HBO'S 'LEFT' RIGHT ON TARGET BYLINE: Dusty Saunders, Rocky Mountain NewsIt really doesn't matter if you worship Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity or stand up and cheer loudly for Al Franken and Randi Rhodes. Cast vitriolic politics aside and view HBO's Left of the Dial, a pulsating, fascinating documentary about the birth - and almost quick death - of Air America Radio, which today celebrates its first anniversary as a liberal network. On March 31, 2004, author-comedian Al Franken told his small Air America Radio audience: "Today is both an ending and a beginning." "It's an end to the right-wing dominance of talk radio and the beginning of truth." Actually, an end almost occurred quickly - but not the sort that Franken had in mind. Following an energetic if disorganized opening in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, Air America three weeks later teetered on financial ruin because checks were bouncing in Los Angeles and Chicago, much to the glee of the conservative media. After weeks of uncertainty, the network found some financial aid and in December was the beneficiary of new investors who seemingly have provided long-range financial security. Today Air America has 48 affiliates, including KKZN-AM (760) in the Denver-Boulder area. And executives claim the growth continues. Left of the Dial is not one of television's typical rags-to-maybe-riches documentaries. It's an insider's up-close-and-personal view of a potential disaster, showing how a broadcasting organization struggles to find a national voice amid creative chaos and initial terrible management. And the documentary never answers the question: Will a liberal radio network ever become a major force in this country? HBO filmmakers Patrick Farrelly and Kate O'Callaghan had extraordinary access to the network, joining the Air America team in New York 12 days before the launch and then following the personalities, producers and executives through the launch period and beyond. The result is a you-are-there study showing the initial enthusiasm, the disappointment and then revival of broadcasting hope during a roller-coaster year. Left of the Dial is also a people story. And one person dominates - the strong-willed, occasionally foul- mouthed Randi Rhodes who loves to lacerate President Bush and his Republican cohorts with her sharp, always wagging tongue. And there are times when Rhodes is not exactly a cheerleader for the disorganized Air America team. You'll watch her during numerous on-air diatribes, including her inaugural show when she got into a shouting match with Ralph Nader, who hung up on her. Left of the Dial scores because of its always-intriguing fast-paced cinema verite style. Conservatives may complain HBO is playing a subtle public relations game by giving Air America a needed promotional push. But if ditto-heads do watch, they'll admit that Left of the Dial is a superbly produced, compelling bit of "propaganda."The Onion Left Of The Dial DVD ReviewThe subjects of the riveting Air America documentary Left Of The Dial approach the Herculean task ahead of them with a sense of evangelical zeal befitting a network with such outsized goals. In a field dominated by the right wing, the decidedly left radio network Air America sprang to life in 2004 as a plucky slingshot-toting David intent on taking down some of the nation's most fearsome Goliaths, most notably a wartime President up for re- election and his staunch allies in the right-wing echo chamber. Following closely in the highly caffeinated footsteps of such voyeuristic, zeitgeist-friendly vérité-styled docs as Control Room and Startup.com, Left Of The Dial chronicles the network's rocky birth as it stumbles through one potentially fatal crisis after another, emerging from its travails battered and bruised, but somehow still intact.Left Of The Dial captures the infectious electricity of a bold new venture, as well as the bleak gallows humor that ensued once the money ran out and the network and its staffers were forced to scramble just to stay afloat. Though Al Franken looms large as the network's marquee name, the ferociously neurotic Marc Maron and brassy populist Randi Rhodes steal the documentary—and then the DVD, with an audio commentary that's funny, mean, and brutally candid. In spite of Air America's rocky birth, Left Of The Dial leaves audiences with an emotion progressives haven't had much reason to experience lately: hope.

This documentary aired on one of the cable channels in the MidAtlantic area the week of April 10 2005. It reminded me of nothing so much as prior documentaries on Internet startups of the 90s. Lots of excitement, lots of confusion followed by shock as reality hits. The only obvious difference was that their product was, and is, the liberal take on politics. The weakness of this documentary is that nothing was explicated in any depth; there was a lot of on-camera time by a few radio personalities demonstrating for all the world to see that liberals can be as single-minded and obnoxious as conservatives. I would have preferred much more about the behind the scenes maneuvering that caused the real financial crises.