Reel to Real

Seeing Noah Adams's and Rush Limbaugh's names used in the same sentence may surprise many. But both are well-known radio personalities and have recently written interesting books.

Reel to Real

An avid radio fan -- news and information, talk, jazz, rock, classical, sports -- I constantly keep one hand on the dial. For me, National Public Radio provides a daily ration of reality. And the Excellency in Broadcasting Network's "The Rush Limbaugh Show" offers a raw dose of conservative commentary and targeted humor. As a regular listener to both, I recognized many of the references to on-air bits in each book, certainly making them more interesting and fun.

Noah Adams on "All Things Considered": A Radio Journal chronicles in quasi-diary format the thoughts and actions of one talented and busy journalist over a one-year period. Adams offers snippets of background for stories ranging from the Beijing Massacre to the Exxon oil disaster, from the Ayatollah Khomeini funeral to freedom unleashed in former Soviet client states.

But at least as interesting are the interviews with a salmon fisher in Alaska and a couple who maintain lighthouses in Maine, the judge over the "mule-jumping trial" and a nameless Romanian dissident. Adams makes the distant feel close-at-hand and the unknown familiar.

Adams was not limited by his format. The book is arranged by calendar date, with each day's log a steppingstone into the past to set context or the future to show consequence. Thus the reader is treated to the ramblings and digressions that accompany self-awareness.

Limbaugh's book is a toned-down extension of his show, though it is more political and less entertaining. And as he himself admits in The Way Things Ought to Be, Rush Limbaugh is above all else an entertainer. His show combines talk with good (even great) music, humor, "news," and updates.

Yes, he is overtly political, a conservative voice. But Rush Limbaugh is not a political theorist; he is a political ideologue. In crass terms, he is more akin to a bouncer than a bartender.

In his introduction Limbaugh says, "In truth, events are simply vehicles which allow commentators, philosophers, and analysts the opportunity to illustrate their beliefs and define themselves." These are the words of an ideologue. I suspect Adams would see it differently; I believe he would see events as occasions to discover more about one's self, one's community, and one's world. They are not then vehicles of spin control, but opportunities for growth.

But even though Limbaugh is primarily an entertainer, his political monologue, in book and radio, cannot go unchallenged. He must be held accountable -- just as the "liberal Hollywood crowd" must be -- for the effects of his views. By their fruits they will be known, and too often Limbaugh encourages the frothy lather that spouts from some of his callers.

In his defense, Limbaugh is usually quite polite to callers who oppose him ... in fact, often more polite than the callers, who regularly attack his physical appearance or some other inconsequential characteristic rather than tackle his views.

His irreverence toward liberalism usually excites listeners. I sometimes find these bits quite funny myself (especially a series of commercials called "Taxula" and the "The Bride of Taxula," referring to fictional upcoming movies about Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton). But Limbaugh seems unable to contain, and even takes pleasure in, his mean-spiritedness, which is addressed toward people without homes or people temporarily in the public eye, like Chelsea Clinton. I fear a certain percentage of his listeners may prefer the latter style of attack. That is what makes him the self-described "most dangerous man in America."

Adams's questions during interviews always amaze me. He asks things I would never think of. And his questions regularly grant humanity to those he interviews; in this way Adams the journalist participates in a divine activity.

Unfortunately, Limbaugh does not. His ideology allows him only to inflate or denigrate, neither of which furthers humanity. Harmony and balance are not his strong suit.

Noah Adams inspires gentle, creative thought. Rush Limbaugh stimulates quick, imprudent action. Get beyond Rush's politics -- which are secondary to his revelry -- and you find a creative mind, but the mind is dedicated to tearing down rather than building up. That is truly a shame.

If Rush is the MTV-speed of radio, Noah is cable-access. If Rush is like guzzling coffee, Noah is like sipping tea. Noah tells a whale of a tale; Rush pontificates at a frenetic pace. Rush leaves the scent of sulfur in one's nostrils; Noah the "osmyrrah" of a familiar attic.

If Rush is the hare, Noah is the tortoise. When justice rules the world, the tortoise always wins even though the hare starts strong. All things considered, that's the way things ought to be.

Bob Hulteen was Under Review editor of Sojourners when this article appeared.