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Neal Boortz - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Neal Boortz

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Neal Boortz

Neal Boortz
Born April 6, 1945 (1945-04-06) (age 63)
Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
Education Texas A&M University
John Marshall Law School
Occupation Syndicated Talk radio host, Author & Inactive Attorney
Spouse Donna Boortz
Children Laura
Website
boortz.com

Neal A. Boortz, Jr. (born April 6, 1945) is an American radio host, author, and libertarian political commentator. His popular talk show, The Neal Boortz Show, is produced by Cox Radio and is syndicated throughout the United States by Jones Radio Networks. It is ranked sixth in overall listeners, with 3.75 million per week.[1][2]

A registered member of the Libertarian Party, Boortz touches on many controversial topics. He supports eliminating the war on drugs, lowering taxes, and shrinking the size of government, while disagreeing with the Libertarian Party platform by supporting incremental tax reform, the war in Iraq, and opposing unrestricted immigration, although he opposes illegal immigration. Like most libertarians, Boortz has sided with liberals on some social issues, with limitations, such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and civil liberties, while siding with fiscal conservatives on advocating less government spending and decreasing corporate regulation. On The Neal Boortz Show, he has criticized politicians, Muslim extremism,[3] the homeless, government schools, liberals, smokers, the obese, welfare recipients, and people who drive at or below the speed limit. On air, Boortz refers to himself an "equal opportunity offender".

His self-given nicknames include: "The Talkmaster", "Mighty Whitey", "The Mouth of the South", "America's Rude Awakening", and the "High Priest of the Church of the Painful Truth".[4] Boortz's first book was The Commencement Speech You Need To Hear in 1997,[5] followed by The Terrible Truth About Liberals, in 1998.[6] In 2005, he co-wrote The FairTax Book with Congressman John Linder, proposing to implement a national retail sales tax in lieu of federal income taxes, payroll taxes, estate tax, etc.,[7] and the hardcover version debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and held that spot for two weeks.[8] In 2007, Boortz released Somebody's Gotta Say It, which is a compilation from his radio show and his life.[9]. His latest book is a follow up to the The FairTax Book, with the same coauthor, entitled The Fair Tax: Answering the Critics.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life & education

Neal Boortz was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, which was his mother's home. Describing himself as a "military brat", Neal's father was a World War II pilot in the Marine Corps. As a military family, Neal lived in many locations throughout the country (most notably, in the small community of Thrall, Texas).[10] Boortz spent his first two years of High School at Tustin Union High School in Tustin, California. The family then transferred to Florida where he attended Pensacola High School for his Junior and Senior years. He graduated from high school in 1963 with a C- average and went back to the state of Texas to attend Texas A&M University from 1963 to 1967. Boortz states "I was in the Corps of Cadets. Fighting Seagram's Seven, to be exact, Ed Zatopek, C.O."[11][12] Boortz never served in the military. Boortz then attended John Marshall Law School, in Atlanta, Georgia where he graduated with a Law Degree.[13]

[edit] Personal life

Outside of his program Boortz is a relatively private person. Residing three to four months of the year in Naples, Florida, he lives with his second wife, Donna.[14] They have one daughter, Laura. Neal is an avid pilot and enjoys spending his free time playing golf or flying. He has said that "There's nothing like flying upside down to clear your mind ... among other things." He has been known to defend aviation on-air and point out trade idocy to aviators. Since early 2000, Boortz has been a motorcycle enthusiast. Boortz often claims on air that he donates money to many charitable organizations such as Angel Flight and has participated in 2007 Ride of Angels, a motorcycle ride from DeKalb-Peachtree Airport on August 26th, to benefit Angel Flight of Georgia.[1][15] Boortz owns a Mooney Ovation3 and a Super Decathlon airplane.[16]

[edit] Professional career and rise to fame

Neal Boortz speaks at a FairTax Rally in Orlando, Florida on July 28, 2006
Neal Boortz speaks at a FairTax Rally in Orlando, Florida on July 28, 2006

