Paul Begala
Paul Begala, 2012
Born	Paul Edward Begala (1961-05-12) May 12, 1961 (age 51) New Jersey
Nationality	American
Education	University of Texas at Austin (BA, JD)
Occupation	Political consultant, political commentator
Political party	Democratic
Religion	Roman Catholic[1]
Spouse	Diane Friday

Paul Edward Begala^[2] (born May 12, 1961) is an American political consultant and political commentator. He was an adviser to President Bill Clinton. Begala was a chief strategist for the 1992 Clinton-Gore campaign, which carried 33 states and made Clinton the first Democrat to win the White House in twelve years. As counselor to the President in the Clinton White House, he coordinated policy, politics, and communications.

Along with James Carville, Begala gained national prominence as the political consulting team Carville and Begala. Until June 2005, Begala was a co-host of CNN's political debate program Crossfire. He is Research Professor of Public Policy at Georgetown University Public Policy Institute. Currently, he is teaching at the University of Georgia School of Law as a Sanders Political Leadership Scholar.

Early life and education[link]

He was born in New Jersey to an Irish American mother, Peggy (née Cass), and a Hungarian American father, David Begala. He was raised in Missouri City, Texas, where his father was an oil-field equipment salesman.^[3][4] In 1979, Begala graduated from Dulles High School in Sugar Land, Texas.

He earned both his Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctor from the University of Texas at Austin, where he taught briefly. While at the University of Texas, Begala was a candidate for student government president. However, he finished second to a write-in campaign for Hank the Hallucination, a character from the campus comic strip Eyebeam. Following his loss, Begala wrote a tongue-in-cheek complaint for the Daily Texan, arguing "I cannot help but feel Hank's platform is illusory at best... I must say that the candidate himself lacks substance." Begala was declared the human winner, following a ruling that imaginary characters could not hold the position.^[5]

Career[link]

Begala, along with business partner James Carville, helped then-Governor of Arkansas Clinton win the 1992 presidential election. Begala was a chief strategist for the 1992 Clinton-Gore campaign. Clinton carried 33 states and became the first Democrat elected President since 1976. Begala served as a counselor to the President in the Clinton White House, where he coordinated policy, politics, and communications. Begala is a CNN political commentator and a research professor of public policy at Georgetown University's Public Policy Institute.

Aside from the 1992 presidential election, Begala and Carville have had other well-known political victories including the 1991 Pennsylvania U.S. Senate victory of Harris Wofford, the 1988 re-election campaign of incumbent New Jersey US Senator Frank Lautenberg, and the gubernatorial victories of Robert Casey in Pennsylvania in 1986, Wallace G. Wilkinson in Kentucky in 1987, and Zell Miller in Georgia in 1990.

Before becoming a co-host of Crossfire, Begala co-hosted a show, Equal Time, with Oliver North on MSNBC. He also was a contributor to John F. Kennedy Jr.'s political magazine George in the late 1990s.

As an author and co-author, Begala has written five political books: Is Our Children Learning?: The Case Against George W. Bush; Buck Up, Suck Up and Come Back When You Foul Up (with James Carville); It's Still the Economy Stupid; and "Third Term: Why George W. Bush (Hearts) John McCain. Begala still keeps on hand a pocket New Testament he received from Brother Jed in the 1970s.

He was an early supporter of Hillary Clinton during the 2008 presidential primaries. However, after she dropped out of the race, he became a backer of Barack Obama.

On January 12, 2008, Begala appeared on NPR's radio show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, playing the game Not My Job. He won by answering two out of three questions correctly.

Begala was a consultant in the service of mortgage lender Freddie Mac, an arrangement that ended in September 2008.^[6]

Looking back at his career and the U.S. political scene, Begala has remarked that a "presidential campaign is like a film. It never comes together until it’s scored and tracked."^[7]

Personal life[link]

Begala and his wife, Diane Friday, have four sons.^[8]

Bibliography[link]

• Is Our Children Learning?: The Case Against George W. Bush, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000. ISBN 0-7432-1478-1
• It's Still the Economy, Stupid: George W. Bush, The GOP's CEO, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2002. ISBN 0-7432-4647-0
• Third Term: Why George W. Bush (Hearts) John McCain, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2008. ISBN 1-4391-0213-9

