1 00:00:02,200 --> 00:00:05,400 Speaker 1: I'm Alec Baldwin and you're listening to Here's the thing, 2 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:10,399 Speaker 1: Brian larr is the best of New York City. When 3 00:00:10,560 --> 00:00:14,240 Speaker 1: New Yorkers want a fair Mayorld debate, we call Brian. 4 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:17,439 Speaker 1: Let me jump in and Mr Mayor, if you have 5 00:00:17,560 --> 00:00:21,600 Speaker 1: the right approach, why has your rezoning plan resulted in 6 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:24,919 Speaker 1: so much opposition in neighborhood after neighborhood where you're trying 7 00:00:24,920 --> 00:00:29,000 Speaker 1: to w n YC needed someone to help us process 8 00:00:29,040 --> 00:00:33,360 Speaker 1: our own me to moment. We called Brian. I've been 9 00:00:33,360 --> 00:00:36,680 Speaker 1: shocked to find it in our own house. The pressure 10 00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:40,320 Speaker 1: needs to be on us, guys. As I mentioned, and 11 00:00:40,360 --> 00:00:44,120 Speaker 1: when Brian got the Peabody Award for Broadcast Excellence for 12 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:47,000 Speaker 1: his daily public affair show on w n y C, 13 00:00:47,720 --> 00:00:51,240 Speaker 1: the jury put its finger on exactly what he represents 14 00:00:51,920 --> 00:00:58,040 Speaker 1: real engagement, respectful dialogue and getting to the truth. Brian 15 00:00:58,120 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 1: Lara on w n YC and Governor Culomos joins us 16 00:01:01,240 --> 00:01:04,120 Speaker 1: now to talk about a few things. The grassroots group 17 00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:07,399 Speaker 1: Make the Road released an anti Amazon statement. Do you 18 00:01:07,400 --> 00:01:11,120 Speaker 1: think that's just petty politics? First two is Make the Road, Brian, 19 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:16,080 Speaker 1: do you want to characterize it? No? I don't know 20 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:19,880 Speaker 1: who they are you don't know at this point, as 21 00:01:19,920 --> 00:01:22,080 Speaker 1: active as they have been in New York politics for 22 00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:23,960 Speaker 1: this long. You don't know who make the road is? 23 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:28,520 Speaker 1: Should you know? Who make the road is? The very 24 00:01:28,520 --> 00:01:31,880 Speaker 1: thing that makes Brian so good at his job makes 25 00:01:31,920 --> 00:01:35,840 Speaker 1: him a tricky subject. It's not about him, which is 26 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:39,679 Speaker 1: exactly what New Yorkers have craved for over a generation. 27 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:45,039 Speaker 1: We are in our thirtieth year. This is the world 28 00:01:45,080 --> 00:01:47,960 Speaker 1: has not ended, but nor has it improved all that month. 29 00:01:48,160 --> 00:01:52,800 Speaker 1: How's the show changed? Well, the show changes depending on 30 00:01:53,240 --> 00:01:56,040 Speaker 1: the state of the world. When we started in September, 31 00:01:57,640 --> 00:02:01,760 Speaker 1: it was this incredibly optimistic moment. The fall of communism 32 00:02:02,280 --> 00:02:05,240 Speaker 1: was taking place right at that moment. We started in 33 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:09,880 Speaker 1: late September nine. By six weeks into our run, the 34 00:02:09,919 --> 00:02:13,400 Speaker 1: Berlin Wall had fallen and New York City had elected 35 00:02:13,440 --> 00:02:17,760 Speaker 1: its first black mayor, and there was all this optimism 36 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:20,880 Speaker 1: at the local level and at the national and international level. 37 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:24,400 Speaker 1: Freedom was breaking out around the world, Democracy was breaking out. 38 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:28,519 Speaker 1: What a heady time. Well, let's jump ahead, oh thirty years. 39 00:02:28,760 --> 00:02:33,480 Speaker 1: Optimism is just not in right now. But also you nine, 40 00:02:33,560 --> 00:02:36,760 Speaker 1: you say, interesting, how New York contradicts the national trend. 41 00:02:36,800 --> 00:02:42,160 Speaker 1: Maybe George the first becomes president in Dinkins becomes mayor 42 00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:45,240 Speaker 1: in eighty nine, and so in New York. Sometimes not always, 43 00:02:45,280 --> 00:02:47,560 Speaker 1: but sometimes interesting how they go contrary to the national trend. 44 00:02:47,639 --> 00:02:50,720 Speaker 1: That right right, There are parallels too, though. Um. You know, 45 00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:53,800 Speaker 1: when I think about the ninety nineties, it was the 46 00:02:53,880 --> 00:02:58,120 Speaker 1: Clinton era and the Juliania in aberration in New York 47 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:02,200 Speaker 1: that a Republican in order candidate would be elected mayor. 48 00:03:03,000 --> 00:03:07,920 Speaker 1: But New York is thriving in many ways. The economy 49 00:03:08,000 --> 00:03:11,919 Speaker 1: is growing, crime is going down. Um. At the same time, 50 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:15,280 Speaker 1: the economy is growing and crime is going down nationally, 51 00:03:15,320 --> 00:03:18,360 Speaker 1: and the Democrats are saying, look, we have a liberal 52 00:03:18,360 --> 00:03:21,520 Speaker 1: in the White House and everything's getting better. And the 53 00:03:21,560 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 1: Republicans are saying, look we have a conservative in city 54 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:28,200 Speaker 1: Hall and everything's getting better. So sometimes it's just the 55 00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:31,960 Speaker 1: larger trends of history and whoever wants to latch onto 56 00:03:32,000 --> 00:03:35,440 Speaker 1: it politically, you know, you're so measured, you're so careful, 57 00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:39,640 Speaker 1: like what pisces you off without naming names and getting 58 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:42,560 Speaker 1: you know, stepping outside your role. Is Brian Larris sitting 59 00:03:42,560 --> 00:03:44,080 Speaker 1: there in the bathroom with a bob of vaka in 60 00:03:44,120 --> 00:03:46,880 Speaker 1: his hand, throwing a plate of haggandahs at the TV. 61 00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:50,320 Speaker 1: There's plenty that pisces me off, and you can probably 62 00:03:50,320 --> 00:03:52,880 Speaker 1: hear it on the show by the way I frame 63 00:03:52,920 --> 00:03:56,640 Speaker 1: a question or by a monologue that I'll do introducing 64 00:03:56,640 --> 00:03:59,200 Speaker 1: a segment. But at the same time, I want to 65 00:03:59,240 --> 00:04:04,440 Speaker 1: invite everybody in. So sometimes people have said to me, oh, 66 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:09,320 Speaker 1: your show is the opposite of Rush Limbaugh. And it's 67 00:04:09,360 --> 00:04:14,680 Speaker 1: not because he's conservative and on liberal. It's because he 68 00:04:15,240 --> 00:04:18,080 Speaker 1: makes no secret about the show is about what he thinks. 