OTM: The Divided Dial (condensed)

[PSPS]

Derived from https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/divided-dial

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The Most Influential Christian Talk Radio Network You've Probably Never Heard of

In 2016, Christian talk radio host Eric Metaxas begrudgingly encouraged his listeners to vote for then-presidential candidate Donald Trump. By 2020, he pledged his life to fighting the “stolen election” while talking with Trump on the air. Ahead of the midterm elections, Metaxas and many of his fellow talk radio hosts made sure the falsehood of massive 2020 election fraud was top of mind — on the airwaves and beyond. And while election-denying candidates didn't do as well as many on the right had hoped, at least 170 such candidates have been elected to state and national offices, some of whom will be in charge of future elections. This week, reporter Katie Thornton introduces us to the company whose hosts never backed down from the lies of the stolen 2020 election: Salem Media Group, the largest Christian, conservative multimedia company in the country – and perhaps the most influential media company you’ve never heard of. Thornton traces the company’s rise to power from its scrappy start in the 1970s to the present day — a growth that paralleled and eventually became inextricable from the growth of the Religious Right.
https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/episodes/most-influential-christian-radio-on-the-media


How did Talk Radio Get So Politically Lop-Sided?
How did the right get their vice grip of the airwaves, all the while arguing that they were being silenced and censored by a liberal media? This week, we look at the early history of American radio to reveal that censorship of far-right and progressive voices alike was once common on radio. And reporter Katie Thornton explains how, in the post-war and Civil Rights period, the US government encouraged more diverse viewpoints on the airwaves — until it didn’t. Plus, the technological and legal changes that led to conservative talk radio hosts like Rush Limbaugh taking over the airwaves.
https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/episodes/talk-radio-lopsided-on-the-media


Is Lying On the Radio...Legal?
Highly politicized, partisan companies like Salem Media Group have a hold on the airwaves — and they don’t plan to give it up. This week, Senior Vice President of Salem Phil Boyce speaks candidly to reporter Katie Thornton about the personalities he handpicked to spread Salem’s message and about the company’s plans to expand into the media world off the airwaves. Peddling election denialism seems to be a solid business model — but is it legal?
https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/episodes/on-the-media-is-lying-on-radio-legal

[TreasonousBastard]

1. I've been listening to this series for a while, now, since it's been...

broadcast via On the Media on your local NPR station.

We need changes, real changes.