Mark Belling
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| Mark Belling | |
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| Birth name | Mark Belling |
| Born | July 4, 1956 Kaukauna, Wisconsin |
| Show | The Mark Belling Late Afternoon Show |
| Station(s) | 1130 WISN (AM) |
| Time slot | 3:00 PM - 6:00 PM CT |
| Style | Talk radio |
| Country |  United States |
| Website | http://www.belling.com |
Mark Belling (born July 4, 1956, in Kaukauna, Wisconsin) is a radio talk-show host for 1130 WISN in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Belling hosts a three-hour weekday radio program, The Mark Belling Late Afternoon Show, which is regularly rated No. 1 for the afternoon-drive time slot. He writes a weekly newspaper column for The Waukesha Freeman. Belling serves as a regular substitute for national conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh. Belling also hosted a Sunday-morning television panel, Belling and Company, on WDJT-TV. Despite consistently high ratings, it was dropped by WDJT and replaced by paid programming.
A native of Wisconsin's Fox Valley, Belling is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He has been with WISN since March 1989. Before joining WISN he was news and program director of WTDY-AM in Madison, Wisconsin, where he began his talk radio career. Belling also served as a radio news director in Springfield, Illinois; St. Joseph, Michigan; Benton Harbor, Michigan; and Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
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[edit] Interests
A horse racing fan, Belling was part-owner of Captain Bodgit (Team Valor), who placed second in the 1997 Kentucky Derby and third in the Preakness. Captain Bodgit was forced to retire after the Preakness because of an injury.
Belling is an avid sports fan, regularly discussing football, baseball, basketball, golf, NASCAR and Formula One during his radio program.
Each year Belling makes numerous sports picks, often including the audience and show producer Paul Kronforst. Each week during the football season, Belling, Kronforst and an audience member make NFL and college football picks. Belling has a strong track record of predicting winners.
He also makes predictions and discusses his picks for the NCAA college basketball playoffs and horse racing's Triple Crown. In 2006 Belling correctly selected Barbaro as the winner of the Kentucky Derby.
[edit] 2004 Hispanic controversy
In November 2004, Belling was suspended following protests about his use of the term wetback in reference to the potential for electoral fraud during the 2004 election. On a temporary protest website, the quote was identified:
"Watch the voter turnout on the near south side -- heavily Hispanic -- and compare it to the voter turnout in any other election and you're going to see every wetback and every other non-citizen out there voting."
Although Belling apologized on his radio program for using the term wetback, more than 300 protesters rallied at his place of employment to complain.[1] Local media focused heavily on the controversy.
WISN-AM suspended Belling after the controversy and protests erupted. However, WISN was swamped with phone calls, e-mails and letters from fans calling for Belling's return. The suspension lasted one week.
Upon his return, Belling apologized again for having used the term. He then thanked his audience, who had effectively ensured his return.
[edit] Awards
Mark is a 2001 Marconi award recipient for best medium-market radio personality, a three-time Milwaukee Press Club winner for best radio editorial, has twice won the Radio-Television News Directors Association award for best investigative reporting in the Midwest, and was a 1986 finalist for "Journalist of the Year" in Illinois as awarded by United Press International. Belling also was named one of the Top 100 Heavy Talkers -- the most influential talk show hosts in America -- by Talkers Magazine, an industry publication.