Co-authored with James Carville

• Buck Up, Suck Up... and Come Back When You Foul Up: 12 Winning Secrets from the War Room, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2002. ISBN 0-7432-2422-1
• Take It Back: Our Party, Our Country, Our Future, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2006. ISBN 0-7432-7752-X

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Paul Begala

• Paul Begala at the Huffington Post
• Paul Begala at the group blog TPMCafe
• Paul Begala at the Internet Movie Database

Meghan McCain
McCain at the 2011 Time 100 gala
Born	Meghan Marguerite McCain (1984-10-23) October 23, 1984 (age 27) Phoenix, Arizona
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Columbia University
Occupation	Columnist at The Daily Beast
Known for	Daughter of U.S. Senator John McCain, blogger, author of My Dad, John McCain and Dirty Sexy Politics
Political party	Republican [1]
Parents	John McCain Cindy Hensley McCain
Website
McCain Blogette Meghan McCain at the Daily Beast

Meghan Marguerite McCain (born October 23, 1984)^[2] is an American columnist, author and blogger.^[3][4] She is a daughter of U.S. Senator John McCain and Cindy Hensley McCain. McCain first received media attention in 2007 for her blog, McCain Blogette, on which she documented life on the campaign trail and mused about fashion, music, and pop culture. In 2009, she became a contributing author for The Daily Beast,^[5] and in 2011, began appearing as a contributor on MSNBC.^[6]

Early life[link]

Meghan McCain at the 1992 christening of USS John S. McCain, second from right, with her father John, grandmother Roberta, brother Jack, and mother Cindy

McCain is the oldest of the four children of John and Cindy Hensley McCain.^[3] She has been a public figure for most of her life, appearing at the 1996 Republican National Convention.^[7]

She was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, and attended Phoenix Country Day School and Xavier College Preparatory, an all-girl Catholic high school. She attended Columbia University, where she earned her bachelor's degree in art history. McCain originally planned to become a music journalist and interned at Newsweek and Saturday Night Live.^[8]

Political positions[link]

McCain says that she is "a woman who despises labels and boxes and stereotypes."^[9] McCain also has described herself as a Republican who is "liberal on social issues".^[3][8] She registered as an Independent when she was 18 years old^[1] and she voted for John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election.^[8] She agrees with her father's positions on global warming and stem-cell research.^[3] At first she had doubts about the 2003 invasion of Iraq but subsequently supported her father's position regarding it.^[3] She has stated she is pro-life,^[9] in favor of sex education and birth control.^[10] She has chastised conservatives for hypocrisy regarding abortion: "They go on and on about how evil and wrong abortion is, but don't like to talk about how easy it is to not get pregnant."^[11]

McCain objected to the Arizona SB1070 anti-illegal immigration law, which her father supported.^[12]

She has commented that the cause of the gay community for equality is "one of the ones closest to my heart". As such, she spoke at the Log Cabin Republicans convention in April 2009.^[9] There she encapsulated her cultural and political perspectives with the declaration: "I am concerned about the environment. I love to wear black. I think government is best when it stays out of people's lives and business as much as possible. I love punk rock. I believe in a strong national defense. I have a tattoo. I believe government should always be efficient and accountable. I have lots of gay friends. And, yes, I am a Republican."^[13] She supports same-sex marriage and gay adoption.^[9] In June 2009, McCain posed for the NOH8 Campaign, a celebrity photo project that protests California's Proposition 8 constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, which her mother Cindy also posed for.^[14] She was in favor of repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell and allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the U.S. military.^[15]

In terms of economic policy, she has remarked on The Rachel Maddow Show that "I didn't even take Econ[omics] in college. I don't completely understand it so I'd hate to make a comment one way or the other. That's – truly of all the things – I keep reading and I just don't understand it."^[16]

2008 presidential election[link]

McCain, far right, with her family and Sarah Palin's family during her father's announcement of Palin as his running mate, September 2008

On June 12, 2008, McCain wrote on her blog that she had changed her party registration to Republican.^[1] She said she did so "as a symbol of my commitment to my Dad and to represent the faith I have in his ability to be an effective leader for our country and to grow and strengthen the Republican party when he is elected President of the United States."^[1] In her book, Dirty Sexy Politics, McCain talks about how she nearly overdosed on Xanax on the day of the elections.^[17]

