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On the Media

Episode 1 - The Divided Dial

On the Media

WNYC Studios

Society & Culture, Journalism, Politics, Technology, News, Magazine, Newspapers, Newspaper, Studios, History, Amendment, Radio, Brooke_gladstone, Wnyc, Micah_loewinger, Media, Npr, Advertising, Tv, Transparency

4.69.1K Ratings

🗓️ 6 May 2023

⏱️ 29 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

How one side of the political spectrum came to dominate talk radio — and how one company is using the airwaves to launch a right-wing media empire.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

A few weeks after the 2020 election, Radio host Eric Mataxus had one of his frequent guests

0:26.6

back on the air.

0:33.6

Doug Mastriano, freshman Pennsylvania State Senator and recently defeated 2022 Republican

0:39.5

nominee for governor, was at the fan guard, promoting allegations of widespread fraud

0:44.8

right after the 2020 election.

0:47.6

And so was conservative Christian talk show host Eric Mataxus.

0:52.3

So this was familiar fair to his listeners.

0:56.0

What happens if these people don't join you in this?

1:00.3

You could kiss fair and free elections goodbye.

1:04.2

Mastriano had a plan to get the state's general assembly to intervene in the election results.

1:09.9

It was a legal long shot, or more accurately, and impossibility, even the plans creator,

1:16.2

Trump lawyer John Eastman, said it wouldn't hold up in court.

1:20.2

Mataxus and Mastriano begged listeners to get their senators on board.

1:26.0

I just want to say to my audience, if you live in Pennsylvania and you don't do this,

1:31.5

when things go to hell, which they will, I want you to know you're responsible.

1:40.5

But right before this interview with Mastriano, something unexpected happened, something

1:46.2

that Eric Mataxus called divine intervention.

1:51.0

Mastriano got a call.

1:53.0

Hey, sir, I'm here with the Eric Mataxus.

1:55.4

He wants to know if you want any message you go out on the show today.

1:58.4

From lame duck president, Donald Trump, seeing how the attempt to change the Pennsylvania

2:03.0

election results was going.

...

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