Before going into radio, Boortz held many jobs with one of them being a speech writer for then Georgia Governor Lester Maddox. He first began his radio career in College Station, Texas in the 1960s at WTAW-AM under the name of Randy Neal while attending Texas A&M University.[4][17] After attending A&M, Boortz went to Atlanta in 1967 to visit his parents and because he liked the area, he decided to stay. He immediately began job searches in the broadcasting industry. Because of the many rejections, for two years, Boortz spent time working at Rich’s Department Store as an assistant buyer in fine jewelry where he, in his words, "had the pleasure of assisting Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.", and then another job in carpeting. Boortz went on to write speeches for the Governor of Georgia. Boortz claims that even after he started doing talk radio, it was still necessary for him to work two jobs to support his family. At other times, he held odd jobs to pay the bills. Boortz further claims that he loaded trucks for the East Texas Motor Freight, worked as night auditor at a motel, worked at the Postal Service Bulk Mail facility, sold life insurance and among other things, worked for an employment agency. In 1974, Boortz started attending law school in his spare time.

When Boortz moved to Atlanta, a new radio station named WRNG-AM came into existence. WRNG, which called itself "Ring Radio," was Atlanta’s first talk radio station. Boortz was an avid listener and would call their morning talk show host, Herb Elfman. Boortz was a regular caller that stirred a friendship between himself and the host. One evening while watching the news, he heard that Elfman had committed suicide. The next morning Boortz showed up at the front door of WRNG and announced that he was ready to take Elfman's place. Even though the management told him that "they were going to search for a 'qualified' host to take his place", Boortz was offered to be a temporary two-week replacement. In the interim, the evening host was moved to mornings and Boortz hosted the evening. Two weeks later, Boortz was moved to the morning show and has been doing talk radio in Atlanta ever since.[13]

[edit] Radio personality

After graduating from John Marshall Law School in Atlanta in 1977, Boortz practiced law in a solo law firm from 1977 through 1993.[11] Because of the recognition he garnished from his radio gigs, his practice began to flourish. Boortz continued the position of radio personality and attorney until 1993, when he signed a full contract with WSB to do a daily radio show. In 1999, his show became nationally syndicated through WSB's owner Cox Radio. His syndicated show originates from WSB-AM 750 in Atlanta. The Neal Boortz Show features Boortz, co-producers Royal Marshall and Belinda Skelton, interviewees, and callers. On the air and on his website (boortz.com) Boortz admonishes, "Don't believe anything you read on this web page or, for that matter, anything you hear on The Neal Boortz Show unless it is consistent with what you already know to be true, or unless you have taken the time to research the matter to prove its accuracy to your own satisfaction." On numerous occasions, Boortz has cautioned his listeners to take no heed nor place any credence in anything he says, as he is merely an "entertainer."[13]

In the February 1995 issue of Talkers Magazine, Neal Boortz was named one of the "25 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts in America" and one of the "100 Most Powerful & Influential People in Georgia" in the January 1995 issue of Georgia Trend magazine.[18][19] As an entertainer, Neal was a 2002 NAB Marconi Radio Awards finalist and Radio & Records NewsTalk Personality of the Year for 2002.[20] NewsMax.com Magazine's "Top 25 Talk Radio Host" list selected Boortz as the ninth most influential host in the nation.[21]

In 2007, Boortz and his radio show was awarded the honors of "Best Radio On-Air Personality" and "Best Radio Program, Any Type" by The Georgia Association of Broadcasters. He is also a nominee for the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame 2007 Career Achievement Award. The Neal Boortz Show airs from the nations eighth (8th) largest Radio Market[22] and is ranked the sixth overall most listened to radio program in the country.[2]

[edit] Author

The FairTax Book, co-authored by Neal Boortz and John Linder, was published on August 2, 2005.
The FairTax Book, co-authored by Neal Boortz and John Linder, was published on August 2, 2005.

Boortz's first foray into authorship was in 1997 with The Commencement Speech You Need To Hear, in which he delivers his opinions on various topics in the form of a commencement speech he would give to new college graduates, if ever invited to do so.[5] His second book, entitled The Terrible Truth About Liberals, was published in 1998, and contains reprinted material from his first book, along with a significant amount of new material.[6]

His third book (co-authored by Georgia Congressman John Linder) entitled The FairTax Book, explains the proposal to implement a national retail sales tax in lieu of the federal income taxes, payroll taxes, estate tax, etc.[7] The hardcover version held the #1 non-fiction spot on the New York Times bestseller list for the last two weeks of August 2005 and remained in the top ten for seven weeks.[8] The paperback released in May 2006 contains additional information and an afterword. It also spent several weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.[8] Boortz states that he donates 100% of his royalties from the FairTax book to charity and has commented on his radio show that he has not made one cent from the book.[23] As of July 2006, Boortz claims his charitable donations from book proceeds exceed one hundred thousand US dollars.[23] The book is one of his most frequent topics of discussion and is a common free gift to callers.

