Glenn Beck Program

This article is about the radio program. For the Fox News television program, see Glenn Beck (TV program). For the live streaming Internet program, see GBTV.

The Glenn Beck Program

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Genre	Talk radio
Running time	9 a.m. – noon Eastern Time Weekdays
Country	United States
Home station	Radio City Music Hall Midtown Manhattan, New York
TV adaptations	Glenn Beck on Fox News
Hosts	Glenn Beck
Starring	Pat Gray
Producers	Mercury Radio Arts, Inc.
Exec. producers	Steve "Stu" Burguiere
Website	GlennBeck.com

The Glenn Beck Program is an American talk radio show hosted by commentator Glenn Beck on Premiere Radio Networks. Since its inception as a nationally syndicated show in 2002, the program has become one of the highest rated radio programs.^[1] Furthermore, it led to a television show on Fox News Channel, six New York Times-bestselling books (five of which debuted at #1), a magazine, and a stage tour. In 2009, many editorials, such as those on The Huffington Post singled out Glenn Beck's radio and television programs for raising issues which led to the resignation of Obama advisor Van Jones^[2][3]

History

In 2000, The Glenn Beck Program began airing on WFLA (AM) in Tampa, Florida. He inherited the 18th placed position at WFLA-AM and quickly gained popularity in its afternoon slot. Within one year of doing his first talk show in afternoon drive at WFLA, Beck dominated the ratings, giving the station its first #1 program ever. Due to the overwhelming demand for live, news oriented programming after September 11, 2001, Beck was offered a jump start on national syndication. This resulted in early affiliations with stations such as KPRC/Houston, WGST/Atlanta, WSPD/Toledo, Ohio and WOAI/San Antonio.^[4] In January 2002, syndicator Premiere Radio Networks launched the show on 47 stations. The show was then moved to "The Big Talker 1210" WPHT in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Beck ran a series of rallies called "Glenn Beck's Rally for America" during 2003 in support of the troops fighting the war in Iraq. While generally attended by war supporters, Beck spoke of many who "disagreed with the war, but still supported the troops". He ran the final rally at Marshall University over the Memorial Day weekend. The event drew about 25,000 people. 2005 marked a year of substantial ratings growth. The program ended the year being heard on more than 200 stations, and was the third highest-rated national radio talk show among adults ages 25 to 54 according to Premiere Research/Arbitron. On January 17, 2006 Beck began a new television show at CNN Headline News. To accommodate the new show, Beck relocated his studios to Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

The show added its 300th affiliate in 2008. Its 400th affiliate, KRLA in Los Angeles, was added in June 2010.

On October 16, 2008, Beck announced that he has signed a "multi-year deal" that would put him in the popular 5PM ET time slot for Fox News. He has announced that he has decided not to renew his contract with CNN, instead taking the deal from Fox because Fox gave him permission to voice his opinion.

Format

Combining elements of the comedy-centric hot talk format and more traditional talk-radio shows like Rush Limbaugh, and Sean Hannity, the Program has cultivated a unique style of humor, political commentary, and personal reflections from the host.

The first half of each hour of the show is usually monologue by Beck, but occasionally will include a guest or some conversation with the production staff. During the second half of each hour, Beck takes callers and continues discussing the themes he has previously introduced.

In January 2010 Beck changed his show's theme music to a rock anthem with sampled voices overlayed. The music is performed by Anthony Newett, the vocals by Stephen Lyons and the lyrics written by Glenn Beck and Steve "Stu" Burguiere. Lyrics include the refrain, "We must remember who we are, we will be the key."^[5][6][7]

In January 2011 Beck changed the tune of the show's theme music again. The song feels less serious than in 2010 but the keywords are basically the same, "We'll be the key, We will be the key."^[8][9]

Reception

Beck's on-air persona has been described as a "mix of moral lessons, outrage and an apocalyptic view of the future ... capturing the feelings of an alienated class of Americans."^[10] Beck has referred to himself as an entertainer,^[10] a rodeo clown,^[10] and has identified himself with Howard Beale: "When he came out of the rain and he was like, none of this makes any sense. I am that guy."^[11]

