LUCKY SEVERSON: Traveling under the big sky of Montana requires some sturdy wheels, preferably a pickup truck, and a good radio, which usually offers FM music and AM talk.
In this part of the world, on the airwaves conservative talk has a virtual lock. Odds are the talk will progress from Rush Limbaugh to someone even more conservative -- like John Stokes, owner of station KGEZ in Kalispell, Montana.
JOHN STOKES (Radio Host, KGEZ, Kalispell, Montana, on Radio): When the Left extremists are out of power, they are vicious, and it is pure, unadulterated, satanic evil. And they may look like your neighbors. It's evil.SEVERSON: If you're in Montana, or much of rural America, you will hear very little of what people in these parts call "namby-pamby" liberalism on AM radio, and that's music to John Stokes's ears.
Mr. STOKES: I think it's gone so far extreme to the left that there was a backlash, and that's where you're probably seeing more people come out of the closet and say, "Enough is enough."
SEVERSON: He thinks talk radio is an outlet for America's aggravations.
Mr. STOKES: This is the great thing about America -- is that you can still get on your soapbox and do something. These people say that I incite people to violence. That's the last thing I want.SEVERSON: But his detractors say some of his broadcasts have incited harassment and stifled public debate. Consider his program shortly after 9/11, when he equated environmentalists with terrorists.
Mr. STOKES (On Radio): So when these left-wing lunatic liberals complain that I have somehow connected them to this, yes, you are responsible. The Green extremists out there, the Green Nazis. Look in the mirror; it's your political correctness that has caused these problems.
KEN TOOLE (Montana Human Rights Network): People contacted us and said, "I've had things happen to my house, and I think it's because they talked about me on the program." Then you've got a problem, and that definitely affects not only the ability to have civic debate, but it also affects the decision making.
SEVERSON: Ken Toole is a Montana state senator and program director for the Montana Human Rights Network. He has been critical of Stokes's talk show called THE EDGE. He says the rhetoric has pushed some listeners over the edge to harass targets of Stokes's attacks. That may be why Stokes refers to Toole as "king fool of the human rights nitwits."
Mr. TOOLE: We went to Stokes and said, "You've got to knock this stuff off," and called him out on it. This is bullying. Does the schoolyard bully affect the schoolyard? I think so.
Mr. STOKES: There hasn't been one incident of violence at all by anybody that's been related to this show.
SEVERSON: How about harassing phone calls?
Mr. STOKES: We get them.
SEVERSON: How about some of these people who are mentioned on your program -- do they get them?
Mr. STOKES: I wouldn't know about that.
MARIA ARRINGTON (Quaker): Since he came into the valley, I'm seeing bumper stickers that are totally offensive to me, that literally say, "Kill the Green Nazis," and from their definition of a Green Nazi, here I am. Do you want to kill me?SEVERSON: Maria Arrington and Jean Hand Triol are both Quakers and self-described liberals living in the Kalispell area.
Ms. ARRINGTON: I don't think there's any problem having conservative talk radio. My problem with the stations that we're talking about right now is that they're sowing the seeds of hate and fear, and that is dividing the community.
JEAN HAND TRIOL (Quaker): Even if we had different political views, we could have a dialogue, and now a lot of people are afraid to even express a liberal view.
SEVERSON: There is, of course, the other point of view, one you might hear from many of the men in this Bible study group. They call themselves "dirt bags" instead of "sinners," and they meet every Friday morning for Scripture lessons at a local casino.JOHN CREAMER (Bible Study Leader): Father, we thank you for good health, for this beautiful place ...
SEVERSON: The "dirt bag" Bible discussions are conducted by John Creamer. He's a friend of John Stokes and has a religious program on Stokes's radio station. Creamer thinks talk radio is good for the community because it gets the juices flowing.
Mr. CREAMER: I think it stimulates a lot of thought and discussion, and it may not be the best way to do it, but what is a better alternative to get people thinking about what they should be thinking about?
SEVERSON: In this part of Montana, dozens of timber mills have closed, costing hundreds of jobs. Many locals blame government regulations, and especially the environmentalists, Stokes's so-called Green Nazis.
Mr. TOOLE: We very regularly bring a Holocaust survivor to Montana to talk about the Holocaust, to talk about bigotry and intolerance and take them through the schools. Stokes referred to him as a whore doing the work of the Human Rights Network.
Reverend DONNA SCHRAM (Flathead Valley United Church of Christ): It's pretty hard, I think, to live that Christian life of give and take of love when you're constantly looking over your shoulder and being in a fearful state.
Ms. TRIOL: Everyone I speak with is concerned about the same thing and kind of ashamed that they're hunkering down and, you know, not out there with their opinions. It's a bad feeling.
