Free Talk Live
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| Free Talk Live | |
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| Host(s) | Ian Bernard and Mark Edge |
| Website | http://www.freetalklive.com |
| Update schedule | 6 days a week |
| RSS | http://freetalklive.com/netcast.xml |
| Launch date | 2002 |
| Genre | Cultural / Political |
Free Talk Live is a radio show that broadcasts live six days a week in the United States.
The format is that of a call-in talk show and topics are anything from politics to personal issues, however it is primarily a libertarian political talk show, discussing both philosophy and current events. Unlike most talk radio broadcasts, Free Talk Live engages in only a very basic form of call screening. The primary hosts, Ian Bernard and Mark Edge (formerly known as Manwich), broadcast from Keene, New Hampshire. Three additional co-hosts do the show one night per week each: Torgo (aka Scott Wolf) on Monday, Melissa on Wednesday, and Johnson (aka Schuyler Rice) on Friday.
The program airs in approximately 16 markets across the nation and also provides the daily shows via podcast; An increasing number of months of archives, currently over ten months, are available for download in MP3 format. Funding for Free Talk Live comes from a combination of standard on-the-show advertising and a donation by subscription service known as AMP, which stands for Advertise, Market, and Promote. An AMP subscriber, known as an AMPlifier, donates to the show a set amount of money per month, beginning at three US dollars. The show has also been known to accept Silver, Gold, and Liberty Dollars. The hosts indicate that all funds from the AMP program, go to advertising and marketing the show, as well as paying for the cost of production. They also assert that, thus far, none have received payment for their time commitment to the show, because their efforts have been invested into growing the show and spreading the message of freedom and liberty.
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[edit] History
The first broadcast was on a Sunday in November of 2002 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on 105.9 FM in Sarasota, Florida. After two weeks on Sundays, FTL became a weeknight show from 7p to 10p. It continued on air, gaining the first ratings that 105.9 had seen in weeknights for quite some time. However, it was not soon enough, because the station changed formats in the Summer of 2003. After a short stint on Internet radio, the show was picked up by 1280 AM WTMY, where it stayed for about a year. Then 1220 AM where it was "discovered" and it has been a syndicated program since September 2004. Free Talk Live won the podcast expo's Best Cultural/Political Podcast Award in 2005, won the Best Political Podcast Award in 2006, and has been featured in Talkers Magazine's Best 250 Talk Shows.
[edit] The show
The hosts repeatedly state that Free Talk Live is your show and that you take control of the air waves. Listeners who call in will only be asked for a name, location, the topic(s) they wish to speak about, and how they listen to the show. It is stated policy that anyone who calls in will get on the air but each listener may only call the show once a day. The hosts also purport that all women who call into the show are moved to the front of the queue; this is done to make the female listenership more visible to station affiliates, and to encourage female participation overall. Free Talk Live cannot currently fill the entire broadcast with listener phone calls, so the hosts fall back to topics they are interested in. They also discuss topics from listener emails.
The show does not usually feature guests but has had them on the show in the past. Previous guests have included Marc Emery, Michael Badnarik, Drew Curtis, Cindy Sheehan, Gene Ray, Jim Babka, Jack Thompson (attorney), Doug Stanhope and Bill Westmiller, chairman of the Republican Liberty Caucus.
[edit] Politics
The hosts are libertarians and work to apply their ideals to the show. For instance, there is no use of the industry standard delay and bleeper, or a device to restrict the speech of callers to a talk show by removing words from the broadcast. Instead, if a caller uses a word that is in apparent violation of FCC rules, the hosts warns the caller that the call will be terminated if it happens again. When questioned on this issue, the hosts referred to the FCC regulation of indecency and indicated they did not believe they were subject to the regulation. Regardless, the hosts want to avoid swearing on their broadcast because it may negatively impact the radio stations who rebroadcast the show. While this itself could be seen as suppression of free speech, it is done through private property and voluntary agreements, which is within the ideals of libertarianism.
[edit] Free State Project
A major sponsor of Free Talk Live and a common topic of discussion is the Free State Project, a group committed to organizing a large number of liberty proponents from around the world to move to the state of New Hampshire. Once there, the members will fulfill the requirements of their pledge to exert the fullest practical effort toward the creation of a society in which the maximum role of civil government is the protection of life, liberty, and property. All five Free Talk Live hosts are members of the Free State Project, and Ian and Mark moved to New Hampshire over the Labor Day weekend of 2006.
[edit] Read the Bills Act
Free Talk Live has endorsed the Read the Bills Act, a piece of legislation proposed by Downsize DC designed to ensure that our Congressional representatives actually read the text of any bill they vote for prior to voting on it. The show often features Jim Babka, President of Downsize DC, to talk about this and other goals of the organization. However, critics consider this endorsement hypocritical of Free Talk Live staff, (Ian in particular) as they commonly brag about categorically rejecting any addition of government whatsoever (As emphasized in pledge of joining the LP "I certify that I do not believe in or advocate the initiation of force as a means of achieving political or social goals."
[edit] Recent topics of discussion
- The Wickard v. Filburn Supreme Court decision which vastly increased the powers of the federal government.
- The Wikipedia Christian anarchy article
- How the war on drugs actually ends up hurting everyday people.
- The Supreme Court ruling on the 5th Amendment giving power to the state to take property for the "public good" under eminent domain. (Kelo v. New London).
- The potential ban on "desecration" of the American flag.
- The US Constitution is supposed to restrict the government.
- Police holding a family at gunpoint over nothing.
- Socialist medicine doesn't allow for freedom.
- Drew Curtis from Fark.com joins for "Ask Drew," and addresses the Fark Squirrel.
- Youths being tricked by Military Recruitment Officers
- How the people were led down the road to Socialist education.
- The economic benefits to completely decriminalizing (not just legalizing and regulating) marijuana.
- Does one have a "right" to health care and education?
- The fight against the pledge of allegiance using the Freedom pledge or a pledge of individuality