69 00:04:18,320 --> 00:04:22,280 Speaker 1: There's a joke I've heard him tell that this show 70 00:04:22,560 --> 00:04:26,559 Speaker 1: isn't about what you think, it's about what I think. 71 00:04:26,720 --> 00:04:29,400 Speaker 1: And he says it in this kind of jokey, pompous way, 72 00:04:29,680 --> 00:04:32,200 Speaker 1: and it's a joke, but it's also true. And that's 73 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:36,040 Speaker 1: the commercial radio formula. This isn't just about Rush Limbaugh. 74 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:40,160 Speaker 1: For me, I have opinions. I sometimes state my opinions, 75 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:43,680 Speaker 1: or I sometimes frame questions in a leading way that 76 00:04:43,920 --> 00:04:48,320 Speaker 1: suggests an opinion. But the show is not about what 77 00:04:48,400 --> 00:04:51,120 Speaker 1: I think. So if I'm expressing a point of view, 78 00:04:51,640 --> 00:04:54,400 Speaker 1: which I'm allowed to do on the show, you know, 79 00:04:54,480 --> 00:04:56,520 Speaker 1: I'm not a robot, and nobody wants me to be 80 00:04:56,560 --> 00:05:00,240 Speaker 1: a robot. But If I do express an opinion, it's 81 00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:03,640 Speaker 1: in the context of Okay, this is what I think. Now, 82 00:05:03,800 --> 00:05:08,080 Speaker 1: everybody else who agrees or disagrees, come on in and 83 00:05:08,160 --> 00:05:11,360 Speaker 1: let's have a meaningful conversation about it. That's how it's 84 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:14,240 Speaker 1: different from Rush Limbo or you can pick any liberal 85 00:05:14,320 --> 00:05:17,600 Speaker 1: or conservative or opinionated host. Now, when you mentioned Limbo 86 00:05:17,640 --> 00:05:19,279 Speaker 1: and the reporter asked you, I think it was in 87 00:05:19,279 --> 00:05:21,320 Speaker 1: two thousands of sixteen you were talking to the observer. 88 00:05:21,960 --> 00:05:24,880 Speaker 1: He asked, you know why left wing radio had failed? 89 00:05:25,279 --> 00:05:26,800 Speaker 1: I think you said to him, but that failure was 90 00:05:26,839 --> 00:05:29,440 Speaker 1: a mystery to you. It's still a mystery to me. 91 00:05:30,040 --> 00:05:34,560 Speaker 1: There are plenty of liberal or progressive people in the country, 92 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:38,680 Speaker 1: though there are a smaller percentage than there are conservatives, 93 00:05:39,200 --> 00:05:43,279 Speaker 1: by you know the surveys over the years. Um. But 94 00:05:44,520 --> 00:05:47,520 Speaker 1: the way you're asking the question, UM, feels like you 95 00:05:47,560 --> 00:05:50,280 Speaker 1: think you know the answer. So sometimes when people say 96 00:05:50,360 --> 00:05:52,160 Speaker 1: they think they know the answer to that, it's sort 97 00:05:52,200 --> 00:05:55,640 Speaker 1: of a corporate conspiracy. There's no company because it's not 98 00:05:55,720 --> 00:06:00,760 Speaker 1: in the interest of corporate America to put liberal media 99 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:03,919 Speaker 1: out there. Um, Is that where you're going with it? No? No, 100 00:06:03,960 --> 00:06:06,880 Speaker 1: I mean I wasn't. I don't think I had an answer. Uh, 101 00:06:07,320 --> 00:06:09,840 Speaker 1: my thinking has always been that I've always felt and 102 00:06:09,880 --> 00:06:12,520 Speaker 1: this is a pejorative, this is a judgment at the 103 00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:16,640 Speaker 1: very least that the conservatives need their media predigested more 104 00:06:16,640 --> 00:06:20,320 Speaker 1: than liberals do. I don't want to judge all conservatives 105 00:06:20,320 --> 00:06:22,960 Speaker 1: are all Fox News viewers or the majority of them 106 00:06:23,040 --> 00:06:26,320 Speaker 1: by saying conservatives need their opinions predigested for them, but 107 00:06:26,360 --> 00:06:29,080 Speaker 1: I will say that it's been a problem for the 108 00:06:29,120 --> 00:06:33,960 Speaker 1: Democrats relative to the Republicans in the political space. Where 109 00:06:34,400 --> 00:06:39,280 Speaker 1: Republicans do digest very simply what there for? You know, 110 00:06:39,440 --> 00:06:46,680 Speaker 1: wherefore family values, a strong enforcements, and free economy. Democrats 111 00:06:46,680 --> 00:06:49,279 Speaker 1: struggle with it. Chuck Schumer wrote a book a number 112 00:06:49,320 --> 00:06:51,800 Speaker 1: of years ago that I don't know the title of it, 113 00:06:51,880 --> 00:06:55,159 Speaker 1: but one of his main themes was Democrats have to 114 00:06:55,279 --> 00:06:59,400 Speaker 1: learn to say what therefore in seven words? And that 115 00:06:59,560 --> 00:07:03,039 Speaker 1: was hen fifteen years ago. And I don't think Chuck 116 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:05,800 Speaker 1: Schumer himself has figured out how to do that yet. 117 00:07:06,360 --> 00:07:09,479 Speaker 1: And the Democrats as a party have not figured out 118 00:07:09,600 --> 00:07:12,400 Speaker 1: how to do that yet. For whatever reason, they think 119 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:17,720 Speaker 1: more in terms of complexity and um, so it sometimes 120 00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:20,840 Speaker 1: does not accrue to their benefit. Earlier, in your career. 121 00:07:20,880 --> 00:07:22,920 Speaker 1: You had a TV show for ten years. I had 122 00:07:22,920 --> 00:07:25,600 Speaker 1: a weekly public fairs TV show on the old w 123 00:07:25,800 --> 00:07:30,280 Speaker 1: n y C TV when that existed, that was Channel 124 00:07:30,320 --> 00:07:33,040 Speaker 1: thirty one. That's part of the history of w n 125 00:07:33,160 --> 00:07:36,200 Speaker 1: y C. When it was owned by the city. There 126 00:07:36,320 --> 00:07:39,000 Speaker 1: was the radio station and there was the television station. 127 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:42,560 Speaker 1: And when Rudy Giuliani became mayor and decided he was 128 00:07:42,560 --> 00:07:44,680 Speaker 1: going to get the city out of the broadcast business 129 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:49,120 Speaker 1: because that wasn't a function for city government. Fair enough, 130 00:07:49,400 --> 00:07:52,480 Speaker 1: but it was a threat to public broadcasting in New 131 00:07:52,560 --> 00:07:56,360 Speaker 1: York City. Um, w n y C is not where 132 00:07:57,080 --> 00:08:00,640 Speaker 1: on the radio dial public radio stations usually are. There's 133 00:08:00,680 --> 00:08:05,920 Speaker 1: a nonprofit public radio zone below FM, and we have 134 00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:12,520 Speaker 1: got this technically commercial frequency of point nine. So Giuliani 135 00:08:12,680 --> 00:08:17,760 Speaker 1: considered selling all of w n y C into the 136 00:08:17,800 --> 00:08:22,600 Speaker 1: commercial sector, and ultimately there were a lot of people 137 00:08:22,640 --> 00:08:26,120 Speaker 1: who really valued w n y C Radio w n 138 00:08:26,200 --> 00:08:29,880 Speaker 1: y C TV maybe not so much who ever heard 139 00:08:29,880 --> 00:08:31,840 Speaker 1: of it, even though they were doing some good things, 140 00:08:31,920 --> 00:08:33,920 Speaker 1: And that was sort of the deal that was struck. 