In 2008, she published a book titled My Dad, John McCain. In an interview on Larry King Live in September 2008, McCain stated that she has been too busy to have a romantic relationship while on her father's campaign trail. Although her blogging was devoted towards gaining support for her father among the Generation Z electorate, by October, Steve Schmidt and other McCain campaign staffers had substantially limited her appearances on the campaign, deeming her "too controversial".^[18]

Subsequent career[link]

Meghan McCain in 2009 at UC Berkeley

McCain is currently a blogger,^[3][4] and began writing for The Daily Beast in January 2009.^[5]

In March 2009, McCain wrote an article for The Daily Beast titled My Beef With Ann Coulter. In this article, she questioned Republican support for conservative author and columnist Ann Coulter.^[19] While Coulter did not respond, conservative radio talk show host Laura Ingraham challenged McCain's article by comparing her to a "Valley Girl." Ingraham also mocked McCain, stating, "Ok, I was really hoping that I was going to get that role in The Real World, but then I realized that, well, they don't like plus-sized models."^[20] McCain responded to Ingraham in a second article for The Daily Beast titled, Quit Talking About My Weight, Laura Ingraham stating, "Instead of intellectually debating our ideological differences about the future of the Republican Party, Ingraham resorted to making fun of my age and weight, in the fashion of the mean girls in high school."^[21] McCain also stated on The View that she thought the change in discourse towards her body was "terrible" and further argued: "When Tyra Banks went on her show in a bathing suit and said 'kiss my fat ass,' that's what I feel like. Kiss my fat ass!"^[22] Ingraham responded by calling McCain a "useful idiot."^[23] During a later interview on Larry King Live, McCain said that as far as she is concerned, "with what's going on with Laura Ingraham, on my end, it's over." She also told King that Coulter never responded to her article, which she stated, "is fine with me. ... All I wanted to do is show women that you don't have to be Ann Coulter and Laura Ingraham to have a place in the Republican Party. ... Supriya Jindal is a good role model, but a lot of people hadn't heard of her."^[24]

In April 2009, she signed a six-figure book deal with Hyperion.^[25] Some 18,000 people were following her on Twitter.^[25] She described her aims in this way: "All I am trying to be is a young, cool Republican woman for other Republican women."^[25] The Politico stated that while John McCain did not emerge from the 2008 election victorious, "his Bud Light-drinking, talk-show-appearing, insouciantly Twittering 24-year-old daughter" did.^[25] Speaking at the 2009 Log Cabin Republican Convention, McCain said there was "a war brewing in the Republican Party" between the past and the future, and that "Most of the old school Republicans are scared shitless of that future."^[13] She followed that by saying her enjoyment of Twitter was diminished by the presence of top Republican strategist Karl Rove, saying "I can't shake the fact that Karl Rove is following me – it can be creepy" and "We need to take Twitter back from the creepy people."^[26]

Statements such as these led news reports and commentators including Rachel Maddow and Kathleen Parker to conclude that McCain had the same "maverick gene" as her father.^[27][28][29] Following the April 2009 party switch by Senator Arlen Specter from Republican to Democratic, conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh suggested that many Republicans wished both John McCain and Meghan McCain would leave too.^[30] Meghan McCain's tweet in response was, "RED TIL I'M DEAD BABY!!! I love the republican party enough to give it constructive criticism, I love my party and sure as hell not leavin!"^[30] On a May 2009 episode of the Colbert Report, she stated her support for sex education and criticized Bristol Palin's sexual abstinence campaign, saying it was "not realistic for this generation". McCain also stated her own desires for the Republican Party: "It can be a party for a 24-year-old pro-sex woman. It can be."^[31] After John McCain campaign fixture Joe the Plumber made some anti-gay remarks (saying he would not have “queers ... anywhere near my children”) in mid-2009, Meghan McCain took aim at him, saying "Joe the Plumber – you can quote me – is a dumbass. He should stick to plumbing."^[32] In September 2009 and February 2010, McCain had repeat stints as guest co-host of The View.^[15][33] In September 2010, she appeared on the NPR news quiz show Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me and won a prize for a listener.^[34]

