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Neal A Boortz Jr. (born April 6, 1945) is an American author, former attorney, and former conservative radio host. His
nationally syndicated Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States where ...
talk show, ''The Neal Boortz Show'', which ended in 2013, was carried throughout the United States. The content of the show included politics, current events, social issues, and topics of interest, which Boortz discussed with callers, correspondents, and guests. Boortz touched on many controversial topics. Boortz's first involvement with radio was in the 1960s, while he was a student at
Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M Unive ...
, working as a local on-air personality at WTAW. After moving to Georgia, he became an avid listener of Atlanta's first talk radio station. Boortz became a regular caller to the morning talk show. When the show's host died, it created a job opening, which Boortz actively pursued. He was initially hired on a two-week "trial run", and later offered the permanent position. Boortz attended law school, earning a law degree in 1977. For some years he worked as both an attorney and as a talk show host. He eventually closed his law practice after 17 years to concentrate on his work in radio. Boortz has received many industry accolades. He was named as one of the "25 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts in America" by ''Talkers'' magazine, and one of "Georgia's 100 Most Influential People" by ''Georgia Trend''. In 2009, Boortz was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame. Boortz's first book was ''The Commencement Speech You Need To Hear'' in 1997, followed by '' The Terrible Truth About Liberals'', in 1998. In 2005, he co-wrote '' The FairTax Book'' with Congressman
John Linder John Elmer Linder (born September 9, 1942) is an American politician who was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 2011. His district was numbered the from 1993 to 1997, the from 1997 to 2003, and the from 2003 ...
, proposing to implement a variant of a national retail sales tax in lieu of other federal taxes. Boortz's involvement with the FairTax is covered in the documentary film '' An Inconvenient Tax''.


Biography


Early life and education

Boortz was born in
Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania Bryn Mawr, pronounced , from Welsh for big hill, is a census-designated place (CDP) located across three townships: Radnor Township and Haverford Township in Delaware County, and Lower Merion Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It ...
, his mother's home. His father was a Marine Corps pilot, who served in World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War. Describing himself as a "
military brat A military brat (colloquial or military slang) is a child of serving or retired military personnel. Military brats are associated with a unique subcultureDavid C. Pollock, Ruth E. van Reken. ''Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds'', Revis ...
", Boortz lived in many locations throughout the country (including the small community of
Thrall, Texas Thrall is a city in Williamson County, Texas, United States. Its population was 816 at the 2020 census. The name Thrall was chosen by the community to honor the Rev. Homer S. Thrall, a Methodist minister and historian much admired by local settle ...
). He spent his first two years of high school at Tustin Union High School in Tustin, California. The family then moved to Florida. Boortz graduated from Pensacola High School, in 1963. He attended
Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M Unive ...
, but did not graduate. Boortz later attended John Marshall Law School, in Atlanta, Georgia, graduating in 1977 and passing the
Georgia bar The State Bar of Georgia is the governing body of the legal profession in the State of Georgia, operating under the supervision of the Supreme Court of Georgia. Membership is a condition of admission to practice law in Georgia. The State Bar w ...
.


