The transformation of american politics. Australia. Melbourne, numerousritten for publications including the new politico, and fox. Nicole i would like to thank both for that great introduction and all of you for coming out here today. Time oft is busy this year postelection and postthanksgiving. Thank you for coming out and for inviting me. About my bookalk and i thought i would focus on the relationship between conservative media and electoral politics since that seems particularly timely this month. To do that, i want to start not in the 1940s in 1950 passes when the book begins, but in the last few months. Donald trump announced in mid august another campaign shakeup. He was hiring steve annan, the breitbart. The world react as if wires had been crossed. From the media, jumping straight into politics. Even in the world of partisan media, it seemed unusual to give up all pretext of difference pretense of difference. Maybe that should not have been so surprising. Conservatives have been able to count on fox news and conservative radio for a generation and the generation the connection is much older. Older than most people assume conservative media is. Is deeplyof activism intertwined in the dna of modern conservative media. Betterll help us understand not way the power of conservative media but how it involved into something new a rightwing populist media that structured the message of the and will define his presidency. Starts with robert taft. The 1952 Republican Convention was ranked. The conclusion of many conservatives. They have spent years toiling in the trenches for robert, the conservative or ohio. , the heirext in line apparent for the republican nomination. Antinew deal, antiinterventionist. Nowhere, aut of in, one of thet biggest celebrities in america with no political experience who had not even been a republican a few years prior. A sinister light eisenhower when eisenhower won the nomination, his victory was greeted with a deep this nation by conservatives. A conservative popular publisher wrote delegates, i understand, were bought and intimidated with dealerships, pressure from banks, insurance companies, and , i am told, when buckley founded National Review a fears later, the magazine echoed the charge. The editor exclaimed, the machinations of eastern elites for eisenhowers rise of power. The editorial in the first issue , early in 1951, International Bankers and industrialists organized the the inflationsted to the new York Advertising firm. The rest is history. Conservatives had little patience for eisenhower who they too conservative willing to keep the new deal. The right to rethink its future in the gop. Maybe, conservatives thought, the road to the white house would not run through either party. Maybe they would need a new party to advance their ideas. Work on a new political effort came not from it came from folks within the conservative media. The 1950s, conservatives about they were excluded by entrenched liberal establishment. They cultivated and elite populism which allowed them to speak as representatives of an oppressed minority and an oppressed majority. Despite an access to traditional sources to economic, social, and political power. The story of media activists is not just one of activists advocating for change or wealthy you will the wealthy elite manipulating the masses. The work of activists sat at the intersection of these two factions. Elite populism was asked a distinguishing feature of conservative media activism from the start, while the elite part was self seldom in question. Ceoss. E the populist part took a while to develop. While the activism was simply a matter of annuity arguments and creating a sense of conservative identity among lifelong we readers and listeners, it does not matter that conservatives were in the minority. Functionslavor but it largely as a link to the past. The first generation of media activists saw themselves operating in the populist tradition. They compared their work to that of times pain, laying the groundwork for a fundamentally new type of government. That of William Lloyd garrison. At worst, judicious. Media activists constructed a lineage as radical as it was conservative. Is liberal,lishment they would dedicate themselves to demolishing it. They sought to do it not by turning to Community Organizing but through media. Believe the media were key to political power, the controlling the means of communication would inevitably lead to political change. Started their own publishing houses and radio programs and magazines. Henry found in his company in 1947 while Devin Garrity pumped up conservative books from his Publishing Company assumes world war ii ended. Conservative weekly found their footing in 1975. I conservative magazine shifted to more popular politics. Media in conservative married media with activism, using their role with voice of conservatism to push for change. Media activists attempted to pry the listeners and audiences away from longstanding party allegiances and toward a more ideological approach to voting. Because of your conservative beliefs. In thes a radical shift 1940s and a knife and 50s, when the parties were ideologically you had conservative republicans and andral republicans, conservatives wanted to create a purely conservative party. Quixotic campaigns had little effect on the National Clinical scene. They were important for conservative media and conservative electoral politics. The 1950s were a testing ground for whether they needed to work in a twoparty system. The publisher of Chicago Tribune tots a new organization he called organization for america and pointed two cochairs. Clarence, and dan smoot. Another popular radio host. In 1945, before america had emerged for america had emerged and it was founded by a publisher and led by two publishers. In the mid1950s, media activists were just getting their start. They never went into the thick of politics