Her campaign memoir, Dirty Sexy Politics, was published in September 2010. In it she finally unleashes her feelings about Sarah Palin and describes the ups and downs she experienced with the McCain campaign staff. She states that the Republican Party seemed "to have lost its way in the last ten years",^[35] that the conservative movement seemed "hell-bent on restricting our freedoms rather than expanding them",^[36] and that within the Republican Party, she felt a certain stress to take over the ideas of others, like Mitt Romney, especially regarding same-sex marriage, which was a danger for the existence of the party.^[37] The book also serves as a coming-of-age narrative about herself.^[18][38] However, other reviews were more scathing. Leon H. Wolf wrote "It is impossible to read Dirty, Sexy Politics and come away with the impression that you have read anything other than the completely unedited ramblings of an idiot."^[39] During the promotional tour for the book, McCain cancelled an appearance at Juniata College due to what she called, "unforeseen professional circumstances". However, according to her Twitter, she was actually in Las Vegas on a girl's weekend, as she got over a boyfriend ending their relationship via e-mail.^[40]

McCain has been lampooned and criticized by the political blogosphere. In September 2011, her lawyers asked RedState to take down posts that were parodying her commentary, as they made her appear buffoonish and arrogant.^[41] In November 2011, McCain became an analyst on MSNBC, and immediately got into a back-and-forth with 2012 Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich.^[6][42] In commentary on this, Gawker referred to her as "noted idiot Meghan McCain" and observed of her first outing that "she 'bets [her] career' that Newt Gingrich won't win the GOP nomination. What career."^[43]

A month-long road trip with comedian Michael Ian Black in the summer of 2011 led to a collaboration on the 2012 book, America, You Sexy Bitch: A Love Letter to Freedom.^[44] In it, McCain lambasts Republican strategist Karl Rove for what she believed was his role in the attacks against her younger sister in her father's 2000 presidential campaign, castigates Bill Clinton for his actions in the Lewinsky scandal, but despite ideological differences praises Hillary Clinton for having "pushed through many doors and shattered many glass ceilings for women in politics. I love women who don’t put up with shit, and Hillary clearly doesn’t."^[44]

Writings[link]

• McCain, Meghan (2008), My Dad, John McCain, Aladdin Paperbacks. ISBN 1-4169-7528-4
• McCain, Meghan (2010), Dirty Sexy Politics, Hyperion. ISBN 1-4013-2377-4

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Meghan McCain

• McCain Blogette
• Meghan McCain on Twitter
• Meghan McCain's channel on YouTube
• Column archives at The Daily Beast
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Meghan McCain at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by or about Meghan McCain in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Meghan McCain collected news and commentary at The New York Times

v t e John McCain Life Early life and military career Cultural and political image Hanoi Hilton The Nightingale's Song Books authored Faith of My Fathers Worth the Fighting For Character Is Destiny Hard Call Political activities House and Senate career, until 2000 The Keating Five Scandal International Republican Institute Presidential campaign, 2000 Senate career, 2001-present Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act Climate Stewardship Acts McCain Detainee Amendment 2008 opposition to limiting interrogation techniques List of bills sponsored Political positions Presidential campaign, 2008 Presidential campaign endorsements, 2008 Elections Electoral history House of Representatives elections, 1982 House of Representatives elections, 1984 Senate election, 1986 Senate election, 1992 Senate election, 1998 Senate election, 2004 Senate election, 2010 Family Cindy Hensley McCain (wife) Carol McCain (first wife) Meghan McCain (daughter) John S. McCain, Jr. (father) Roberta McCain (mother) Joe McCain (brother) John S. McCain, Sr. (grandfather) Book:John McCain Category:John McCain

Rachel Maddow
Maddow hosting KPTK's "Changing the Media, Changing America" event in Seattle
Born	Rachel Anne Maddow (1973-04-01) April 1, 1973 (age 39) Castro Valley, California, U.S.
Education	B.A., Stanford University D.Phil, University of Oxford
Occupation	News anchor Political commentator Television host
Notable credit(s)	The Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC) The Rachel Maddow Show (Air America Radio)
Website
www.rachelmaddow.com

Rachel Anne Maddow (pronounced /ˈmædoʊ/; born April 1, 1973) is an American television host, political commentator, and author.^[1][2] Maddow hosts a nightly television show, The Rachel Maddow Show, on MSNBC.^[3] Her syndicated talk radio program of the same name aired on Air America Radio. Maddow is the first openly gay anchor of a prime-time news program in the United States.^[4][5][6][7]

Asked about her political views by the Valley Advocate, Maddow replied, "I'm undoubtedly a liberal, which means that I'm in almost total agreement with the Eisenhower-era Republican party platform."^[8]

Early life and education[link]