Careers


Law school and radio

Boortz began his radio career in
College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East-Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin. ...
in the 1960s at WTAW, under the name of Randy Neal, while attending
Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M Unive ...
. In 1967, after leaving Texas, Boortz moved to Atlanta and landed a sales job. For two years he worked at Rich's Department Store, where he sold jewelry and carpeting. During that time, Boortz was an avid listener of
AM 680 The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 680 kHz: 680 AM is a North American clear-channel frequency. KNBR and KBRW share Class A status on 680 kHz. WRKO, WPTF, CJOB and CFTR also broadcast on 680 kHz, with 50,000 w ...
WRNG (now
WCNN WCNN (680 kHz) is an AM radio station licensed to North Atlanta and serving the Atlanta-area radio market. It is owned by Dickey Broadcasting and airs a sports radio format. The station is commonly known by the on-air branding as "The Fan". ...
). The station called itself "Ring Radio," as in the ring of a telephone. It was Atlanta's first talk radio station. Boortz listened to morning talk show host, Herb Elfman, and soon became a
devotee Devotion or Devotions may refer to: Religion * Faith, confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept * Anglican devotions, private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians * Buddhist devotion, commitment to religious observance * Ca ...
. "Boortz bombarded Elfman with calls, reading him little scripts he'd scribbled." While watching the news one evening, 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 the role of temporary two-week replacement. In the interim, the evening host was moved to mornings and Boortz hosted the evening time slot. Two weeks later, Boortz was moved to the morning show, embarking on an Atlanta talk radio career that spanned more than forty years. Boortz honed his skills at the tiny 1,000-watt station, and even wrote a few speeches for then
Georgia Governor The governor of Georgia is the head of government of Georgia and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor also has a duty to enforce state laws, the power to either veto or approve bills passed by the Georgia Legi ...
Lester Maddox Lester Garfield Maddox Sr. (September 30, 1915 – June 25, 2003) was an American politician who served as the 75th governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1967 to 1971. A populist Democrat, Maddox came to prominence as a staunch segregatio ...
. He continued working at the station until 1974, when WRNG " dumped him." He was offered a job at radio station WGY in Schenectady, New York, but turned the offer down to return to Atlanta and enroll in law school. In 1974, Boortz enrolled in then-unaccredited
John Marshall Law School (Atlanta) Atlanta's John Marshall Law School (AJMLS) is a private for-profit law school in Atlanta, Georgia. It was founded in 1933 and named for John Marshall, the fourth chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. AJMLS is accredited by th ...
going to class in his spare time, while he and his wife Donna worked full-time loading mail trucks. Boortz credits his wife with providing "the money to keep me in law school." After graduating from law school in 1977, Boortz practiced law in a solo law firm from 1977 through 1993. During that period, he divided his time between his law practice and work in radio. One of Boortz's clients was boxer Evander Holyfield. Holyfield later sued Boortz and other members of his management team in the aftermath of a failed
Subaru ( or ; ) is the automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the twenty-first largest automaker by production worldwide in 2017. Subaru cars are k ...
car dealership A car dealership, or car dealer, is a business that sells new or used cars, at the retail level, based on a dealership contract with an automaker or its sales subsidiary. Car dealerships also often sell spare parts and automotive maintena ...
investment. Boortz told
Atlanta Magazine ''Atlanta'' is a monthly general-interest magazine based in Atlanta, Georgia, and owned by Hour Media Group, LLC. Its staff has featured notable writers such as Hollis Gillespie, Anne Rivers Siddons, and William Diehl, and it has included cont ...
"It had nothing to do with representing him as a boxer. It was settled and disappeared." Some time later, in a heated on-air exchange between Atlanta mayor Bill Campbell and Boortz, Campbell remarked on the Holyfield relationship: ''Campbell (sarcastically): By the way, Neal, Evander Holyfield sends his regards ... We talked a little about how good he's doing now and the fact he's getting ready to open up his 57,000 square-foot, $20 million home. How he's fighting for $35 million a fight. I was sorta thinking about when you were representing him. He was living in an apartment over on Lenox Road. He was fighting for about $20,000 a fight. It's sort of interesting how your great legal skills have transferred into financial well-being for Evander . ... '' Boortz responded by calling mayor Campbell an "unethical son of a bitch." Boortz later remarked "It's the only time I've ever been on the air that I lost control." In 1993, Boortz closed his law practice and devoted his full-time to his radio career.


Full-time radio career

While in law school, Boortz returned to work at WRNG. In 1983 he moved to the larger news-talk radio station WGST. He later recounted how he would often go into work at his law office at 5 a.m., work there for several hours, then go to WGST, and finally back to the law office until 11:00 p.m. In 1992, Boortz asked WGST for a raise; a salary equal to his combined income as an attorney and a radio host. When WGST refused, Boortz left. He got his raise when he signed an exclusive contract with
AM 750 The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 750 kHz: 750 AM is classified as a United States and Canadian clear-channel frequency by the Federal Communications Commission. WSB Atlanta, KFQD Anchorage and CBGY Bonavista, Newfoundland ...
WSB to host a weekday radio show. Shortly after that, he closed his law office. In 1995, Talkers Magazine named Boortz one of the "25 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts in America". That same year, ''Georgia Trend'' magazine added Boortz to its list of the "100 Most Powerful & Influential People in Georgia" In 1999, his show became
nationally syndicated Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States where ...
through WSB's owner
Cox Radio CMG Media Corporation (doing business as Cox Media Group) is an American media conglomerate principally owned by Apollo Global Management in conjunction with Cox Enterprises, which maintains a 29% minority stake in the company. The company prim ...
. The show continued to be based in Atlanta. ''The Neal Boortz Show'' featured Boortz, producers Belinda Skelton and Royal Marshall, interviews, and callers. On the air and on his website, Boortz admonished his listeners to take no heed nor place any credence in anything he said, presenting himself as merely an "entertainer." As an entertainer, Boortz was a 2002
NAB Marconi Radio Awards :''"Marconi Award" links here. Note that in the Netherlands, the radio academy awards are also called Marconi Awards.'' The Marconi Radio Awards are presented annually by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) to the top radio stations and ...
finalist and Radio & Records NewsTalk Personality of the Year for 2002. In 2007, Boortz and his radio show were awarded "Best Radio On-Air Personality" and "Best Radio Program, Any Type" by The
Georgia Association of Broadcasters The Georgia Association of Broadcasters represents radio and television broadcasters across the U.S. state of Georgia. It is affiliated with the National Association of Broadcasters. See also * List of radio stations in Georgia (U.S. state) * ...
. He was also a recipient of the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame 2007 Career Achievement Award. The ''Neal Boortz Show'' originated from the nation's ninth largest radio market and was ranked the sixth overall most listened to radio program in the country. In 2008, Boortz was a finalist for the National Association of Broadcasters "Marconi Award" as the nation's best syndicated radio personality. (The award went to
Glenn Beck Glenn Lee Beck (born February 10, 1964) is an American conservative political commentator, radio host, entrepreneur, and television producer. He is the CEO, founder, and owner of Mercury Radio Arts, the parent company of his television and rad ...
). Boortz was inducted in the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2009. Boortz retired from full-time radio work in 2013.