His fourth book entitled Somebody's Gotta Say It was released on February 20, 2007,[9] and debuted at #2 spot on the New York Times bestseller list, second only to Barack Obama's "Audacity of Hope".[24] He occasionally writes columns on the Internet news/commentary site Townhall.com and other online magazines.

His latest book is titled FairTax: The Truth.[25] This book answers to the critics of the Fair Tax proposal and debunks its myths and misrepresentations. It achieved #4 on the New York Times Best Seller list for the week of March 2, 2008 for paperback nonfiction.


Further information: The FairTax Book, FairTax: The Truth, FairTax

[edit] Politics

Boortz supports a complete overhaul of the U.S. tax system and the release of all non-violent drug offenders who are currently in prison. He does tend to support Republicans on a few economic issues, but clashes with them on social issues.[26] Neal Boortz has stated that he is a Libertarian,[27][26] however, some feel his views are more in line with neolibertarianism philosophy (sometimes referred to as a "republitarian") that embraces incrementalism domestically,[7] and a generally interventionist foreign policy based on self-interest, national defense and the expansion of freedom.[28] Neal disagrees with the Libertarian platform on several key issues including his firm support of the war in Iraq,[28] incremental tax reform,[7] and his opposition to the unrestricted immigration policy advocated by the Libertarian Party.

While Boortz criticizes the major parties saying "I believe that the principal difference between the Democrats and the Republicans is that the Democrats just want to grow our Imperial Federal Government a bit faster than the Republicans do."[16] He sides with liberals on some social issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and civil liberties.[9] He agrees with fiscal conservatives in advocating less government spending, decreasing corporate regulation, and he voted for President George W. Bush in 2004. He is an advocate for freedom of speech. In line with the traditional views of the Libertarian Party, Boortz supports eliminating the war on drugs, lowering taxes, shrinking the size of government, and emphasizing personal responsibility.[9] He has repeatedly stated his belief that global climate change is not man-made. For his stances on many of these issues, he is popular among conservative Republicans, who, due to their larger numbers in comparison to Libertarians, make up the majority of his listeners and callers. Boortz is perhaps most widely known for his enthusiastic support of the FairTax plan.[13]

Boortz tends to advocate Conservative platforms. Boortz's post-9/11 politics include support for the US-led War on Terror, a more aggressive foreign policy,[28] and the USA Patriot Act. Boortz is also strongly in favor of a crackdown on illegal immigration, including harsh penalties for businesses who employ illegals. These views occasionally put him in conflict with the Libertarian Party. For instance, Justin Raimondo of Antiwar.com has called Boortz a "statist, not a libertarian" and a "liberventionist" and has urged the Libertarian Party to "Boot Boortz".[29] Boortz counters that the issues of the greatest importance after the 9/11 attacks are those in which terrorism has dominated.

Prior to the 2006 midterm elections, Boortz opined that perhaps it would be a good thing to have the Republicans lose power in Congress, forcing them to wake up and stop taking their base for granted. Boortz told one disgruntled caller:

I am happy about it [the defeat]. It's the only way to get these Republicans to wake themselves up and say, 'You have abandoned what you were put in office for.'[30]

Boortz can frequently be heard criticizing government schools, liberals, smokers, the obese, welfare recipients, and many other large welfare or large spending programs.[6][9] He also creates controversy among conservatives for his support of abortion rights — on which Boortz does not allow calls — for his refusal to condemn homosexuality or gay marriage[31][9] (though he only supports gay adoption as a last resort) and for his negative comments regarding Baptists and the biblical story of creation.[9] Additionally, he causes a stir among some Southerners, coining the term "Flaggots" for his frequent jabs at them and at Confederate issues (such as governmental support of the Confederate flag).[32]