before. It is telling what they did when faced with their first president ial election in 1956. They urged conservatives to reject the two Major Party Candidates and vote for a conservative. Accountant with a thick virginia drawl and an easygoing charm. In 1953, eisenhower appointed head of the Internal Revenue service. Andrews was not very wellsuited for a role in the federal government. In 1955, he resigned and began to denouncing the federal income tax as discriminatory and politically unsound. As you can imagine, conservative love this. The head of the irs was saying the income tax was discriminatory, not politically so this makes him a favorite in conservative circles and his name starts crossing off as the ideal 1966 candidate pier 1 problem was nobody really knew how to run a thirdparty candidate. Howd you build a party to challenge the democrats and the republicans question mark republicans . Turned language changed. It was not in the new party but in the emergence of a powerful new president ial ticket. A ticket and not a party. That is what for america would deliver in 1966. Formally nominated in october where he was the keynote speaker. They would be running a Weekend Campaign since they both had day jobs. The ticket does not get off the until october and it does not get very far as they were on the weekend. It did attract some support. The wall street Editorial Board labeled it a party of protests, paveoted the ticket might the way for displaced conservatives to gain the attention of the two major parties. National views washington correspondent sam jones wrote an article strongly encouraging able for andrews. Where is the wall street journal mainly common on the economic positions and tax ideas . Jones focus on immigration and civil rights. In its first few years, National Review still finding its footings and presentations of civil rights, segregation and racism, mostly relied on jones and james fitzpatrick. That is chu and domestic policy but feel look of the coverage of foreign policy, it is different. Of white supremacist defenses that you see and why the south must prevail come you see it in the magazines coverage of africa and apartheid, defending the ofrtheid is ecb same sorts you see the same sorts of because they are the advanced race arguments. Was a major issue in the 1950s but conservative media activists to not put it front and center in the campaign. They used it strategically to attract white southern democrats to formally endorse the ticket, the appeal to the crowd by reading the statement that eisenhower was willing to use federal force to ensure school immigration in the south integration in the south. He said supporters were flushed flocking to his ticket in droves after the comments. Thunderous to nancy and, it was impossible to disseminate the ticket from massive resistance. The ticket has to be understood in that light. A virginian running on states rights in 1966 cannot be understood outside of that context. Such a Strong Association with segregation limited the ticketss appeal outside of the south. Act laimed with some accuracy that for america was solely responsible for the candidacy. It was an of the day, effort and they also laid the groundwork for a thirdparty. All of that was centered in the south in almost all of it was limited to his home state of virginia. He had no impact on the president ial race but his candidacy was important for media activists. They had weathered their first election cycle. Chairman of aas president ial campaign, however small. The National Review, founded earlier, has its first the editors gain important ideological purity and electoral pragmatism. They also discovered the difficulty of providing direction to readers as voters. When the most desirable candidate had no shot at victory. How do you convince leaders to throw away their vote to show their discontent with both parties . In the end, they did not endorse anyone and encourage readers to vote their conscience. Ted cruz would like that. Looking forward to the 1960 he tried another shadowy. Two National Parties risen with ideological factions. Bring themas to altogether and purge the liberals, to assess and ideological realignment of the in looking for a candidate kim clark anion goldwater, a familiar stage face on the stage. His call for a more conservative Publican Party led the Washington Posts discover it byld be better symbolized the macedon than the elephant. Manion saw goldwater as the partyss future. Goldwater insisted he would not run a thirdparty campaign and would not leave the gop. Manion shelved his thirdparty ambitions and got to work on the republican nomination. Organizing for a goldwater nomination consumed manions time. Before he could take on the gop, he had to convince others on the conservatism. Ater it seems silly now. We associate goldwater with conservatism down the line but not all conservatives were sold that goldwater was a conservative. He supported the eisenhower administration. He did not necessarily agree with all conservatives on all of their issues. Needed to do something to make goldwater synonymous with conservatism. To sellht who better those principles that goldwater himself. Idea of a statement of belief, a goldwater manifesto, appealed on many levels. A prominent politician with conservative ideas, both of them together. Second, it would popularize the senator nationally, getting him on the lips of conservatives across the country. And it would lay the groundwork withoutldwater campaign forcing the hesitant senator into a declaration of candidacy. Goldwater was not entirely sure he wanted to risk his political reputation by running for president too early. Manion believed the book to do the campaigning for goldwater until he was ready to take up the call. That book, which would become conscience of the conservative , became his determination to when it became clear goldwater would not have time