Author

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. 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. His third book (co-authored by Georgia Congressman
John Linder John Elmer Linder (born September 9, 1942) is an American politician who was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 2011. His district was numbered the from 1993 to 1997, the from 1997 to 2003, and the from 2003 ...
) 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. 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.Matt Kempner, "''The FairTax Book'' author from Atlanta is pumping up volume on sales of book." ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'', August 20, 2005. The paperback released in May 2006 contains additional information, an afterword and several revisions of misstatements made in the hardcover edition. It also spent several weeks on the '' New York Times'' bestseller list. Boortz claims to have donated 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. As of July 2006, Boortz claims his charitable donations from book proceeds exceed one hundred thousand US dollars. The book is one of his most frequent topics of discussion. His fourth book entitled ''Somebody's Gotta Say It'' was released on February 20, 2007, and debuted at #2 spot on the '' New York Times'' bestseller list, second only to Barack Obama's '' Audacity of Hope''. He occasionally writes columns on the Internet news/commentary site ''
Townhall.com Townhall is an American politically conservative website, print magazine and radio news service. Previously published by The Heritage Foundation, it is now owned and operated by Salem Communications. The website features more than 80 columns (b ...
'' and other online magazines. His 2008 book is titled '' FairTax: The Truth''. This book attempts to answer the critics of the Fair Tax proposal and claims to correct some of 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. After Boortz retired from talk radio in January 21, 2013, ''Maybe I Should Just Shut Up and Go Away!'' () was published in hardcover by Carpenter's Son Publishing in Franklin Tennessee.


Retirement

After Boortz retired from full-time radio work in 2013, he hosted commentaries for WSB for six more years, until they were discontinued by station. In January 2022, Boortz returned to radio part-time on
WFOM WFOM (1230 AM, "Xtra 106.3") is an Atlanta-area radio station broadcasting on a frequency of 1230 kHz. The radio station is licensed to the city of Marietta, Georgia. WFOM, along with WCNN and WIFN, are owned by Dickey Broadcasting. The broadc ...
(1230 AM, "Xtra 106.3" FM) in Atlanta, Georgia. Boortz pre-records "The Boortz Report", a commentary that is aired several times each weekday, and appears on the station at least once a week for live segments with the local morning hosts.