Beck's style of expressing his candid opinions have helped make his shows successful,^[12] but have also resulted in protest. On November 14, 2006, Beck asked then-newly elected Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, to "prove to me that you are not working with our enemies" and saying "And I know you're not. I'm not accusing you of being an enemy, but that's the way I feel, and I think a lot of Americans will feel that way." ^[13] Beck later regretted the question saying it was "quite possibly the poorest-worded question of all time" and joked about his "lack of intelligence".^[14] While Ellison stated he was not offended by the question, it later spurred several Arab-American organizations,^[15] such as the Arab Institute and the Muslim Public Affairs Council,^[16][17] to publicly protest Beck's hiring as a commentator by Good Morning America, accusing Beck of "anti-Muslim and anti-Arab prejudice".^[18]

More on Trivia

During the NFL season, Beck will pick an upcoming game (more often than not, the Monday night game) and then randomly call convenience store employees in the cities which are home to the opposing teams. Pretending to be "Flap Jackson" of fictional radio station "109.9 - The Big Frog" (a direct spoof of the Froggy franchise of radio stations), Beck asks the unwitting guests easy questions about current events. Points are tallied for the competing cities when correct answers are given, but often people are unable to answer correctly, which is a source of comedy.^[19] Beck uses Moron Trivia to attempt to predict the winner of the upcoming football game and Mor(e)on Trivia has overall accuracy rate of 63.4 percent.^[19]

Ratings

According to Talkers Magazine, Beck's program is the third most-listened-to radio program in the United States.^[20]

Substitute hosts

Every so often Beck is absent from the program due to sickness or vacation. On those occasions, The Best of Glenn Beck (a rerun) will be played, or a substitute host will be asked to fill in for Beck. Some of the hosts that have been used in the past include:

• Chris Baker, host of the morning show on 100.3 KTLK FM in Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Bob Lonsberry, host of a conservative radio show on WHAM AM 1180 in Rochester, NY
• Dave Glover, host of The Dave Glover Show an afternoon drive-time show on KFTK 97.1 FM in St. Louis, Missouri.
• Jeff Pats
• Joe "Pags" Pagliarulo, host of News Radio 1200 WOAI in San Antonio.
• Mac Watson, host on KTAR-FM 92.3 (3–6 pm) in Phoenix, AZ
• Mike McConnell, midday host at WLW in Cincinnati and host of the syndicated The Weekend.
• Joe Crummey, talk show personality on WABC (AM) in New York City, New York.
• Denny Schaffer, midday talk show host at WCWA in Toledo
• Steve "Stu" Burguiere, Stu - executive producer and head writer for the Glenn Beck Program
• Pat Gray, Glenn's best friend and co-host of the Glenn Beck Program.
• Doc Thompson, talk show host on 1140 WRVA in Richmond, Virginia.

Affiliates

The Glenn Beck Program is syndicated to over 400 radio stations throughout the United States as well as Sirius and XM radio.^[21] The show can also be heard online. The official program website makes both streaming audio and podcasts available to subscribers to the paid service, known as the Glenn Beck Insider. Streaming audio of the program can also be heard via the web sites of many of the show's affiliate stations.

Tours

The Glenn Beck Program has put on three US-wide comedy tours.

