We probably all saw this coming, given that this was one of the biggest media stories of the last week — Saturday Night LIve opened the show with a comment from Rush Limbaugh on the fallout from his remarks about Georgetown student Sandra Fluke. Up and coming cast MVP Taran Killam played the cranky radio host, who chastised the “sluts” at Turbo Tax and other sponsors for deserting him after his unpopular rants about birth control. 
 
 The sketch was amusing in its dedication to coming up with bizarre sponsors for Limbaugh’s show (“Depends For Racists,” anyone?) but even Killam’s shouty, dedicated delivery couldn’t distract from the reality that the sketch was the same joke repeated about twenty times, making it feel longer than Rush’s actual show. HEY-O! “There could be a nuclear apocalypse, and I would still be right here calling the cockroaches sluts.” I’m sure that’s true, Rush, but luckily we didn’t have to stick around to see it — that was the sign off for the sketch. You can see the cold open below, via NBC: 
 
 Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com ||||| Embattled conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh on Wednesday dismissed reports of dozens of advertisers pulling their commercials from his show, telling listeners, “Everything is fine on the business side. Everything’s cool. There is not a thing to worry about.” 
 
 Limbaugh, citing claims he had lost 28 sponsors, said that is “out of 18,000. That’s like losing a couple of french fries in the container when it’s delivered to you in the drive thru. You don’t even notice it.” 
 
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 reset Rush downplays lost advertisers Limbaugh apologizes to Fluke 
 
 “We have three brand new sponsors that will be starting in the next two weeks. Obviously I’m not going to tell you who they are today, but we’ve got three brand new full-fledged sponsors that will be starting in the next two weeks,” Limbaugh said. “Two of the sponsors who have sponsored have asked to return.” 
 
 He added, “Whatever you are seeing on television about this program and sponsors and advertisers is just incorrect.” 
 
 (See also: Who’s afraid of Rush Limbaugh?) 
 
 Since he stirred up a national controversy last week by calling Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke, who testified on Capitol Hill about women’s access to contraception, a “prostitute” and a “slut” on the air, various local and national companies have announced that they have asked radio stations to stop running their ads during “The Rush Limbaugh Show.” 
 
 By POLITICO’s latest count, almost 40 companies said in recent days as the social media blitz against the popular radio show showed no signs of easing up that their commercials have stopped playing during Limbaugh’s three-hour afternoon show. 
 
 But according to Limbaugh, who kicked off his show Wednesday by saying he would only spend a few minutes addressing the “inside baseball stuff” before moving on to discuss more important issues like politics and Super Tuesday, the press was busy spreading “misinformation” about his show. 
 
 “Let me try to explain how this works. Let’s take the claim that we’ve lost 28 sponsors. Sponsors on this program are both local and national. We deal with the national sponsors on this program. We have 600 plus stations. They sell their own commercials. We don’t have anything to do with those sponsors, we don’t get paid by those sponsors, we have no idea who those sponsors are,” he said. 
 
 While companies may ask their local radio stations to stop running their ads during a certain time slot, that is not the same thing as canceling their advertising on stations altogether, Limbaugh noted. 
 
 “This happens every day. It’s been happening for 23 plus years. And it’s not just me. There are clients, advertiser that tell stations, I don’t want this to run on Beck’s show, I don’t want it to run in Hannity’s, I don’t want it to run on Howard Stern’s. It’s all part of the business,” he said. 
 
 The fired-up radio host emphasized that his show has not been hurt financially. “Nobody is losing money here, including us. And that is key for you to understand,” he said. 
 
 He also mocked liberals for hoping that the latest controversy over the “slut” comment would mark the end of Limbaugh’s show, declaring that the rumors of him being suspended for a week is “utter BS.” 
 
 “The left is so fed up they can’t see straight. They thought they’d have me they thought I would be off the air by now. They can’ understand why I still am,” he said. “It’s just part of an onslaught to try to convince you that this show’s history and our days are numbered. And I’m happy to tell you nothing could be further from the truth.” ||||| UPDATED: By Wednesday, nine more advertisers had abandoned the syndicated radio program. 
 
 Rush Limbaugh can't stop the bleeding. 
 