Maddow was born in Castro Valley, California. Her father, Robert B. "Bob" Maddow, is a former United States Air Force captain who resigned his commission the year before her birth and found civilian work as a lawyer for the East Bay Municipal Utility District. Her mother, Elaine Maddow (née Gosse), is a school program administrator from Newfoundland, Canada.^[9][10][11] She has one older brother, David. Her father is of Russian and Dutch descent and her mother is of English and Irish ancestry.^[11] Maddow's mother was raised a strict Roman Catholic, and Maddow herself grew up in a community that her mother has described as "very conservative."^[12][13] Maddow was a competitive athlete and played three sports in high school.^[14] Referencing John Hughes films, she describes herself in high school as "a cross between the jock and the antisocial girl."^[13]

A graduate of Castro Valley High School in Castro Valley, California, she attended Stanford University. While a freshman, she was outed by the college newspaper when an interview with her was published by the student newspaper before she could tell her parents.^[15] Maddow earned a degree in public policy from Stanford in 1994.^[16] At graduation she was awarded the John Gardner Fellowship.^[17] She was also the recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship and began her postgraduate study in 1995 at Lincoln College, Oxford. In 2001, she earned a Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) in politics from Oxford University.^[18] Her thesis is titled HIV/AIDS and Health Care Reform in British and American Prisons (supervisor: Dr Lucia Zedner). She was the first openly gay American to win a Rhodes scholarship.^[19][20]

Radio career[link]

Maddow's first radio hosting job was at WRNX (100.9 FM) in Holyoke, Massachusetts, after she entered and won a contest the station held to find a new on-air personality.^[21] She was hired to co-host WRNX's morning show, The Dave in the Morning Show. She went on to host Big Breakfast on WRSI, in Northampton, Massachusetts, for two years. She left the show in March 2004 to join the new Air America.^[18] There she hosted Unfiltered along with Chuck D (of the hip hop group Public Enemy) and Lizz Winstead (co-creator of The Daily Show), until its cancellation in March 2005.^[22] Two weeks after the cancellation of Unfiltered in April 2005, Maddow's weekday two-hour radio program, The Rachel Maddow Show, began airing; in March 2008 it gained an hour, broadcasting from 6 to 9 p.m. EST with David Bender filling in the third hour for the call-in section, when Maddow was on TV assignment. In September 2008, the show's length returned to two hours when Maddow began a nightly MSNBC television program. In February 2009, after renewing her contract with Air America, Maddow returned to the 5 am hour-long slot.^[23] Her last Air America show was on January 21, 2010, two weeks before its owners filed for bankruptcy.^[24]

Television career[link]

In June 2005, Maddow became a regular panelist on MSNBC's Tucker.^[25] During and after the November 2006 election, she was a frequent guest on CNN's Paula Zahn Now. In January 2008, Maddow became a MSNBC political analyst and was a regular panelist on MSNBC's Race for the White House with David Gregory and MSNBC's election coverage,^[26] as well as a frequent contributor on Countdown with Keith Olbermann.^[18]

In April 2008, Maddow was the substitute host for Countdown with Keith Olbermann, her first time hosting a program on MSNBC. Maddow described herself on air as "nervous." Keith Olbermann complimented her work, and she was brought back to host Countdown the next month. The show she hosted was the highest rated news program among people ages 25 to 54, a key demographic in ratings.^[27] For her success, the next Monday, Olbermann ranked Maddow third in his show's segment "World's Best Persons".^[28] In July 2008, while Olbermann was on vacation, Maddow filled in again for several broadcasts and, on July 21, for half the show.^[29] Maddow also filled in for David Gregory as host of Race for the White House.^[18]

[edit] The Rachel Maddow Show

In August 2008, MSNBC announced The Rachel Maddow Show would replace Verdict with Dan Abrams in the network's 9 p.m. slot the following month.^[30][31] Following its debut, the show topped Countdown as the highest rated show on MSNBC on several occasions.^[32][33] After being on air for more than a month, Maddow's program doubled the audience that hour.^[34]

Early reviews for her show were mostly positive. The Los Angeles Times writer Matea Gold stated Maddow "finds the right formula on MSNBC,"^[35] and The Guardian writes Maddow has become the "star of America's cable news."^[20] Associated Press columnist David Bauder said she's "[Keith] Olbermann's political soul mate" and the Olbermann-Maddow shows are a "liberal two-hour block."^[36]

Public image and publicity[link]