141 00:08:34,440 --> 00:08:37,839 Speaker 1: The city sole channel thirty one for I think two 142 00:08:38,240 --> 00:08:42,280 Speaker 1: fifty million dollars, and that helped make it okay to 143 00:08:42,520 --> 00:08:46,280 Speaker 1: let public radio sort of retain our license. But anyway, 144 00:08:46,280 --> 00:08:48,319 Speaker 1: that was the l w N y C TV. Did 145 00:08:48,320 --> 00:08:51,679 Speaker 1: you enjoy that? I do enjoy television, but they're really different. 146 00:08:52,559 --> 00:08:56,200 Speaker 1: On television, you have to look at the camera, and 147 00:08:56,480 --> 00:08:58,760 Speaker 1: you know, radio is sort of an open book test. 148 00:08:58,920 --> 00:09:02,200 Speaker 1: People say, oh, you seem to know so much about 149 00:09:02,320 --> 00:09:05,400 Speaker 1: the topics that you're talking about. Well, I have notes 150 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:09,680 Speaker 1: there in front of me for everything, and I refer 151 00:09:09,720 --> 00:09:11,240 Speaker 1: to things, and you can cheat and you can look 152 00:09:11,280 --> 00:09:13,280 Speaker 1: down and you don't have to make eye context. So 153 00:09:13,480 --> 00:09:17,960 Speaker 1: that makes radio a little bit easier. But television is fun. 154 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:20,000 Speaker 1: It's nice to be seen, it's nice to be able 155 00:09:20,080 --> 00:09:23,280 Speaker 1: to play with visuals. You know, they're very different media. 156 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:25,400 Speaker 1: What I liked about it was you can read the 157 00:09:25,440 --> 00:09:28,360 Speaker 1: person's expressions in their faces and you and there's something 158 00:09:28,360 --> 00:09:29,840 Speaker 1: to be said about that in an interview, how do 159 00:09:29,880 --> 00:09:32,840 Speaker 1: they behave? The other thing about live radio as opposed 160 00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:37,640 Speaker 1: to podcasts, people are constantly coming and going, so you 161 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:41,600 Speaker 1: have to reset right, this conversation has to make sense 162 00:09:41,760 --> 00:09:43,800 Speaker 1: if you tune in at ten o'clock or if you 163 00:09:43,880 --> 00:09:46,559 Speaker 1: tune in at ten oh eight. We have to constantly 164 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:49,640 Speaker 1: be thinking, okay, if this person tuned in to this 165 00:09:49,760 --> 00:09:54,000 Speaker 1: half hour segment seventeen minutes through. We wanted to be 166 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:55,920 Speaker 1: able to make sense for them, but at the same 167 00:09:56,000 --> 00:09:58,599 Speaker 1: time be able to progress for the people who have 168 00:09:58,679 --> 00:10:00,959 Speaker 1: been there since the big inning. It's just sort of 169 00:10:01,000 --> 00:10:05,200 Speaker 1: a whole other layer of presentational awareness that you don't 170 00:10:05,200 --> 00:10:08,040 Speaker 1: have on television and they don't have on podcasts. That's 171 00:10:08,080 --> 00:10:11,160 Speaker 1: one of the interesting thing about podcasts having come in 172 00:10:11,679 --> 00:10:15,120 Speaker 1: and become such a dominant form in the world. A 173 00:10:15,160 --> 00:10:19,280 Speaker 1: podcast is like a private space. You go into the podcast, 174 00:10:19,480 --> 00:10:23,160 Speaker 1: you know you've chosen to subscribe and download, and you 175 00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:26,400 Speaker 1: can start it and stop it. Um And in a 176 00:10:26,440 --> 00:10:30,080 Speaker 1: way it's even more intimate than live radio because it's 177 00:10:30,120 --> 00:10:33,600 Speaker 1: really just you and the podcast talking right in your ear. 178 00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:36,880 Speaker 1: I think it also a podcast there's something about portion control. 179 00:10:37,559 --> 00:10:39,520 Speaker 1: You know. Thank God for my producer, because you know, 180 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:41,440 Speaker 1: I would argue, I'd say, let's do the podcast like 181 00:10:41,480 --> 00:10:44,720 Speaker 1: an hour and a half, and then they'll be like, no, no, no, no, no. 182 00:10:45,120 --> 00:10:48,440 Speaker 1: Podcasts are like the right size. I've been told that 183 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:51,559 Speaker 1: one popular podcast, I'm not going to call them out 184 00:10:51,559 --> 00:10:54,680 Speaker 1: because I may have the story wrong. UM figured out 185 00:10:54,720 --> 00:10:57,960 Speaker 1: exactly what the average length of a commute is in 186 00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:02,280 Speaker 1: New York City and set their podcast for that length, 187 00:11:02,760 --> 00:11:06,640 Speaker 1: So that's targeted. But look at old news Radio ten 188 00:11:06,679 --> 00:11:09,600 Speaker 1: ten wins. You give us twenty two minutes, we'll give 189 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:13,559 Speaker 1: you the world. You know why, because the average length 190 00:11:13,600 --> 00:11:16,880 Speaker 1: of listening is no more than twenty two minutes. They 191 00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:19,160 Speaker 1: go through the whole cycle and they start over. So 192 00:11:19,200 --> 00:11:21,640 Speaker 1: if we wanted to do the most commercial show we 193 00:11:21,679 --> 00:11:24,920 Speaker 1: could possibly do in my format, we would take the 194 00:11:25,120 --> 00:11:29,480 Speaker 1: lead story of the day and do it three times 195 00:11:29,480 --> 00:11:32,880 Speaker 1: an hour and three times the next hour. For the 196 00:11:32,920 --> 00:11:36,040 Speaker 1: two hour show, twenty minutes discussions about the one thing 197 00:11:36,120 --> 00:11:38,880 Speaker 1: that people most want to talk about. Because for us 198 00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:41,560 Speaker 1: to the average length of listening is probably about twenty 199 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:44,720 Speaker 1: minutes per person per listening day, even though for many 200 00:11:44,720 --> 00:11:47,400 Speaker 1: people your shows on later in their day, they're out 201 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:50,200 Speaker 1: the door by then. I when I'm not working, I 202 00:11:50,320 --> 00:11:52,800 Speaker 1: wake up, I take a shower, I have breakfast whatever 203 00:11:52,800 --> 00:11:55,199 Speaker 1: with my kids. But ten o'clock is right and when 204 00:11:55,240 --> 00:11:57,199 Speaker 1: I might maybe I'm going to shave and comb my hair. 205 00:11:57,320 --> 00:12:00,360 Speaker 1: So for Brian Larra's research, people figure out how long 206 00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:02,920 Speaker 1: does it take the average man to shave and style 207 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:05,160 Speaker 1: his hair? That's how long like a segment should be. 208 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:07,880 Speaker 1: And one of the nicest things anybody can say to 209 00:12:07,920 --> 00:12:10,960 Speaker 1: me is you made me late for work. You have 210 00:12:11,040 --> 00:12:14,600 Speaker 1: maybe laid for work. Believe it now. Um, when the 211 00:12:14,600 --> 00:12:16,760 Speaker 1: TV show ends without your choice, could you have gone 212 00:12:16,760 --> 00:12:19,800 Speaker 1: on you wanted to change? Yeah, I would have gone 213 00:12:19,800 --> 00:12:22,120 Speaker 1: on at that time if if I could have. You 214 00:12:22,160 --> 00:12:25,000 Speaker 1: were doing a radio show years ago, and I guess 215 00:12:25,040 --> 00:12:30,280 Speaker 1: in the beginning of your careers, as in Albany Music Program. 