Tom Athans
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Tom Athans (born 1961) is a notable member of the Democratic Party from the state of Michigan. He is a co-founder and former CEO of the liberal-progressive Democracy Radio, an organization that produced and supported liberal talk radio shows that formerly included the Ed Schultz Show. He is now the executive Vice-President of another liberal talk radio organization Air America. Athans is married to Senator Debbie Stabenow, a Democrat of Michigan.
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[edit] Democracy Radio
The company was founded in 2002 by Tom Athans and Paul Fiddick. The plan was to help develop and nurture programming and enlist radio networks and stations to air left-leaning radio hosts. At one point, Democracy Radio produced talk shows for Ed Schultz and Stephanie Miller, among others. On June 8, 2005, Democracy Radio sold its stake in The Ed Schultz Show to a new company headed by veteran radio executive Randy Michaels, the former CEO of Clear Channel Radio. On November 4, 2005, Athans stepped down as CEO of Democracy Radio, ending the organization.
[edit] Air America
After stepping down from Democracy Radio, Athans became the Executive Vice-President of Air America, a much larger but similar organization. Athans is in charge of developing new programming to expand Air Americas lineup. He will also head Air America’s Washington, D.C. corporate office.[citation needed]
[edit] TalkUSA
After Air America underwent bankruptcy procedures in 2006, Athans co-founded TalkUSA Radio, a liberal radio network.[1]
[edit] Personal
Athans was born in Detroit and graduated from Wayne State University. He currently resides in Lansing with his wife, Senator Debbie Stabenow, and his daughter, Gina, Athans' child from a former marriage. He has two grown step-children.
[edit] Prostitution Scandal
On April 2, 2008, the Detroit Free Press reported that Athans had been implicated in a prostitution sting.[2]
Thomas Athans, the husband of U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow and cofounder of a liberal talk radio network, told Troy police detectives that he paid a prostitute $150 for sex at a Troy hotel in late February, according to a police report obtained Wednesday by the Free Press under the Freedom of Information Act. Athans, 46, was not arrested or charged, but agreed to fully cooperate with police in their investigation of Internet-based prostitution at hotels in the city, according to the report. Athans was pulled over by police on I-75 minutes after leaving the Residence Inn on Livernois, just east of I-75 and south of Big Beaver, the evening of Feb. 26. He was driving a Cadillac DeVille registered jointly to him and Stabenow at their address in Lansing. He was ticketed for driving on a suspended license. When questioned during the stop, he acknowledged he had been at the hotel with a woman he met on the Internet. On further questioning, he acknowledged he had paid the woman $150 for oral sex.
