Chuck Harder
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Chuck Harder is a former radio disk jockey turned talk show host from White Springs, Florida, USA.
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[edit] Early radio career
Harder's radio career began during high school as a DJ at a local AM radio station in his hometown of Elgin, Illinois. He later became a talk show host at stations in Tampa, and then New York City where he gained a reputation as a consumer advocate. Feeling that he was being forbidden from discussing controversial topics on the air, Harder would return to Tampa in 1987 with the idea of forming a non-profit organization, The Sun Radio Network, to syndicate his show called "For The People", which was carried primarily by commercial rural AM radio stations and shortwave radio. Originally broadcasting from the garage of his Tampa home, Harder and his wife Dianne later purchased the historic Telford Hotel in the town of White Springs to serve as studios. Harder's show uses an interpretation of the folk song "Way Down Upon The Suwanee River" as its theme music.
[edit] Harder's political and economic beliefs
His populist political views comprised elements of both conservative and liberal ideologies, but he was neither a libertarian nor a religious conservative. He tends toward a mix of fiscal liberalism and cultural conservatism although there are exceptions. On some issues, such as taxation and foreign policy, he will take a mix of liberal and conservative views on the same issue.
Harder is opposed to free trade agreements such as NAFTA and GATT as well as international organizations such as the UN. He favors a moratorium on legal immigration and the deportation of all illegal immigrants.
In addition to his economic views, Harder also frequently discussed conspiracy theories during the 1990s, many of which were believed in by Harder. The mysterious "black helicopter" phenomenon was a frequent topic, and Harder claimed that he personally observed the aircraft monitoring his property. This was largely confined to the early and mid-1990s, a period when conspiracy theories were a hot topic on several talk radio shows (including Art Bell and others). In recent years, conspiracy theories have no longer been a major feature of his program.
A key economic doctrine of Harder's is that free trade with China and Mexico will cause so many Americans to lose jobs or get paid less that the American retail economy will collapse from a lack of middle-class consumers who can afford to be constant purchasers.
Harder's views on taxation are illustrative of his populist mixture of liberal and conservative views. He favors a heavily graduated income tax and increasing taxes on the wealthy, but also believes the Internal Revenue Service to be guilty of abuses in auditing taxpayers, and he supports the abolition of the business tax which he considers "double taxation".
Another area where Harder simultaneously promotes a mix of liberal and conservative views is environmental issues. Harder believes overpopulation a threat to the environment and has had guests from such groups as Negative Population Growth on the show. Harder is a strong supporter of alternative energy and building or rebuilding extensive mass transit systems in the United States, particularly passenger rail. He is highly critical of the Reagan administration for defunding alternative energy and mass transit, and critical of every president since for promoting free trade agreements and globalization. A common theme discussed by Harder is how National City Lines bought out and closed urban mass transit systems in the United States. But Harder also supports oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and bringing back jobs in the timber industry by increasing the amount of logging. His views on the environment are informed by his views on bringing back American jobs, as he sees alternative energy, mass transit, oil drilling in ANWR, and logging as all providing American jobs while population growth depresses wages and contributes to a pool of surplus labor.
The most frequent guests on his show during its heyday were Ralph Nader and Pat Choate, although Nader is no longer the regular appearance he once was; other guests have included Alexander Cockburn and Lenora Fulani. Although pro-choice himself, Harder has also frequently had religious right activists on his show to provide commentary, particularly Les Kensolving. The appearance of Eustace Mullins at least a dozen times on his show in the early 1990's proved to be his most controversial guest ever and Harder did not invite him back on the show, and took steps to distance himself from Mullins' views in early 1994.
Harder advocates a Swiss-style neutrality on all foreign policy, especially as it related to the Middle East. He does, however, believe strongly that China was becoming increasingly powerful and poses an economic and military threat to the United States. Since 9/11 he has discussed U.S. foreign policy more. He takes a strongly hawkish view toward the War on Terror, supports the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, but opposes the U.S. war in Iraq which he believes is an unnecessary distraction from winning the War on Terror. He does believe that militant Islam poses a major threat to U.S. and world security right now.
[edit] The For The People Catalog
Harder advocated buying only American-made products whenever possible. He distributed a catalog of made-in-the-USA products and a number of shortwave radio receivers as his show was being widely heard on the international broadcast bands despite being targeted exclusively towards a domestic audience. The PRN-1000 was made by R. L. Drake Company, and was basically a budget-version of their SW-1 shortwave receiver. Other lower-cost shortwave receivers sold by FTP were made in China by Sangean. Harder acknowledged and lamented this fact, but stated that no low-cost (under $100) receivers were being produced in the USA.
Also sold via FTP were antique pocket watches - a favorite collectible of Harder's - especially those made by the Elgin Watch Company. Harder remembered (and often cited) how the company's factory in Harder's hometown closed down and shifted production of its timepieces overseas.
[edit] Network declines
At its peak in the early to mid 1990s, For The People was carried on over 300 radio stations, second only to Rush Limbaugh.
In 1996, Harder and his co-host Pat Choate joined in a venture along with the United Auto Workers to start a new for-profit radio network, the United Broadcasting Network. Harder's Peoples Radio Network was subsumed into the new network. Within three months the deal turned sour, and Harder was forced off the air, with the UAW assuming control over the new network's content. Pat Choate would become H. Ross Perot's vice presidential nominee in his election campaign. Without its only well-known talk show host, Chuck Harder, the United Broadcasting Network fell apart. Harder and Choate would both become embroiled in lawsuits against the UAW over the debacle.
Harder would return to the airwaves within a few months, but with a much smaller number of stations, around 100. After an accident in 2000 that left Harder's legs paralysed, and shifting political winds after 9-11, the number of affiliates began declining until the show was being heard almost exclusively on shortwave radio station WHRI. This too would end, and For The People was heard via satellite and the internet and a small number of AM radio stations.
In 2004 the TalkStar Radio Network began carrying Harder’s For the People program in the US. In 2006, Harder's show was available on shortwave via radio station WWCR.