216 00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:33,200 Speaker 1: And I read that in the seventies you said I 217 00:12:33,240 --> 00:12:35,360 Speaker 1: think I'll just open the phone lines. That true, Well, 218 00:12:35,400 --> 00:12:38,720 Speaker 1: it was a little more complicated than that. Um. When 219 00:12:38,760 --> 00:12:42,920 Speaker 1: I was coming up, my real goal was to be 220 00:12:43,480 --> 00:12:47,400 Speaker 1: an FM rock DJ. They were some of my role models. 221 00:12:47,520 --> 00:12:52,640 Speaker 1: Dennis Elsis be Dennis ELS's, Vin Scalca, Pete for a tell. 222 00:12:53,080 --> 00:12:55,319 Speaker 1: And these people, this is when I was a teenager, 223 00:12:56,120 --> 00:12:59,960 Speaker 1: were more than what we think of as DJs spin 224 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:03,600 Speaker 1: in the hits. They were kind of radio artists. They 225 00:13:03,640 --> 00:13:07,960 Speaker 1: were playing an eclectic mix of music that you could 226 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:10,920 Speaker 1: play on the radio in those days on the FM 227 00:13:11,000 --> 00:13:14,200 Speaker 1: rock stations when they were new. Musically speaking, yes, it 228 00:13:14,280 --> 00:13:17,720 Speaker 1: was rooted in rock, but they played jazz, they played folk, 229 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:21,960 Speaker 1: they played bluegrass. I remember sitting on the beach one 230 00:13:22,040 --> 00:13:27,559 Speaker 1: summer during college, listening to the old ny WFM, and 231 00:13:27,720 --> 00:13:29,959 Speaker 1: there was I think a Rolling Stone song and the 232 00:13:30,080 --> 00:13:34,040 Speaker 1: next thing that came on was Miles Davis during an 233 00:13:34,040 --> 00:13:37,600 Speaker 1: electric track from his album Bitches Brew, and it blew 234 00:13:37,640 --> 00:13:39,480 Speaker 1: my mind and I was like, what is this? And 235 00:13:39,520 --> 00:13:41,880 Speaker 1: I've never heard anything like that before, and I was like, 236 00:13:42,200 --> 00:13:45,480 Speaker 1: I want more of this. Yeah. I said to people, 237 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:47,720 Speaker 1: I said, I wanna have my own show, and they said, 238 00:13:47,720 --> 00:13:48,719 Speaker 1: what do you want to do with it? I want 239 00:13:48,720 --> 00:13:50,679 Speaker 1: to do anything. I want to play old Cheech and 240 00:13:50,800 --> 00:13:53,880 Speaker 1: Chong clips and then I'm gonna go from like uh 241 00:13:53,920 --> 00:13:57,840 Speaker 1: Emerson Lake in Palmer to Rosemary Clooney like who Cares? 242 00:13:58,520 --> 00:14:01,360 Speaker 1: So there was that part of the art to it. 243 00:14:01,640 --> 00:14:04,000 Speaker 1: There was also the spoken word part of the art 244 00:14:04,040 --> 00:14:09,439 Speaker 1: to it because these DJs or hosts were telling stories, 245 00:14:09,960 --> 00:14:13,920 Speaker 1: they were sometimes reading poetry very much made an impression 246 00:14:14,160 --> 00:14:19,120 Speaker 1: on me as a teenager that Roscoe, that particular DJ 247 00:14:19,440 --> 00:14:23,360 Speaker 1: on the old ny WFM would sometimes read poetry, as 248 00:14:23,440 --> 00:14:30,120 Speaker 1: I recall, and they would do political monologues, they would 249 00:14:30,160 --> 00:14:33,160 Speaker 1: do social commentary in between playing rock records, and of 250 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:35,920 Speaker 1: course they would talking about music and in the context 251 00:14:35,960 --> 00:14:38,400 Speaker 1: of the times, and I was like, I want to 252 00:14:38,440 --> 00:14:41,240 Speaker 1: do that. Well. In college I did a lot of 253 00:14:41,280 --> 00:14:43,880 Speaker 1: that on the camp's radio station at Albany State. I 254 00:14:44,000 --> 00:14:48,880 Speaker 1: also did news. And after college I got my dream job. 255 00:14:48,960 --> 00:14:52,240 Speaker 1: There was an FM rock station in Albany that was 256 00:14:52,320 --> 00:14:54,800 Speaker 1: just starting out and they were hiring DJs, and I 257 00:14:54,840 --> 00:14:58,560 Speaker 1: got um a job like that, and they said it's 258 00:14:58,560 --> 00:15:02,040 Speaker 1: a six day a week job, so, okay, you have 259 00:15:02,120 --> 00:15:06,440 Speaker 1: your after show. No no, no, I have graduate. They said, 260 00:15:06,440 --> 00:15:08,080 Speaker 1: it's six day a week job, so you have your 261 00:15:08,080 --> 00:15:10,640 Speaker 1: Monday through Friday show and you have to come in 262 00:15:10,680 --> 00:15:13,120 Speaker 1: and pick a weekend shift. And because I was also 263 00:15:13,240 --> 00:15:16,720 Speaker 1: interested in news and talk in the world, I said, well, 264 00:15:16,960 --> 00:15:20,160 Speaker 1: can I come in late Sunday night and open the phones? 265 00:15:20,760 --> 00:15:24,560 Speaker 1: And to my shock, they said yes, and the reasons 266 00:15:24,560 --> 00:15:27,400 Speaker 1: they've been doing that before. No, but in those days 267 00:15:28,600 --> 00:15:32,200 Speaker 1: you needed public affairs credit with the f c C, 268 00:15:32,680 --> 00:15:35,880 Speaker 1: with feral government. Even if you're a music station that's 269 00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:37,840 Speaker 1: all gone now you don't need it. I probably would 270 00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:40,520 Speaker 1: never have been able to break into this business under 271 00:15:40,840 --> 00:15:43,200 Speaker 1: you know, contemporary rules, But at that time, even a 272 00:15:43,320 --> 00:15:47,360 Speaker 1: music station needed some news and some public affairs. And 273 00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:50,480 Speaker 1: they must have been like, oh, this kid wants to 274 00:15:50,520 --> 00:15:53,680 Speaker 1: open the phones for midnight three on Sunday night. What 275 00:15:53,760 --> 00:15:56,320 Speaker 1: have we got to lose? And we get to check 276 00:15:56,360 --> 00:15:59,480 Speaker 1: the box that we have our public affairs credit. Well, 277 00:15:59,480 --> 00:16:03,120 Speaker 1: what happened was, over time I realized that I was 278 00:16:03,160 --> 00:16:08,560 Speaker 1: putting much more mental energy and really time into preparing 279 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:11,200 Speaker 1: my three hour a week middle of the night talk 280 00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:13,840 Speaker 1: show than my five hour a day, five day a 281 00:16:13,840 --> 00:16:17,800 Speaker 1: week music show. And I realized this is really who 282 00:16:17,840 --> 00:16:21,360 Speaker 1: I am. Was that an unconscious wish fulfillment for you? 283 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:25,320 Speaker 1: It was conscious wish fulfillment. By then. It was just 284 00:16:25,440 --> 00:16:28,720 Speaker 1: because I was curious, and I like the idea of connection, 285 00:16:28,840 --> 00:16:31,440 Speaker 1: and I like the idea of talking to strangers. But 286 00:16:31,520 --> 00:16:34,640 Speaker 1: then after a while I realized this is actually a 287 00:16:34,640 --> 00:16:39,120 Speaker 1: form of journalism, and I feel woefully underqualified to do this, 288 00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:41,720 Speaker 1: and I went back to school. I actually quit that 289 00:16:41,800 --> 00:16:44,760 Speaker 1: job