When I was a Republican in my early 20s, Rush Limbaugh was my intellectual hero. I bought and read his books, “The Way Things Ought To Be” and “See I Told You So” over and over.

Limbaugh made me feel proud of my working-class background and superior to intellectuals and liberals. They lack common sense, he taught me, and wanted the government to control every aspect of our lives. 

Despite the fact that I didn’t personally know any intellectuals or liberals, I learned to hate them. They were the enemy in Limbaugh’s “culture war.” I was enticed into the political tribalism that fueled his media empire.

Limbaugh, a cigar smoker, recently died of lung cancer at the age of 70. Ironically, he told millions of his listeners that smokers aren’t at any greater health risk than people who “eat carrots,” and that the dangers of smoking tobacco are a liberal “myth.”

Limbaugh was often skeptical and disparaging of health experts and other scientists. Indeed, he claimed that the “four corners of deceit” are science, academia, government and media.

Limbaugh believed that global climate change is a “hoax” perpetrated by liberals and their media allies.

Last year, he stated that the coronavirus is nothing more than a “common cold” being “weaponized” to decrease support for President Trump.

In addition to his anti-science stances and conspiracy theories, Limbaugh developed a reputation for name-calling and personal attacks. He popularized the term “feminazi” to describe feminists he believed were too extreme. Limbaugh once told a Black listener to “take that bone out of your nose and call me back.” He called a law student a “slut” and “prostitute” for publicly advocating birth control coverage. Limbaugh called 13-year-old Chelsea Clinton, daughter of President Bill Clinton, a “dog.”

Despite numerous inflammatory statements, Republican President Ronald Reagan once called Limbaugh “the number one voice for conservatism in our country.”

I believe that he was the most influential figure in U.S. media and politics over the last 30-plus years. In addition to his No. 1 rated national radio program, popular podcast and best-selling books, he laid the foundation for FOX News and spawned an army of media imitators throughout the country.

Many Republican politicians, including Vice President Mike Pence, acknowledge that they were inspired by Limbaugh. Donald Trump’s presidency and in-your-face political stylings are clear extensions of the Rush Limbaugh effect.

With the recent violent protests and deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, we have seen the harm and violence that can emerge from divisive media personalities, conspiracy theories and political lies.

Let’s reflect and reshape our society so that people who promote misinformation and bigotry are corrected and shamed, rather than rewarded. Let’s restructure school curricula with increased emphases on logical thinking, media literacy, critical history, social science and natural science.

I went down the wrong path early in life but hope we will take action to prevent future generations from being fooled by charismatic charlatans. 

 

Tom Hochschild is a professor of sociology at VSU.