Maddow has been profiled in People,^[37] the Guardian,^[38] and the New York Observer,^[39] has appeared on “The View” and “Charlie Rose”^[40]

Keith Olbermann played a pivotal role in Maddow's hiring at MSNBC. Olbermann was able to pressure Phil Griffin to give Maddow Dan Abram's slot. A fan of Maddow's, Olbermann was able to use his influence, which had become greater as his ratings rose.^[41]

A 2011 Hollywood Reporter profile of Maddow said that she was able to deliver news "with agenda, but not hysteria.”^[42] A Newsweek profile noted that “At her best, Maddow debates ideological opponents with civility and persistence...But for all her eloquence, she can get so wound up ripping Republicans that she sounds like another smug cable partisan.". Baltimore Sun critic David Zurawik has accused Maddow of acting like 'a lockstep party member.'”^[43]

A Time profile called her a “whip-smart, button-cute leftie.” It said that she radiates an essential decency and suggested that her career rise might signify that “nice is the new nasty.”^[44]

Political views[link]

Distinguishing herself from others on the left, Maddow said she's a "national security liberal" and in a different interview that she's not "a partisan."^[45][46] The New York Times called her a "defense policy wonk" who is writing a book on the role of the military in postwar American politics.^[35][45] (The book, titled Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power, was published in 2012.) During the 2008 presidential election, Maddow did not formally support any candidate. Concerning Barack Obama's candidacy, Maddow said during the primaries, "I have never and still don't think of myself as an Obama supporter, either professionally or actually."^[47]

In March 2010, Republican Scott Brown, the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts, speculated that Maddow was going to run against him for his seat in 2012. He used this premise for a fundraising email that read "...The Massachusetts political machine is looking for someone to run against me. And you're not going to believe who they are supposedly trying to recruit — liberal MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow." Maddow said Brown's speculation was false. On her March 23, 2010, TV program, Maddow said, "I have the best job in the world. I am not running for office. Scott Brown didn't ask me if I was running or planning to run for office, before he wrote a fundraising letter with my name. No, it's completely made up by him." Despite her comments, the next day Brown continued along the same line, telling a Boston radio station, "Bring her on." To help put an end to the matter, Maddow ran a full-page advertisement in the Boston Globe confirming she was not running, and separately demanded Brown's apology. She added that despite repeated invitations over the months, Brown had refused to appear on her TV program.^{[48][49][50][51]}

Personal life[link]

Maddow lives in Manhattan and western Massachusetts with her partner, artist Susan Mikula.^[52][53] The couple met in 1999, when Mikula hired Maddow to do yard work at her home. Maddow was working on her doctoral dissertation at the time.^[52] Their first date was at a National Rifle Association "Ladies' Day on the Range" event.^[54] Although Massachusetts and New York recognize same-sex marriage, as of 2009 Maddow and Mikula had no plans to marry.^[13]

Honors and awards[link]

• Emmy Award in the Outstanding News Discussion and Analysis category for "The Rachel Maddow Show" episode "Good Morning Landlocked Central Asia!"
• Maddow was named in Out magazine's "Out 100" list of the "gay men and women who moved culture" in 2008.^[55]
• Maddow was voted "Lesbian/Bi Woman of the Year (American)" in AfterEllen's 2008 Visibility Awards.^[56]
• Maddow won a Gracie Award in 2009, presented by the American Women in Radio and Television.^[57]
• In 2009, Maddow was nominated for GLAAD's 20th Annual Media Awards for a segment of her MSNBC show, "Rick Warren, Change To Believe In?", in the Outstanding TV Journalism Segment category.^[58]
• On March 28, 2009, Maddow received a Proclamation of Honor from the California State Senate, presented in San Francisco by California State Senator Mark Leno.^[59]
• In April 2009, she was listed at number four in Out magazine's Annual Power 50 List.^[60]
• Maddow placed sixth in the "2009 AfterEllen.com Hot 100" list (May 11, 2009)^[61] and third in its "2009 Hot 100: Out Women" version.^[62]
• Maddow was included on a list of openly gay media professionals in The Advocate's "Forty under 40" issue of June/July 2009.^[63]
• In 1994, Maddow was an Honorable Mention in the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity Prize in Ethics.^[64]
• In June 2009, Maddow's MSNBC show was the only cable news show nominated for a Television Critics Association award in the Outstanding Achievement in News and Information category.^[65]
• In March 2010, Maddow won at the 21st Annual GLAAD Media Awards in the category, Outstanding TV Journalism- Newsmagazine for her segment, "Uganda Be Kidding Me".^[66]
• Maddow was the 2010 commencement speaker and was given an honorary Doctor of Laws (LLD) degree at Smith College in Northampton, MA in May 2010.^[67]
• In July 2010, Maddow was presented with a Maggie Award for her ongoing reporting of healthcare reform, the murder of Dr. George Tiller, and the anti-abortion movement.^[68]
• In August 2010, Maddow won the Walter Cronkite Faith & Freedom Award, which was presented by The Interfaith Alliance.^[69] Past honorees included Larry King, Tom Brokaw, and the late Peter Jennings.^[69]
• In November 2011, she was included on the list of "Over-Rated Thinkers" by the editors of The New Republic.^[70]
• In February 2012, Maddow was presented the John Steinbeck Award by the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies at San Jose State University.^[71]