and went to grad school for journalism so I 290 00:16:44,760 --> 00:16:46,680 Speaker 1: could try to do it more seriously. Now, when you 291 00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:49,960 Speaker 1: see I like to talk to strangers and that curiosity 292 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:52,160 Speaker 1: you have, is there anything in your childhood that signaled that. 293 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:54,280 Speaker 1: Did you grow up with your parents? Were you sitting 294 00:16:54,280 --> 00:16:56,240 Speaker 1: with your dad by the radio? What was the home 295 00:16:56,280 --> 00:16:59,400 Speaker 1: life like in terms of media. Um. The home life 296 00:16:59,480 --> 00:17:03,640 Speaker 1: was very average American in terms of media. Uh, you know, 297 00:17:04,280 --> 00:17:10,399 Speaker 1: we watched definitely candid camera. I mean my parents were, 298 00:17:10,440 --> 00:17:13,159 Speaker 1: you know, pretty cultured. They would I mean, considering that 299 00:17:13,200 --> 00:17:17,960 Speaker 1: they grew up poor in the South Bronx. Um. He 300 00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:21,920 Speaker 1: was an electrical engineer and then a home inspector, and 301 00:17:22,000 --> 00:17:25,000 Speaker 1: my mother was an elementary school teacher. Um. And you 302 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:26,760 Speaker 1: grew up in the city, grew up in the city, 303 00:17:26,800 --> 00:17:32,080 Speaker 1: grew up in Queens And they also though took us 304 00:17:32,200 --> 00:17:34,760 Speaker 1: to theater. They took us to a lot of UM 305 00:17:34,960 --> 00:17:37,800 Speaker 1: summer stock which was the way we could afford seeing 306 00:17:37,840 --> 00:17:41,880 Speaker 1: Broadway plays. And they had Broadway cast albums that had 307 00:17:41,880 --> 00:17:46,119 Speaker 1: classical music. At home. Um, and we watched you know, 308 00:17:46,440 --> 00:17:52,959 Speaker 1: regular television. Media was was average. But for some reason 309 00:17:54,240 --> 00:17:59,800 Speaker 1: I got curious about talking to people not like me. 310 00:18:00,160 --> 00:18:03,879 Speaker 1: Here's a certain way to look at my progression in media. 311 00:18:04,520 --> 00:18:08,159 Speaker 1: By getting so much out of those DJs who are 312 00:18:08,200 --> 00:18:13,159 Speaker 1: also radio artists. When I was a teenager and feeling 313 00:18:13,200 --> 00:18:15,120 Speaker 1: like I was learning a lot about the world by 314 00:18:15,119 --> 00:18:18,040 Speaker 1: sitting in my bedroom and hearing these people who were 315 00:18:18,040 --> 00:18:21,159 Speaker 1: more connected to things in the outside world, I was like, 316 00:18:21,520 --> 00:18:24,919 Speaker 1: I want to do this someday and connect with kids 317 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:30,879 Speaker 1: like me. Also, then as I got older, I thought, 318 00:18:31,440 --> 00:18:34,600 Speaker 1: I want to do this and connect to people not 319 00:18:34,760 --> 00:18:38,679 Speaker 1: like me. When I realized that that was a revelation 320 00:18:39,440 --> 00:18:42,040 Speaker 1: that helped motivate me to want to open up the phones, 321 00:18:42,280 --> 00:18:46,359 Speaker 1: that helped motivate me to get into journalism. There was, 322 00:18:46,560 --> 00:18:50,280 Speaker 1: you know, maybe a social consciousness and that realizing that 323 00:18:50,320 --> 00:18:54,679 Speaker 1: I was growing up in a fairly comfortable We certainly 324 00:18:54,680 --> 00:18:56,800 Speaker 1: weren't rich, but I never had a worry where my 325 00:18:56,840 --> 00:18:59,800 Speaker 1: next meal was coming from kind of middle class home. 326 00:19:00,560 --> 00:19:02,800 Speaker 1: And I was realizing there was a lot going on 327 00:19:02,880 --> 00:19:05,720 Speaker 1: in the world that wasn't like me, and there was 328 00:19:05,760 --> 00:19:09,200 Speaker 1: a lot going on that would broaden my perspective on things, 329 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:11,879 Speaker 1: and I was curious. I wanted to learn more about 330 00:19:11,880 --> 00:19:15,680 Speaker 1: the world, and that got me interested in talking to strangers. 331 00:19:15,840 --> 00:19:17,960 Speaker 1: When you took phone calls back then in the beginning, 332 00:19:18,680 --> 00:19:20,479 Speaker 1: what kind of people were calling you on a Sunday 333 00:19:20,520 --> 00:19:24,720 Speaker 1: between twelve three am. Well, it was a combination of Oh, 334 00:19:24,760 --> 00:19:27,760 Speaker 1: I would say, you know, rock music, stoners who were 335 00:19:27,880 --> 00:19:31,119 Speaker 1: up in the middle of the night and had an 336 00:19:31,160 --> 00:19:34,119 Speaker 1: outlet because I was inviting them to call in. Also 337 00:19:34,240 --> 00:19:37,040 Speaker 1: older people that was interesting to me, because they were 338 00:19:37,080 --> 00:19:40,359 Speaker 1: certainly not the music audience for that FM rock station. 339 00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:44,520 Speaker 1: But there were real talk radio listeners who tended to 340 00:19:44,560 --> 00:19:49,960 Speaker 1: be older people who maybe were retired or insomnia. Then 341 00:19:50,000 --> 00:19:54,919 Speaker 1: they wanted some company, absolutely right. Um. Sometimes some of 342 00:19:54,960 --> 00:19:57,560 Speaker 1: those folks would try to call me off the air 343 00:19:57,640 --> 00:20:00,280 Speaker 1: later and just sort of strike up a friend ship. 344 00:20:00,440 --> 00:20:03,720 Speaker 1: And that was one of my early lessons in how 345 00:20:03,840 --> 00:20:11,160 Speaker 1: radio is companionship. Brian Larr the City's companion for more 346 00:20:11,200 --> 00:20:16,840 Speaker 1: than thirty years. Another wonderful fixture of New York media 347 00:20:16,960 --> 00:20:21,000 Speaker 1: is Philip Galanas. He's a novelist and attorney who writes 348 00:20:21,040 --> 00:20:25,080 Speaker 1: the legendary Social Cues Advice column in the Sunday New 349 00:20:25,160 --> 00:20:30,600 Speaker 1: York Times. But advice wasn't the Gray Ladies original idea. 350 00:20:31,200 --> 00:20:33,560 Speaker 1: First they wanted me to do a column, you know, 351 00:20:33,640 --> 00:20:37,359 Speaker 1: one of those you'd know everything about me and my 352 00:20:37,480 --> 00:20:40,240 Speaker 1: boyfriend and my dog. And it was because supposed to 353 00:20:40,280 --> 00:20:42,480 Speaker 1: be about my life, the life of you know, a 354 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:46,840 Speaker 1: metropolitan gentleman philippin New York going around to the movies 355 00:20:46,920 --> 00:20:48,840 Speaker 1: and what I saw at the theater, and I thought 356 00:20:48,840 --> 00:20:53,000 Speaker 1: people will be so fucking like it's like I can 357 00:20:53,040 --> 00:20:57,680 Speaker 1: see that. For three weeks to hear what advice New 358 00:20:57,760 --> 00:21:01,879 Speaker 1: Yorkers are really looking for. Download my full interview with 359 00:21:01,920 --> 00:21:08,240 Speaker 1: Philip galanas at Here's the Thing dot org. More. Brian 360 00:21:08,359 --> 00:21:28,240 Speaker 1: Larrer coming up. This is Alec Baldwin. Here's Brian larr 361 00:21:28,680 --> 00:21:31,880 Speaker 1: on what he calls the paradox of modern New York. 362 00:21:32,760 --> 00:21:36,800 Speaker 1: The city is cleaner, it is safer. We don't want 363 00:21:36,840 --> 00:21:39,399 Speaker 1: to go back to the nineties seventies where you couldn't 364 00:21:39,400 --> 00:21:42,320 Speaker 1: walk down the street and there was a fiscal crisis. Uh, 365 00:21:42,359 --> 00:21:44,639 Speaker 1: you know, the city and states finances have been in 366 00:21:44,680 --> 00:21:48,600 Speaker 1: fairly good shape in recent years, and obviously crime is down, 367 00:21:49,240 --> 00:21:52,760 Speaker 1: but at the same time, homelessness is at record levels. 