[edit] Controversies and criticisms

Main article: Neal Boortz controversies

Boortz has dealt with many controversial issues over the years. For example, Boortz believes that ADD and ADHD are "medical frauds" and a scam that teachers, parents, and drug companies use.[33][34] Boortz has also received criticism because he refers to homeless people as "urban outdoorsmen".[35][36][37] Boortz controversially refers to public education as "tax payer funded child abuse" and accuses parents of child abuse for sending their children off to "government schools".[37] Boortz expresses that he is an equal opportunity offender and has made controversial statements that are critical of politicians and other statements that offend Christian conservatives. He has repeatedly criticized Senator Hillary Clinton, Senator Ted Kennedy, former Senator Max Cleland, former Representative Cynthia McKinney.[38][39] He has also expressed a negative opinion about the lack of Muslim outrage for the actions of Muslim Terrorists and the riots that erupted in response to the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy.[40] Media Matters reported that Boortz called the Islamic prophet Mumhammad "just a phony rag-picker" and said it was "praiseworthy to recognize Islam as a religion of vicious, violent, bloodthirsty cretins."[41] Boortz has even sparred with Bill O'Reilly, goading O'Reilly to call him a "vicious son of a bitch" on The O'Reilly Factor.[42] Boortz has made controversial statements about Muslim extremists, leading to thought and discussions of the alleged silence of the Muslim community over the misrepresentation of their religion.[43][44] At the height of the Terri Schiavo controversy, Boortz strongly criticized groups that fought against the removal of Schiavo's feeding tube.[45] Boortz has also very harshly criticized certain victims of Hurricane Katrina who misused FEMA relief money, referring to them as "worthless parasites" whose displacement from New Orleans was "just a glorified episode of putting out the garbage."[46]

[edit] Boortzisms

Over the years Boortz has coined or made popular many sayings. He keeps a dictionary of "Boortzisms" called Boortztionary on his website.[37] He uses nicknames for fellow talk show hosts like “The Antichrist” for Michael Savage, “Baby Jesus” for Sean Hannity, and “The Godfather” for Rush Limbaugh.[37] Boortz uses many names for sexual activity like “discussing the Big Bang Theory”, “the beast with two backs”, and “making tricycle motors”.[37] He calls masturbation “Firing the Surgeon General”, which is a reference to former Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders who was fired by President Bill Clinton after she said that masturbation "is something that is part of human sexuality and its part of something that perhaps should be taught."[37] Boortz also has named politicians, like calling Hillary Clinton the “Hildabeast”, calling John Kerry the “Poodle” ("combining his allegedly “pro-French” sentiments with the charge that he is Teresa's lap dog"), calling Al Gore "OwlGore", and calling John Edwards the “Breck Girl”.[37]