Political beliefs

Boortz is a self-described libertarian. He advocates a complete overhaul of the U.S. tax system and the release of all non-violent drug offenders who are currently in prison. He has supported Republican candidates and Republican tax policy, though he occasionally clashes with Republicans on social issues. Others describe his political views as being more in line with " republitarian" philosophy that embraces incrementalism domestically, and a generally interventionist foreign policy based on self-interest, national defense and the expansion of
freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...
. Boortz disagrees with the Libertarian Party platform on several key issues including his firm support of the war in Iraq, incremental tax reform, and his opposition to the unrestricted immigration policy advocated by the Libertarian Party. 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." He sides with liberals on some social issues such as
abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregnan ...
, same-sex marriage, and civil liberties. He agrees with
fiscal conservatives Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., ''A ...
in advocating less government spending and decreasing corporate regulation. 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, and emphasizing personal responsibility. He has repeatedly stated his belief that global climate change is not man-made. His stances on many of these issues make him popular among conservative Republicans, who, due to their larger numbers in comparison to Libertarians, make up the majority of his listeners and callers. Boortz's post-
9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...
platforms include support for the US-led War on Terror, a more aggressive foreign policy, and the USA Patriot Act. He is also strongly in favor of a crackdown on illegal immigration, including harsh penalties for businesses who employ persons here illegally. These views occasionally put him in conflict with the Libertarian Party.
Justin Raimondo Justin Raimondo (born Dennis Raimondo; November 18, 1951 – June 27, 2019) was an American author and the editorial director of Antiwar.com. He described himself as a "conservative- paleo-libertarian." Early life Born in White Plains, New Y ...
of
Antiwar.com Antiwar.com is a website that describes itself as devoted to non-interventionism and as opposing imperialism and war. It is a project of the Randolph Bourne Institute. The website states that it is "fighting the next information war”. History ...
has called Boortz a "
statist In political science, statism is the doctrine that the political authority of the state is legitimate to some degree. This may include economic and social policy, especially in regard to taxation and the means of production. While in use since ...
, not a libertarian" and a "liberventionist" and has urged the Libertarian Party to "Boot Boortz". 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 he 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.'
Boortz creates controversy among conservatives for his support of
abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as Pro-choice (term), pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have Abortion law, legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support wome ...
(on which Boortz does not allow calls), for his refusal to condemn homosexuality or
gay marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constitutin ...
, and for his negative comments regarding Baptists and the biblical story of creation. Although he calls himself a Christian, he keeps his religious views private. He has also caused a stir among some Southerners, by coining the term "Flaggots" during his frequent jabs at them and at Confederate issues (such as governmental support of the
Confederate flag The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...
).


''The Neal Boortz Show''

''The Neal Boortz Show'' was a
nationally syndicated Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States where ...
talk show, which ended in January 2013. It aired live from 8:30am to noon, weekdays. Boortz marketed his talk radio show as "insensitivity training", creating controversy which increased ratings. His stated "beliefs" included a claim that ADD and ADHD are "medical frauds" and a scam that teachers, parents, and drug companies use. His attempts at controversy included referring to homeless people as "urban outdoorsmen" on air, and called public education "taxpayer-funded child abuse". Specific targets of criticism included Christian conservatives, Hillary Clinton,
Ted Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic ...
,
Max Cleland Joseph Maxwell Cleland (August 24, 1942 – November 9, 2021) was an American politician from Georgia. A member of the Democratic Party, he was a disabled U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, a recipient of the Silver Star and the Bronze Star fo ...
, and
Cynthia McKinney Cynthia Ann McKinney (born March 17, 1955) is an American politician, academic, and conspiracy theorist. As a member of the Democratic Party, she served six terms in the United States House of Representatives. She was the first African American ...
. He 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. Islamic extremism was a favorite topic. Some of his remarks caused controversy. After the Virginia Tech shootings, Boortz criticized the media, saying, "When the history of this event is written, we will have 25 students standing meekly waiting for this guy to execute them." When public outrage resulted from his comments, members of the Virginia Legislature tried to have Boortz's show removed from local radio stations. In March 2008, Boortz attracted controversy by playing an audiotape of a nine-year-old where he repeatedly ridiculed the child's speech, leading to an unsuccessful FCC petition to deny Boortz's employer the right to purchase five local radio stations.Federal Communications Commission
2008/06/10. Complaint letter.
Retrieved 2008/08/04
On June 4, 2012, Boortz announced that he would retire from radio by the end of the year. His last live show aired on January 18, 2013. Boortz's regular fill-in host,
Herman Cain Herman Cain (December 13, 1945July 30, 2020) was an American businessman and Tea Party movement activist within the Republican Party. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Cain grew up in Georgia and graduated from Morehouse College with a bachelor's d ...
, replaced him on January 21, 2013, in what amounted to a swap of seats, as Boortz became Cain's fill-in host. Boortz hosted commentaries for WSB for six more years, until they were discontinued by station.


Notes


Further reading

* * * * *


External links


Neal Boortz website
*
Neal Boortz on Twitter
*
XTRA 106.3
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boortz, Neal 1945 births Living people 20th-century American Episcopalians 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American Episcopalians 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers Activists from Florida Activists from Texas American aviators American columnists American political commentators American political journalists American political writers American conservative talk radio hosts Christian libertarians Cox Radio Florida Libertarians Journalists from Florida Journalists from Texas American opinion journalists People from Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania People from College Station, Texas Radio personalities from Atlanta Texas A&M University alumni Writers from Florida Writers from Texas American male non-fiction writers Atlanta's John Marshall Law School alumni