368 00:21:53,119 --> 00:21:58,400 Speaker 1: All of these spectacular contradictions, and hopefully there's a policy 369 00:21:58,440 --> 00:22:01,040 Speaker 1: way out of those things. But I think kind of 370 00:22:01,080 --> 00:22:03,440 Speaker 1: that's the state of New York to meet. New York 371 00:22:03,520 --> 00:22:06,159 Speaker 1: is dirtier than it's ever been. The homeless thing is 372 00:22:06,160 --> 00:22:08,200 Speaker 1: a problem again. The housing thing is a problem again. 373 00:22:08,280 --> 00:22:11,680 Speaker 1: The subways a mess. Also, this construction thing they upperstamp 374 00:22:11,720 --> 00:22:15,600 Speaker 1: every building. There's scaffolding and obstructive driving. If you could 375 00:22:15,600 --> 00:22:18,000 Speaker 1: wave a wand and solve off the top of your 376 00:22:18,040 --> 00:22:20,480 Speaker 1: head two or three problems right now and this is 377 00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:23,920 Speaker 1: a fantasy in the city. What would you address, Well, 378 00:22:24,119 --> 00:22:27,800 Speaker 1: at large, it would be affordability. The real estate industry 379 00:22:27,840 --> 00:22:32,080 Speaker 1: holds incredible power in this city and this state. And 380 00:22:32,440 --> 00:22:35,560 Speaker 1: look at Mayor du Blasio, who I would say, as 381 00:22:35,600 --> 00:22:39,200 Speaker 1: trying to do something about inequality in the city. If 382 00:22:39,240 --> 00:22:42,920 Speaker 1: he could wave a wand and say you can only 383 00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:47,560 Speaker 1: build affordable housing for the next eight years in New 384 00:22:47,680 --> 00:22:52,000 Speaker 1: York City and actually get affordable housing built, he would 385 00:22:52,040 --> 00:22:56,600 Speaker 1: do it. But there's enough power by the industry that 386 00:22:56,760 --> 00:23:00,600 Speaker 1: if they don't get a certain amount of hearn on 387 00:23:00,680 --> 00:23:05,000 Speaker 1: their investment, they're just gonna blow it off. And it 388 00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:09,199 Speaker 1: takes a certain investment to bring the return that can 389 00:23:09,600 --> 00:23:13,080 Speaker 1: makes it worth it for developers, big risk to put 390 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:16,480 Speaker 1: their money up um. But the city owns land as well. 391 00:23:16,480 --> 00:23:18,680 Speaker 1: What prevents the city from not taking land they own 392 00:23:19,480 --> 00:23:22,320 Speaker 1: and designing properties there that could be affordable. Well, there 393 00:23:22,320 --> 00:23:25,200 Speaker 1: was a lot of that in the nineties when Ed 394 00:23:25,280 --> 00:23:28,440 Speaker 1: Coach was mayored. There was so much more abandoned space. 395 00:23:28,680 --> 00:23:31,000 Speaker 1: At that time it was a lot easier to do. 396 00:23:31,080 --> 00:23:34,800 Speaker 1: Now there isn't as much, though there certainly are advocates 397 00:23:35,000 --> 00:23:38,879 Speaker 1: who say the city should be taking still more of 398 00:23:39,040 --> 00:23:43,639 Speaker 1: land that they own and turn it into affordable housing. Um, 399 00:23:43,840 --> 00:23:46,480 Speaker 1: do they need the state's permission to do that? Is 400 00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:48,320 Speaker 1: it time for the city to be given back more 401 00:23:48,359 --> 00:23:51,000 Speaker 1: of their authorities? Do you believe? In my opinion, yes, 402 00:23:51,520 --> 00:23:57,440 Speaker 1: because Wi Doly need people from and I am still 403 00:23:57,440 --> 00:24:02,880 Speaker 1: living rentally. It shouldn't be up to them to say 404 00:24:03,000 --> 00:24:05,239 Speaker 1: what we do here. It shouldn't be up to us 405 00:24:05,359 --> 00:24:07,960 Speaker 1: to say what they do in Rensselaer, which by the way, 406 00:24:08,040 --> 00:24:12,960 Speaker 1: is pronounced rents. Sorry, it's like Nevada, Nevada. If you 407 00:24:13,040 --> 00:24:17,320 Speaker 1: work in media, you say Nevada all the time, except 408 00:24:17,880 --> 00:24:20,359 Speaker 1: when the primaries and caucuses are upon us in the 409 00:24:20,440 --> 00:24:23,480 Speaker 1: presidential cycle, and then we go back saying Nevada. Well, 410 00:24:23,520 --> 00:24:26,080 Speaker 1: it's Rensler. One of our guests said the word collegio 411 00:24:26,240 --> 00:24:29,720 Speaker 1: and supposed to collegio. I was like, yes, that's another 412 00:24:29,800 --> 00:24:32,800 Speaker 1: except collegial is right. I think collegial is right now. Um, 413 00:24:32,960 --> 00:24:34,920 Speaker 1: the Great Brian Larra wakes up in the morning and 414 00:24:35,000 --> 00:24:38,400 Speaker 1: plugs into media. How how does your morning media feed begin? 415 00:24:38,760 --> 00:24:43,240 Speaker 1: My morning media feed begins with Morning Edition, And I'm 416 00:24:43,320 --> 00:24:49,720 Speaker 1: listening to what we're doing locally from our spectacular newsroom, 417 00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:51,919 Speaker 1: which is the jewel of w n y C as 418 00:24:51,960 --> 00:24:56,520 Speaker 1: far as I'm concerned when real news organizations are going 419 00:24:56,600 --> 00:24:59,880 Speaker 1: out of business left and right, especially for local news, 420 00:25:01,080 --> 00:25:05,320 Speaker 1: w n y C in the nonprofit space has wound 421 00:25:05,400 --> 00:25:09,160 Speaker 1: up being able to grow the newsroom to dozens of people, 422 00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:13,960 Speaker 1: and we have a bigger reporting staff actually going out 423 00:25:14,240 --> 00:25:18,000 Speaker 1: and digging and doing investigations than some of the old 424 00:25:18,040 --> 00:25:22,480 Speaker 1: commercial news operations, either in broadcast or in newspapers. On 425 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:26,000 Speaker 1: the way in, I'm reading from various news sources, The 426 00:25:26,200 --> 00:25:29,720 Speaker 1: Times in the Atlantic and Slade and National Review in 427 00:25:29,760 --> 00:25:32,560 Speaker 1: the Wall Street general mix of you know, liberal and 428 00:25:32,600 --> 00:25:37,920 Speaker 1: conservative and other and sources that cover different kinds of stories. 