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ "The Power That Was," Newsweek Magazine, April 23, 2007
  2. ^ a b The Top Talk Radio Audiences. Talkers Magazine (2007-04-23). Retrieved on 2007-08-22.
  3. ^ Boortz, Neal (2003-10-21). Democrats abandon America. World Net Daily. Retrieved on 2007-08-03.
  4. ^ a b Boortz, Neal. More Boortz Bio. More Boortz. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-03-08.
  5. ^ a b Boortz, Neal (1997). The Commencement Speech You Need To Hear, Hardcover, Longstreet Press. ISBN 978-1563524349. 
  6. ^ a b c Boortz, Neal (1998). The Terrible Truth About Liberals, Paperback, Longstreet Press. ISBN 1-56352-685-9. 
  7. ^ a b c d Boortz, Neal; Linder, John (2006). The FairTax Book: Saying Goodbye to the Income Tax and the IRS, Paperback, Regan Books. ISBN 0-06-087549-6. 
  8. ^ a b c Matt Kempner, "The FairTax Book author from Atlanta is pumping up volume on sales of book." Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 20 August 2005.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Boortz, Neal (2007). Somebody's Gotta Say It, Paperback, Regan Books. ISBN 0060878207. 
  10. ^ Boortz, Neal (2003-03-23). Thrall Volunteer Fire Department. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  11. ^ a b Boortz, Neal. More Boortz FAQ. More Boortz. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-03-08.
  12. ^ Biography for Neal Boortz. Internet Movie Database Inc.. Retrieved on 2007-05-17.
  13. ^ a b c d Neal Boortz Bio. Premiere Speakers Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-05-17.
  14. ^ He refers to her as "She Who Must Be Obeyed", "The Queen", and "My Bride"
  15. ^ Neal Boortz. 580wdbo.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-14.
  16. ^ a b Neal Boortz. 580wdbo.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-14.
  17. ^ Neal Boortz Bio. Soylent Communications/nndb.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-06.
  18. ^ Elder, Boortz, and McWilliams round out Convention '98 line-up. Retrieved on 2007-03-04.
  19. ^ Chirac Appeals for Calm as Paris Suburbs Endure Sixth Night of Violence. Retrieved on 2007-03-04.
  20. ^ Neal Boortz. Cox Radio Interactive & Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  21. ^ 25 Most Influential Talk Radio Hosts (2006). NewsMax (2006). Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  22. ^ Atlanta Moves Ahead of DC in Fall 2007 Market Rankings. RADIO ONLINE and Arbitron (2007-09-20). Retrieved on 2007-09-21.
  23. ^ a b Boortz, Neal (2005-09-07). Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-08-07.
  24. ^ Ho, Rodney (2005-09-07). 3/1: Boortz debuts at No. 2 (UPDATED). Atlanta Journal Constitution. Retrieved on 2007-02-28.
  25. ^ Boortz, Neal; Linder, John (2008). The FairTax: The Truth, Paperback, Regan Books. ISBN 978-0061540462. 
  26. ^ a b Johnston, Joy. Neal Boortz Atlanta Celebrity Profile. About.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-14.
  27. ^ Boortz, Neal (2006-10-04). Following Up On Yesterday's Tirade. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-10-05.
  28. ^ a b c Boortz, Neal (2003-11-24). Just What Is The Problem With Pre-Emptive Warfare. Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
  29. ^ Raimondo, Justin (2003-11-26). Boot Boortz!. Antiwar.com. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  30. ^ Bigg, Matthew (2006-11-09). Talk radio hosts lick election wounds. Reuters. Retrieved on 2006-11-09.
  31. ^ Boortz, Neal (2006-06-05). That Bush .. He's Really In Touch, Isn't He?. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2007-10-06.
  32. ^ "Strange bedfellows: the ACLU, Neal Boortz & Cobb County police. GeorgiaHeritageCouncil.org.
  33. ^ Boortz, Neal (2003-05-29). For Those Of You Who Are Drugging Your Kids. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  34. ^ Boortz, Neal (2003-07-18). Ask Your Doctor About Stratteras. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  35. ^ Boortz, Neal. The Neal Boortz Commencement Speech. More Boortz. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  36. ^ Boortz, Neal (2003-10-06). California Hasn't Been Punished Enough. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  37. ^ a b c d e f g Boortz, Neal. Boortztionary: A Glossary of Terms Neal Uses. More Boortz. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  38. ^ Boortz: Rep. McKinney "looks like a ghetto slut". Media Matters (2006-03-31). Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  39. ^ Boortz, Neal (2006-04-03). An Apology. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  40. ^ Boortz, Neal (2006-02-03). Outraged Muslims! Oh My!. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  41. ^ Predicting Media Matters.... Media Matters For America (2006-07-20). Retrieved on 2007-11-08.
  42. ^ Neal Boortz vs Bill O'Reilly. oreilly-sucks.com (2003-05-07).
  43. ^ Boortz: Say the creed of Islam. Media Matters (2004-08-04). Retrieved on 2006-09-28.
  44. ^ Boortz: Say the creed of Islam. MsUnderestimated (2006-08-10). Retrieved on 2006-10-02.
  45. ^ Boortz, Neal (2006-06-16). The Schiavo Matter. Nealz Nuze. Cox Radio. Retrieved on 2005-12-15.
  46. ^ Media Matters - Boortz: "[P]rimary blame" for Katrina goes to "worthless parasites who lived in New Orleans"

[edit] Further reading

[edit] External links

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Persondata
NAME Boortz, Neal
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION Syndicated Talk radio host, Author & Inactive Attorney
DATE OF BIRTH 1945-04-06
PLACE OF BIRTH Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH


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