Bibliography[link]

• Maddow, Rachel (2012). Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power. Crown. ISBN 978-0-307-46098-1. 

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rachel Maddow

• Rachel Maddow on Twitter
• Official website
• Profile and show at MSNBC
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Rachel Maddow on Charlie Rose
• Rachel Maddow at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by or about Rachel Maddow in libraries (WorldCat catalog)

Dana Loesch
Born	Dana Eaton[1] (1978-09-28) September 28, 1978 (age 33)[2][3]
Residence	St. Louis, Missouri
Occupation	editor-in-chief of Big Journalism, conservative radio host, blogger, political analyst
Employer	Andrew Breitbart KFTK FM NewsTalk 97.1
Spouse	Chris Loesch
Website
http://www.bigjournalism.com/ http://www.mamalogues.com/

Dana Loesch (née Eaton, born September 28, 1978) is a conservative talk radio host and blogger, formerly associated with the Tea Party movement.

Background[link]

Dana Loesch graduated from Fox High School in Arnold, Missouri. She attended St. Louis Community College and transferred to Webster University, where she majored in journalism. She dropped out after beginning her relationship with Chris Loesch, whom she would eventually marry. Loesch had been a liberal, but became a conservative after the September 11 attacks. She and her husband Chris have two children and homeschool them.^[3]

Career[link]

Loesch hosts The Dana Show: The Conservative Alternative, which broadcasts on KFTK FM NewsTalk 97.1 to the Greater St. Louis area.^[4] In October 2010, Loesch also became editor-in-chief of Big Journalism, one of the conservative group blogs created by Andrew Breitbart.^[5] In February 2011, CNN hired Loesch, Will Cain, and Democratic strategist Cornell Belcher, as political analysts in preparation for its 2012 election coverage. Loesch was specifically hired to represent the Tea Party point of view.^[6]

Politics[link]

She is a national leadership team member of the Nationwide Tea Party Coalition.^[7] On December 6, 2011, the St. Louis Tea Party, with which Loesch had been affiliated, announced that they and Loesch had mutually terminated their relationship.^[8]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Dana Loesch

• The Dana Show at KFTK's website

This United States biographical article related to radio is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Brian Lehrer
Brian Lehrer in 2009
Born	(1952-10-05) October 5, 1952 (age 59) New York City
Nationality	American
Alma mater	State University of New York at Albany (B.A.) Columbia University (M.P.H.) Ohio State University (M.S.)
Occupation	Journalist, Talk Show Host

Brian Lehrer (born October 5, 1952) is a radio talk show host on New York City's public radio station WNYC. His daily two-hour 2007 Peabody Award-winning program,^[1] The Brian Lehrer Show, features interviews with newsmakers and experts about current events and social issues. Lehrer was formerly an anchor and reporter for NBC Radio Networks, and has been in broadcast journalism for more than 20 years. Lehrer also hosts a weekly tech- and web-oriented television show, BrianLehrer.TV on CUNY TV.

Biography[link]

Lehrer obtained B.A. degrees in Music and Mass Communications from the State University of New York at Albany. While a student there, he hosted a radio program on the college radio station WSUA which has become WCDB Albany.

He holds a Master of Public Health degree from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and a masters degree in Journalism from Ohio State University. Lehrer resides in Inwood, Manhattan with his wife and one of his sons.