429 00:25:38,680 --> 00:25:42,920 Speaker 1: I'll usually consume a little cable TV audio on an 430 00:25:42,960 --> 00:25:46,359 Speaker 1: app on the way in, you know, give a little 431 00:25:46,440 --> 00:25:50,880 Speaker 1: listen to what CNN and MSNBC and Fox are doing 432 00:25:51,520 --> 00:25:55,000 Speaker 1: on their morning shows. That's my consumption in the morning, 433 00:25:55,040 --> 00:25:57,280 Speaker 1: and it's going to vary from day to day to 434 00:25:57,400 --> 00:26:01,040 Speaker 1: day because to some degree I'm following the thread of 435 00:26:01,960 --> 00:26:03,960 Speaker 1: the topics that I know we're going to be talking 436 00:26:04,000 --> 00:26:06,360 Speaker 1: about that day, and that might lead me to any 437 00:26:06,440 --> 00:26:09,040 Speaker 1: kind of news source. Sometimes my entry point to the 438 00:26:09,119 --> 00:26:12,080 Speaker 1: media in the morning is Twitter, just to see as 439 00:26:12,080 --> 00:26:14,639 Speaker 1: a news aggregator. I use Twitter as a news aggregator 440 00:26:14,760 --> 00:26:18,160 Speaker 1: because we at the Brian Laire Show follow a whole 441 00:26:18,200 --> 00:26:21,320 Speaker 1: bunch of journalists and news organizations, and I can see 442 00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:24,920 Speaker 1: from that, what of the zillion news stories that I 443 00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:27,560 Speaker 1: could find on all the news apps people are actually 444 00:26:27,640 --> 00:26:30,840 Speaker 1: talking about Now, I couldn't think of what the beachhad 445 00:26:30,880 --> 00:26:33,280 Speaker 1: would be for the Trump question. But whoever the Democrats 446 00:26:33,600 --> 00:26:35,800 Speaker 1: put forth, what do you think that person needs to 447 00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:38,760 Speaker 1: do to beat Trump in what would the Democratic parton 448 00:26:38,880 --> 00:26:41,119 Speaker 1: need to do to make that happen? I think there's 449 00:26:41,480 --> 00:26:43,399 Speaker 1: a fine line that that person has to walk. I 450 00:26:43,480 --> 00:26:46,680 Speaker 1: think there's a real tension within the Democratic Party over 451 00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:49,200 Speaker 1: the argument that it needs to be someone like Joe 452 00:26:49,240 --> 00:26:53,320 Speaker 1: Biden who can appeal to those quote unquote Obama Trump 453 00:26:53,440 --> 00:26:58,560 Speaker 1: voters in Pennsylvania and Ohio, etcetera, who Biden could bring 454 00:26:58,720 --> 00:27:01,639 Speaker 1: back who maybe some of the others couldn't. On the 455 00:27:01,720 --> 00:27:05,920 Speaker 1: other hand, so much of the Democratic victory in the 456 00:27:06,000 --> 00:27:09,360 Speaker 1: House of Representatives in the mid terms last year came 457 00:27:09,440 --> 00:27:13,280 Speaker 1: because of huge turnouts by younger voters. You know, every 458 00:27:13,320 --> 00:27:16,480 Speaker 1: election cycle they say, oh, the youth vote is going 459 00:27:16,520 --> 00:27:18,720 Speaker 1: to rise up, and it's going to be different, and 460 00:27:18,880 --> 00:27:22,160 Speaker 1: often it doesn't happen. It kind of happened last year. Um, 461 00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:26,480 Speaker 1: and to what degree it happens in remains to be seen. 462 00:27:26,600 --> 00:27:29,359 Speaker 1: So there are those two different competing visions of what 463 00:27:29,560 --> 00:27:34,600 Speaker 1: kind of candidate. There's also something that Trump does that 464 00:27:35,119 --> 00:27:38,200 Speaker 1: I'm not sure that Democrats, any Democrats, have figured out 465 00:27:38,280 --> 00:27:42,159 Speaker 1: how to navigate. Yet. People ask is Trump a baby? 466 00:27:43,400 --> 00:27:47,920 Speaker 1: Is he crazy? Or is he a political genius? And 467 00:27:48,080 --> 00:27:52,600 Speaker 1: I tend to fall on the political genius answer, meaning 468 00:27:53,200 --> 00:27:56,600 Speaker 1: all this provocation that he does is not from lack 469 00:27:56,680 --> 00:28:00,760 Speaker 1: of discipline. It's because it's something that he has honed. 470 00:28:01,280 --> 00:28:04,480 Speaker 1: It's the Steve Bannon theory too. You know. Bannon says, 471 00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:08,680 Speaker 1: if somebody on the right does something kind of outrageous 472 00:28:09,359 --> 00:28:14,320 Speaker 1: on purpose, it's in part to draw an overreaction from 473 00:28:14,400 --> 00:28:19,840 Speaker 1: the left. Right. When Trump went out there and said 474 00:28:20,520 --> 00:28:23,280 Speaker 1: about John McCain, oh I prefer people who weren't captured. 475 00:28:24,280 --> 00:28:25,800 Speaker 1: Oh my god, this is gonna be the end of 476 00:28:25,800 --> 00:28:28,400 Speaker 1: the campaign. Well obviously it wasn't. When he said about 477 00:28:28,440 --> 00:28:31,119 Speaker 1: Megan Kelly after she asked him a tough question and 478 00:28:31,200 --> 00:28:34,080 Speaker 1: a Fox News debate, she's bleeding from the wherever people are. 479 00:28:34,600 --> 00:28:38,960 Speaker 1: But he was actually tapping into something that some people wanted. 480 00:28:39,800 --> 00:28:42,720 Speaker 1: And these things that a lot of people think are 481 00:28:43,280 --> 00:28:46,600 Speaker 1: a bug with respect to Trump aren't a bug their feature. 482 00:28:47,480 --> 00:28:50,600 Speaker 1: And the Democrats haven't figured out how to play that 483 00:28:50,760 --> 00:28:55,440 Speaker 1: yet because so often they get lured into tis tisking 484 00:28:55,560 --> 00:28:58,280 Speaker 1: a Trump and saying, oh my god, this is outrageous 485 00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:03,120 Speaker 1: and we're headed toward a asis sexist, authoritarian country more 486 00:29:03,200 --> 00:29:06,320 Speaker 1: than before. And it may be true, but at the 487 00:29:06,400 --> 00:29:09,880 Speaker 1: same time, it doesn't necessarily win the election. So obviously 488 00:29:10,000 --> 00:29:13,640 Speaker 1: they have to talk about policy. They avoided impeachment and 489 00:29:13,720 --> 00:29:17,320 Speaker 1: investigations and stuff on the stump in and they talked 490 00:29:17,360 --> 00:29:20,680 Speaker 1: about healthcare and other kitchen table issues and that helped 491 00:29:20,680 --> 00:29:24,960 Speaker 1: a lot. And I think they let the undertow of 492 00:29:25,880 --> 00:29:30,880 Speaker 1: objection to Trump's sensibilities, which everybody knows how they feel 493 00:29:30,920 --> 00:29:34,040 Speaker 1: about already one way or another, play itself out as 494 00:29:34,080 --> 00:29:36,640 Speaker 1: a factor. So they probably have to do that. On 495 00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:39,000 Speaker 1: the other hand, and we have this problem in the 496 00:29:39,080 --> 00:29:42,280 Speaker 1: media too. You know why is there so much Trump coverage. 497 00:29:42,440 --> 00:29:47,640 Speaker 1: It's because there's a tension between not getting sucked in 498 00:29:48,080 --> 00:29:50,320 Speaker 1: every time he throws out a little bit of bait 499 00:29:51,280 --> 00:29:57,320 Speaker 1: and ignoring things that are so outrageous that they shouldn't 500 00:29:57,360 --> 00:30:01,080 Speaker 1: be ignored. There's no right answer, there's only attention. And 501 00:30:01,520 --> 00:30:05,680 Speaker 1: so in political terms, for Democrats, they have to figure 502 00:30:05,680 --> 00:30:07,800 Speaker 1: out how to walk that line. And that's one of 503 00:30:07,840 --> 00:30:10,400 Speaker 1: the things that's going to determine if somebody can be 504 00:30:10,560 --> 00:30:13,000 Speaker 1: Trump in. I think that the way to be Trump 505 00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:14,600 Speaker 1: is you just have to point your finger right at 506 00:30:14,640 --> 00:30:16,600 Speaker 1: his skull, if to hit your finger like an inch 507 00:30:16,680 --> 00:30:19,920 Speaker 1: from his temple, and say this guy said this, and 508 00:30:20,040 --> 00:30:22,720 Speaker 1: this guy and just don't back off from the indictment 509 00:30:22,760 --> 00:30:26,200 Speaker 1: of his behavior when you say, is he a genius? 