to devote, manion went to the national hasew contributor speechwriters. Many and to publish it himself through his own vanity press. He arranged for distribution, focusing on corporations that could use the purchase of the book as a form of contribution. When conscience of the conservative washington april 1960, it was an instant success, but forfor book sales goldwater conservatism. Goldwaters position in the senate made him a nationally recognized figure, and conscience of the conservative made him a nationally recognized conservative figure. The book did better than the protocampaign in the 1960 in 1960. The nomination went to president Richard Nixon and said. Convention, goldwater admonished conservatives who were threatening to stay home, to grow up and get to work. Did, soon after the election, conservative media activists turned their attention to the next election cycle. In conscience of the conservative sure goldwater would remain their best hope in the race. Fastforward to four years later. Media activists were poised to become fullfledged political leaders. People like bill, publisher of National Review, took the political organizing rains from manion. You have a radio host running americans for goldwater. By 1964, you have a magazine publisher. Were not part of the goldwater for america team, were highly important as goldwater emerged the front runner and nominee. Goldwater about to have a shot of the presidency. The campaign put conservatism right smack in the middle of american politics, elevating it from a Fringe Movement to a major force in american politics. For media activists, the trip from the fringes to the center was not without its challenges. Established conservative outlets suddenly found themselves facing competition from stars who are able to challenge the dominance. Itll self published paperback books spilling over with dark, scott conspiratorial analysis , sold millions of copies throughout the 1964 campaign. Largely bypassed the conservative Media Establishment. These were self published books put together in the homes of the , and 16 million of them were circulated in the summer of 1964. It was a phenomenon booksellers had not seen before. It was in essence the conservative Media Campaign running alongside the official Goldwater Campaign. It mattered because once goldwater won the nomination, rightwing media were no longer the primary group crafting his message and image. Conservatives had to tend with mainstream journalists, which they often spoke about as one in the same. They had to deal with the official and decidedly unwelcoming Goldwater Campaign. By the time goldwater wins the nomination, he essentially purges media activists from his campaign surrounds himself with the arizona mafia. A group of Close Friends of his who he increasingly relied on throughout the campaign. For all of these challenges, the campaign remained a rare thertunity to complete process activists had begun in the 1950s to interact with leaders and listeners as voters and partisan political organizers. You all know, goldwater lost the election in as and historic landside. The very ideas that had won him so much conservative adoration sounded bizarre to americans who had never really questioned the wisdom of Social Security or containment policy in the cold war. Convincedemist, he americans to vote for him and that demonstrated something and thee power limitation of conservative media in 1964. Inh skillful organization the right clinical tailwind, they could elevate a true conservative, the major Party President ial nomination but having developed their ideas and rhetoric, they found when faced with a broad american electorate, the fulls of American Media were illsuited for building a national majority. Coveredthe press goldwaters failure to win, his historic loss, was to suggest not only was goldwater done, but conservatism was. That now the rePublican Party would become more moderate and modern and would move forward from conservatism. It does not end there. Quite the opposite here Ronald Reagans election in 1980 and the republican revolution of 1980 94 cleared up the remaining liberals and made the gop the party of conservative ideas. Found supportans from a new generation of media activists. Rush limbaugh, fox news. During those years, republicanism and conservatism converged. It matters because rePublican Party politics and conservative ideas were not always compatible. During the george w. Bush of bigtration, an era government conservatism, the right often compromise principals to advance their power. Fox news, rush limbaugh, and the gop were becoming inseparable as an establishment. As populism became the dominant motive rightwing politics, all establishments were targets. Conservative media were not immune to the populist wave, discontent with fox newss perceived establishment bias in the 2012 republican primaries. Newt gingrich and Rick Santorum former fox news contributors, accused fox news of bias toward mitt romney. In same dynamic we see today the debate over secretary of state. In 2012, it was not enough to overturn the establishment. There was no central figure to organize around, no call to action. It was discontented and also fragmented. The opposition to obama united the rightwing populist in the conservative movement, disguising tensions and widening the gaps between the two, and in many ways, opposition to the Obama Administration tapered over emerging fractures happen within the conservative movement. There were visible signs in 2011 into the thats 12. People mocked the tea partiers who held a sign that said keep your government hands off my medicare. That in theignal wake of the financial crisis, the tea party base was exhibiting a rightwing economic populism. Not a doctrinaire conservatism. That is something i think we will all evaluate in this transformation can conservative and repelled parties. That is into the 12. After, right