Dennis Prager
| Dennis Prager | |
|---|---|
 Dennis Prager speaking at the California Capitol Building, 2008 |
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| Born | August 2, 1948 USA |
| Occupation | Radio host, political commentator, author, and television personality |
| Religion | Jewish |
| Children | 1 Grandchild (announced 9/15/2010) |
Dennis Prager (born August 2, 1948) is an American syndicated radio talk show host, syndicated columnist, author, and public speaker. He is noted for his conservative political and social views emanating from conservative Judeo-Christian values. He holds that there is an "American Trinity" of essential principles, which he lists as E Pluribus Unum, In God We Trust, and Liberty. He is a Media Fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University. He taught Jewish and Russian History at Brooklyn College, and was a Fellow at the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, where he did his graduate work at the Russian Institute (now the Harriman Institute) and Middle East Institute from 1970-1972. He has lectured in 46 states and on six continents and traveled in 100 countries and in all 50 U.S. states.
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[edit] Early life
Raised in Brooklyn, New York, Prager attended Yeshiva Rambam from kindergarten through 8th grade and Yeshiva of Flatbush for high school, where he met his future co-author Joseph Telushkin in the 10th grade. Prager attended Brooklyn College majoring in Middle Eastern Studies and History; he graduated in 1970. He went on to study at the Russian Institute (now the Harriman Institute) at Columbia University.[1] Prager is distantly related to San Antonio Spurs player Manu Ginobili,[2] and he is a big fan.
[edit] Political views
In his articles, broadcasts, and lectures, Prager states that the U.S. is engaged in a "second non-violent civil war" "culture war" over the fundamental moral values on which he believes American society was built. Prager argues that many influential American institutions (including universities, trial lawyers, labor unions, the American Civil Liberties Union, civil rights groups, and most large newspapers and television networks) are dominated by "secular leftists," who, he says, attack and misrepresent Judeo-Christian values and their positive historical effect upon America and the world.[3] In 2005, 24 of his columns were devoted to explaining those values and how he believes they make the United States special.[4] Prager can be heard Monday through Friday, 9 to noon (Pacific), noon to 3pm (Eastern) in most major markets on the Salem Radio Network.
[edit] Controversy involving Keith Ellison
Prager in 2006 accused Congressman Keith Ellison, a Muslim, of taking the oath of office in a photo-op reenactment of the actual oath with the Islamic Quran. Prager stated that America was "imperiled" by Ellison taking the oath on the Quran in substitution of the Bible as the Bible, "the moral basis of American civilization" in Prager's view, had never before been replaced by another religious work. Some conservative commentators such as Tucker Carlson were critical of this position, pointing out that the US Constitution requires no religious test. Carlson stated: "I'm no great defender of the Koran but I'm not sure why America is imperiled by Keith Ellison's taking the oath on it. …it's hard for me to believe I'm defending the Koran here. But that document [the Constitution] says very clearly no religious test will ever be required for holding office and you're implying holding up a religious test. …If you don't believe in the God at the very center [of] that document [the Christian Bible], you still have to acknowledge the centrality of the document? With respect, that doesn't make sense. …Here we have a Jew pushing a Muslim to use the Christian Bible. This is - that's America." [5]
The Anti- Defamation League strongly condemned Prager for his views concerning Ellison's oath-taking photo-op. In a letter dated December 1st, 2006, they wrote, "Dennis Prager’s argument that Representative-Elect Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, should not be permitted to take his oath of office on a Koran is, intolerant, misinformed and downright un-American." The letter closed with the following paragraph: "Prager presents intolerant, ugly views. His comparison of Ellison’s desire to “choose his favorite book” to that of the right of a racist elected to public office to use Hitler’s Mein Kampf is outrageous. If Prager were merely a blogger and radio talk-show host trying to be relevant and provocative, these views might not merit a response. But as a newly-appointed member of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, Prager and his views must be held to a higher standard."
As a result of the controversy, Prager was rebuked by The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, of which Prager was an appointed board member, at the time.
[edit] Published works
Prager's columns are handled by Creators Syndicate.[6] He wrote for the Sunday Los Angeles Times "Current" section, and writes a weekly column published in newspapers such as the Washington Examiner and online at Townhall.com,[7] National Review Online, Jewish World Review and elsewhere. He also writes a bi-weekly column for the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles.
He is also the author of four books:
- Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism (with Joseph Telushkin) (1986) ISBN 0-6716-2261-7
- Think a Second Time (1996) ISBN 0-0609-8709-X
- Happiness Is a Serious Problem: A Human Nature Repair Manual (1999) ISBN 0-0609-8735-9
- Why the Jews? The Reason for Antisemitism (with Joseph Telushkin) (2003) ISBN 0-7432-4620-9
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Official website
- Prager University
- Dennis Prager at the Internet Movie Database
- Dennis Prager Controversy in Joining the US Holocaust Memorial Museum from Holocaust Survivors and Remembrance Project
- Dennis Prager Features at Creators Syndicate
- Pragerradio.com
- Townhall columns
- Podcasts of Prager's recent articles
- Dennis Prager Biography
- Why Are Atheists So Angry? A Debate Between Prager and Sam Harris
- Booknotes interview with Prager on Think a Second Time, February 4, 1996.