510 00:30:26,400 --> 00:30:29,040 Speaker 1: Trump has a talent for something. But I think it 511 00:30:29,080 --> 00:30:32,200 Speaker 1: would be so easy to be Trump in. There's a way. 512 00:30:32,400 --> 00:30:34,320 Speaker 1: You just have to find those pressure points and just 513 00:30:34,400 --> 00:30:36,120 Speaker 1: drive them in saying because I think he has nuts. 514 00:30:36,200 --> 00:30:39,600 Speaker 1: The argument against your way of running against Trump, though, 515 00:30:39,960 --> 00:30:42,840 Speaker 1: is that everybody already knows how they feel about Trump. 516 00:30:43,200 --> 00:30:46,320 Speaker 1: So if you're taking dead rhetorical aim at him and 517 00:30:46,440 --> 00:30:50,280 Speaker 1: not letting him off the hook, it could just repolarize 518 00:30:50,320 --> 00:30:53,440 Speaker 1: everybody into the positions that they're already in, and his 519 00:30:53,600 --> 00:30:56,760 Speaker 1: supporters will get, you know, pumped up from that, and 520 00:30:56,880 --> 00:30:59,240 Speaker 1: his opponents will get pumped up from that, But it 521 00:30:59,360 --> 00:31:02,840 Speaker 1: doesn't change anything. No matter what happens. Have you noticed this, 522 00:31:03,280 --> 00:31:07,400 Speaker 1: No matter what happens with respect to the Russian investigation 523 00:31:07,760 --> 00:31:12,480 Speaker 1: or policies, whatever it is, Trump's popularity remains in a 524 00:31:12,760 --> 00:31:17,680 Speaker 1: very narrow range. Right. It's like never goes below, never 525 00:31:17,760 --> 00:31:20,880 Speaker 1: goes above. Bill Clinton, for example, when he was going 526 00:31:20,960 --> 00:31:22,959 Speaker 1: through impeachment and everything, people say, oh, it made him 527 00:31:23,000 --> 00:31:28,120 Speaker 1: more popular, which it did, but his popularity ratings were 528 00:31:28,280 --> 00:31:31,280 Speaker 1: so changeable, he would be way down, he would be 529 00:31:31,440 --> 00:31:34,000 Speaker 1: way up. We're in a different kind of moment now 530 00:31:34,440 --> 00:31:37,719 Speaker 1: where people already are frozen in terms of what they 531 00:31:37,760 --> 00:31:40,120 Speaker 1: think about Trump. So I'm not sure that making Trump 532 00:31:40,200 --> 00:31:43,200 Speaker 1: the issue beats Trump because everybody just stays with it. 533 00:31:43,240 --> 00:31:45,560 Speaker 1: But I think that I respect what you're saying, but 534 00:31:45,560 --> 00:31:48,280 Speaker 1: I think that overly simplifies what I'm referring to, which 535 00:31:48,360 --> 00:31:51,360 Speaker 1: is you have to have people that can excite their 536 00:31:51,520 --> 00:31:54,360 Speaker 1: side of the aisle and galvanized their side of the 537 00:31:54,400 --> 00:31:56,960 Speaker 1: aisle with their ideas and their rhetoric, which includes the 538 00:31:57,000 --> 00:32:00,320 Speaker 1: indictment of Trump. The way that Trump excites, You've gotta 539 00:32:00,320 --> 00:32:02,480 Speaker 1: get in there, you gotta get dirty with Trump. Somebody 540 00:32:02,560 --> 00:32:05,160 Speaker 1: once said, a liberal is a person who won't take 541 00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:08,280 Speaker 1: his own side and an argument. Now. My last quick 542 00:32:08,360 --> 00:32:11,520 Speaker 1: question is Brian Lair runs out the door. It's a 543 00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:13,840 Speaker 1: sunny day in Manhattan. He's got the time doing something. 544 00:32:13,880 --> 00:32:16,400 Speaker 1: Guy that was the host of a music show. What's 545 00:32:16,520 --> 00:32:20,160 Speaker 1: your pleasures? Is it? The opera? Is it? The symphony? 546 00:32:20,280 --> 00:32:22,720 Speaker 1: Is a jazz clubs? Is it? What does Brian Lair 547 00:32:22,800 --> 00:32:24,680 Speaker 1: do in New York to have some fun? It is, 548 00:32:24,800 --> 00:32:27,960 Speaker 1: first of all, going running on those streets of New York. 549 00:32:28,520 --> 00:32:31,760 Speaker 1: I love to run. I don't run long distances, but 550 00:32:31,880 --> 00:32:34,560 Speaker 1: I try to run about three miles every day. Uh, 551 00:32:34,800 --> 00:32:37,360 Speaker 1: it's my zen. Once upon a time I did a 552 00:32:37,400 --> 00:32:41,240 Speaker 1: lot of yoga and meditation. Now I run. I once 553 00:32:41,280 --> 00:32:44,560 Speaker 1: had a conversation with Peter Segal on the host of 554 00:32:44,600 --> 00:32:46,680 Speaker 1: Wait Wait, Don't tell me who's really a runner. I'm 555 00:32:46,680 --> 00:32:49,560 Speaker 1: not really a runner. He's really a runner. And he 556 00:32:49,760 --> 00:32:53,480 Speaker 1: was making a big case about not running with headphones 557 00:32:54,320 --> 00:32:57,320 Speaker 1: so you could be very present, and so it was 558 00:32:57,440 --> 00:33:00,880 Speaker 1: zen for him in that respect. I find for me, 559 00:33:01,400 --> 00:33:03,960 Speaker 1: if I just go running with nothing, I'm still thinking 560 00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:07,160 Speaker 1: about work and I'm still thinking about the world. So 561 00:33:07,320 --> 00:33:10,040 Speaker 1: I like to go into my music and run and 562 00:33:10,160 --> 00:33:16,640 Speaker 1: I'm escaping. So I do that. UM Theater art museums, 563 00:33:17,600 --> 00:33:20,880 Speaker 1: jazz clubs, restaurants. What does Brian Lair like to eat? 564 00:33:21,240 --> 00:33:23,880 Speaker 1: Ethnic foods or a thing you crave. One of the 565 00:33:23,960 --> 00:33:27,239 Speaker 1: ethnic foods I like is Ethiopian food because you can 566 00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:29,160 Speaker 1: eat it with your hands that have that wonderful and 567 00:33:29,280 --> 00:33:32,120 Speaker 1: jeribread and you can get vegetables or you can get 568 00:33:32,200 --> 00:33:34,640 Speaker 1: meat and then you just take that bread and you 569 00:33:34,720 --> 00:33:38,280 Speaker 1: scoop it up. And I love Ethiopian food. I'm gonna 570 00:33:38,400 --> 00:33:41,280 Speaker 1: end with this, which is we paint this picture Brian 571 00:33:41,360 --> 00:33:44,000 Speaker 1: there on the subway with the New York Time, reading 572 00:33:44,040 --> 00:33:46,520 Speaker 1: the Times on his way to work. He goes running 573 00:33:46,640 --> 00:33:48,880 Speaker 1: to zen out in the streets of New York, and 574 00:33:48,960 --> 00:33:53,880 Speaker 1: he loves Ethiopian food. You really are the ultimate New Yorker, 575 00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:57,320 Speaker 1: Brian There. There is no ultimate New Yorker, but thank you. 576 00:33:57,400 --> 00:34:06,320 Speaker 1: Alc Bolo Ultimate new Yorker. Brian Larr broadcasts his ultimate 577 00:34:06,480 --> 00:34:10,480 Speaker 1: New York talk show, The Brian Larr Show, every weekday 578 00:34:10,719 --> 00:34:15,240 Speaker 1: at ten am on w n y C. I'm Alec 579 00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:20,680 Speaker 1: Baldwin and you're listening to here's the Thing, testing one 580 00:34:20,760 --> 00:34:24,239 Speaker 1: to three, testing one toy. I'm sorry, that's me here 581 00:34:24,320 --> 00:34:26,560 Speaker 1: here we go, So maybe I'm deaf. Literally so I 582 00:34:26,640 --> 00:34:31,279 Speaker 1: need to have it very loud. Okay, you dry allergies? 583 00:34:32,560 --> 00:34:35,799 Speaker 1: Are we do? What do we do? What's that bring 584 00:34:35,880 --> 00:34:38,480 Speaker 1: it in? And bringing the bringing His Majesty's I hear 585 00:34:38,520 --> 00:34:41,920 Speaker 1: you use this, um. But how can I be second 586 00:34:42,000 --> 00:34:44,160 Speaker 1: on this and be talking about saying maybe that's the 587 00:34:44,160 --> 00:34:47,600 Speaker 1: way I could teach you how to eat a ricola 588 00:34:48,000 --> 00:34:49,839 Speaker 1: while you give out the news. That's right,