The Brian Lehrer Show[link]

Lehrer has been hosting his show, originally called On The Line, since its inception in 1989. The format is interviews with newsmakers, combined with listener phone calls. Newsmakers are local, national and international, often authors on book tours, or metropolitan area politicians, including both of New York's senators, and most congress, state and city representatives from the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area. But sometimes guests are less-famous individuals affected by the news, like Brooklyn residents on the site of giant housing developments, or neighbors of noisy Manhattan night clubs. Frequent topics are housing, health care, transportation, education, and other government functions, the arts, the experience of living in New York and the surrounding area, and international affairs, such as the Iraq war or Israel/Palestinian conflict, particularly from a New York perspective. His programs often use The New York Times for leads and guests. He tries to maintain a balance between issues as they affect listeners, and "horse-race" pundit discussions of politics.

Secrets for producing a talk show[link]

In February 2009, Brian Lehrer Show Executive Producer Nuala McGovern, who was leaving the program, compiled a selection of the greatest moments on the program since she started in 2000, and gave "five secrets for producing a talk show:"

1. "Accept that you're going to have to break a few eggs in the name of public service." Sometimes you have to ask that tough question "that may not be what the guest wants." For example, in 2003, Lehrer interviewed Iraqi foreign minister Adnan Pachachi, part of the first provisional government of Iraq. A caller from Iraq said that he would not recognize the Iraqi government because it was installed by the American government. Pachachi answered the question, but angrily responded, "I find it extraordinary that you allow people like that to use these airways." In another example, Lehrer asked Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, "Why did you deny the state of Florida the right to recount votes in its own state?" This was appropriate, he said, because 75% of the New York vote went for Al Gore in the 2000 election.
2.  "Be ready to turn on a dime." For example, during the New York City blackout, the station's main power went out.
3. Screen the call-ins carefully. For example, when a caller said that Senator Hillary Clinton was anti-military and required all the military officers in the White House to wear civilian clothes, not uniforms, McGovern saw that Senator Clinton herself was calling in to deny it.
4. "Research" includes getting out and talking to people. "Taxi drivers are a font of information." If a subject provokes discussion, "it's probably going to work on the radio." For example, one successful subject is parenting kids in the City. One successful segment was about a mother who allowed her 9-year-old son to travel alone on the subway.
5. "Know thy audience." Audience call-ins are an important resource for good programs. Successful call-ins were about first-time voters, how it is to live with HIV, how religion affects your politics, your environmental sins, losing your job. One listener suggested renaming "Citi Field" to "Debits Field."^[2]

CUNY TV show[link]

Lehrer currently hosts a cable TV talk show called BrianLehrer.TV (formerly Brian Lehrer Live) on CUNY TV (channel 75 on New York City cable systems). In 2009 the show was nominated for a regional Emmy award (New York Emmy Awards).

Other work[link]

Lehrer's op-ed pieces have appeared in The New York Times,^[3] The New York Sun, Newsday, The New York Daily News, and on Slate.com. His WNYC commentaries are also distributed globally on the NPR.org website.

Lehrer was a questioner in the WABC-TV New York City Mayoral Debates in 1997, 2001, and 2005. He has appeared on television as a commentator on New York 1, WNET Channel 13, and CNNfn, and hosted public affairs shows on WNYC-TV and WNET from 1990-1998.

Lehrer was the recipient of the Associated Press New York Broadcasters "Best Interview" Award in 2000 for an interview with a rape survivor, and in 2001 for his role as moderator on NYC radio of the only mayoral primary debate between Michael Bloomberg and Herman Badillo. During his tenure as host of "NPR's On The Media," the national program was named "Best Weekly Show" by the Public Radio News Directors in 1999.

Lehrer is also an award-winning author and documentary producer. He was awarded the New York Press Club's "Heart of New York Award" for his documentary on new immigrants Immigrant New York: The Last 20 Years, and a New York Public Library "Best Books For The Teenaged" award for The Korean Americans.

He currently moderates several major public forums, including The Nation vs. The Economist series and the Harper's Forum series, and has moderated or hosted major events for the American Museum of Natural History and Westinghouse Science Foundation, among others.

References[link]

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (May 2008)

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Brian Lehrer

• Brian Lehrer Show
  • Podcast feed link
  • "Commentaries from Brian Lehrer" WNYC
  • "The Official Blog of the Brian Lehrer Show" WNYC
• Brian Lehrer Live on CUNY TV
  • BrianLehrer.tv — Official website of "Brian Lehrer Live"