Glenn Beck: On Ice (2005)
Tuesday,	June 7:	Orpheum Theatre	- Memphis, Tenn.
Wednesday,	June 8:	Tenn. Performing Arts Center	- Nashville, Tenn.
Thursday,	June 9:	The Forum	- Harrisburg, Pa.
Friday,	June 10:	Stranahan Theatre	- Toledo, Ohio
Saturday,	June 11:	Murat Center	- Indianapolis, Ind.
Monday,	June 13:	Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center	- Tampa, Fla.
Tuesday,	June 14:	Keswick Theatre	- Philadelphia, Pa.
Friday,	June 17:	Nob Hill Masonic Center	- San Francisco, Cal.
Glenn Beck: An Inconvenient Tour (2007)
Saturday,	June 2:	Morrison Center	- Boise, Idaho
Monday,	June 4:	Kimmel Center	- Philadelphia, Pa.
Wednesday,	June 6:	Landmark Theatre	- Syracuse, NY
Friday,	June 8:	Ohio Theatre	- Columbus, Ohio
Saturday,	June 9:	Fox Theatre	- St. Louis, Mo.
Monday,	June 11:	Meyerson Symphony Center	- Dallas, Tex.
Wednesday,	June 13:	Majestic Theatre	- San Antonio, Tex.
Friday,	June 15:	CMAC	- Rochester, NY
Saturday,	June 16:	Koger Center	- Columbia, SC
Glenn Beck: Unelectable (2008)

References

1. ^ "The Top Talk Radio Audiences". Talkers magazine. November 2008. http://www.talkers.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=34. Retrieved 2008-12-18. 
2. ^ Huffington Post, 6 September 2009, Glenn Beck Gets First Scalp: Van Jones Resigns
3. ^ Arianna Huffington, Huffington Post, September 7, 2009, "Thank You, Glenn Beck!"
4. ^ PREMIERE RADIO NETWORKS LAUNCHES GLENN BECK ON JAN. 2, 2002, , glenbeck,com (archived from the original on 2009-09-27).
5. ^ http://dummiesoftheyear.com/glenn-beck-new-theme-song-2010/
6. ^ http://recklesslove.me/post/343023500/new-glenn-beck-program-theme
7. ^ http://stephenlyonsmusic.com/NEWS.html
8. ^ http://dummiesoftheyear.com/glenn-beck-new-theme-song-2011/
9. ^ http://www.therightscoop.com/glenn-becks-first-segment-of-2011
10. ^ ^{a b c} "Fox News’s Mad, Apocalyptic, Tearful Rising Star". The New York Times. 2009-03-31. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/30/business/media/30beck.html. Retrieved 2009-07-31. 
11. ^ Stossel, John (2009-06-10). "Glenn Beck on Glenn Beck". 20/20 (ABC News). http://abcnews.go.com/2020/Stossel/Story?id=7795824&page=4. Retrieved 2009-07-31. 
12. ^ "Glenn Beck and Simon & Schuster Launch Wide-Ranging Global Publishing Partnership". Reuters. 2009-05-04. http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS93220+04-May-2009+PRN20090504. Retrieved 2009-07-13. 
13. ^ Glenn Beck (November 14, 2006). "First Muslim Congressman Speaks Out". CNN. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0611/14/gb.01.html. 
14. ^ Pierce, Scott (2007-01-11). "Beck is in a Catch-22". Deseret News. http://www.deseretnews.com/article/650221878/Scott-Pierce-Beck-is-in-a-Catch-22.html. Retrieved 2009-07-31. 
15. ^ "Arab Groups Protest Glenn Beck's Hiring". Associated Press (NewsMax). 2007-01-25. http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2007/1/25/212919.shtml. Retrieved 2009-07-12. 
16. ^ 2003 – 2007 Report on Hate Crimes and Discrimination Against Arab Americans, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Research Institute.
17. ^ "Urge ABC News to Reconsider Hiring Glenn Beck". Muslim Public Affairs Council. 2007-01-23. http://www.mpac.org/article.php?id=470. Retrieved 2009-07-31. ^{[dead link]}
18. ^ Malek, Alia (2007-01-25). "Muslim-American Groups Protest GMA’s Hiring Of Glenn Beck". Columbia Journalism Review. http://www.cjr.org/politics/muslimamerican_groups_protest.php. Retrieved 2009-07-12. 
19. ^ ^{a b} Moron Trivia
20. ^ TALKERS magazine - The 2009 Heavy Hundred
21. ^ http://www.glennbeck.com/content/radio/

External links

• Official website