 The conservative firebrand lost another round of advertisers for his syndicated program, The Rush Limbaugh Show, by Wednesday morning, putting at 43 the number of sponsors retreating following his high-profile attacks last week on Georgetown student Sandra Fluke. 
 
 The mass exodus continued, as Think Progress rounded up six more sponsored that decided to no longer associate their brand with Limbaugh. Reputation Rhino, fittingly, a reputation management firm, insisted that they bought bulk air time on ABC and would make sure their ads would not run on Limbaugh's show and even used the situation as a subject for their blog. 
 
 The other companies pulling their ads were Consolidated Credit, Constant Contact, RSVP Discount Beverage, Cunningham Security and Regal Assets, which said in a statement that "We cannot even begin to understand how Sandra Fluke feels regarding the recent attacks by Rush Limbaugh, but everyone at Regal Assets wants to let Sandra Fluke know that we stand by her side in full support." 
 
 Later in the day, Freedom Debt Relief, Norway Savings Bank, and Portland Ovations also removed their sponsorships, though once again came the assertion that bulk ad buys had been responsible for their brands airing ads on the show in the first place. 
 
 "Portland Ovations is not a local sponsor of this show and has requested that Portland Ovations advertising be removed from within and around this program," the non-profit wrote on its Facebook page. "Back in January we purchased run-of-station advertising, which is placed at the station’s discretion. We are grateful to WGAN for heeding our request. We thank our Members and patrons for sharing their opinions on this matter. It’s a prime example of the active, engaged community in which we are all so fortunate to live, work and play." 
 
 On late Tuesday, Teleconferencing company Polycom, home-improvement company Service Magic, life insurance site AccuQuote, Hadeed Carpet and clothing company Bonobos announced that they had requested their ads pulled from the program. They joined earlier Tuesday ship-jummpers, insurance company Geico, tractor manufacturer John Deere, St. Vincent's Medical Center and Stamps.com. As the day wore on, nine more sponsors pulled their spots: Bethesda Sedation Dentistry, Cascades Dental, Philadelphia Orchestra, Goodwill Industries, Heart & Body Extract, Netflix, Downeast Energy, Capitol One, and JCPenney. Matrix Direct jumped ship later in the day. 
 
 Those companies joined such high-profile companies as AOL, Sears, LegalZoom and ProFlowers in removing their spots from the show. 
 
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 Limbaugh spent three days berating Fluke, a student who had sought to testify before Congress on behalf of insurance coverage for birth control, calling her a "slut" and a "prostitute" and insisting that, if she wanted birth control coverage, she post videos of herself having sex. 
 
 He apologized for his choice of words on Saturday, a mea culpa that fell short in the eyes of many critics. As a result of public outrage, two stations, in Pittsfield, Mass. and Hilo, Hawaii, removed Limbaugh from their schedules. Musician Peter Gabriel, whose song "Sledghammer" was played during Limbaugh's rant, moved to have his music taken off of Limbaugh's program. 
 
 "Peter was appalled to learn that his music was linked to Rush Limbaugh's extraordinary attack on Sandra Fluke," his reps said. "It is obvious from anyone that knows Peter's work that he would never approve such a use. He has asked his representatives to make sure his music is withdrawn and especially from these unfair aggressive and ignorant comments." 
 
 Despite the loss in revenue, Premiere Networks, the syndication arm of Limbaugh's bosses at Clear Channel, stands by the host. 
 
 They are "committed to providing its listeners with access to a broad range of opinion and commentary without condoning or agreeing with the opinions, comments or attempts at humor expressed by on-air talent," the company said, according to the Wall Street Journal. "We respect the right of Mr. Limbaugh, as well as the rights of those who disagree with him, to express those opinions."
– Rush Limbaugh may be bleeding sponsors—one count now has the number fleeing his show up to 98—because of his "slut" comment, but Saturday Night Live had some suggestions last night about who might fill the advertising void. A few of the highlights, as per Mediaite: Misaki Dolphin Poppers: "Start your day off right, with bits of dolphin." Depends for Racists: "If you pee a little every time you see a Mexican, you need Depends for Racists." Schoder's fake rape whistles: "Help is not on the way." Syria Tourism Board: Because, "Ah! No! There's nowhere to hide!"