The Laura Ingraham Show

The Laura Ingraham Show is a conservative radio show hosted by Laura Ingraham.

According to the spring 2006 issue of Talkers magazine, Ingraham's talk show has the fifth largest audience among nationally aired talk show hosts, trailing only Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage and Laura Schlessinger. On her web site, law school classmate and friend Lee Habeeb is billed as "co-producer, sidekick, constant irritant" (on May 30, 2006 Ingraham announced Lee Habeeb had left the show for another job) and Matt Fox is billed as technical producer. Behind the scenes, their guest booking producer is Heather Smith, a former Fox News Channel producer. The site features online polls, "Read It or Weep" articles of note handpicked by Laura from various websites and blogs, and audio clips available via podcasting.

The format of the 3-hour weekday program is host commentary, interaction with Laura and Matt, phone calls and guests. The show covers primarily politics, pop culture, and media bias; with topics of interest including race relations, trends in schools, the Middle East and the legacy of feminism. The show features several recurring segments, each with a distinct satirical theme.

Show Segments

The segment called "But... Monkey" takes a politician's sound bite and divides the words before "but" from the words that follow with a screeching monkey sound. Other variations of the monkey cited include the "Having Said That Monkey" and the "Double But... Monkey." Other segments include "Lie of the Day," during which a sound bite is played of an alleged lie over the Anastacia song "Why'd You Lie to Me". Another satirical segment is "Deep Thought of the Day", signaled by the sounds of piano, smooth flowing water and chirping birds accompanied by statements. For example, one "Deep Thought" featured on the show was from Maya Angelou who said, "Don't let facts get in the way of the truth. You can tell so many facts you never get to the truth."

Other segments include "Sound Bite of the Week", which allows callers to choose which of several noteworthy sound 'bites' played before accepting calls is the most outstanding, good or bad. The segment "Looking for Leaders" profiles individuals who have made some outstanding contribution to America by example; one segment featured wrestling champion and author Kyle Maynard, born with a rare congenital disorder that left him with no elbows or knees. Other lesser-used segments include the "What's He Smokin' Moment of the Day", the "Awkward Pause Moment of the Day", and most recently, the "Black Helicopter".

The segment "Guess the Guest" — in which callers are encouraged to hypothesize as to the identity of a certain guest on selected episodes of Larry King's CNN show by listening to choice sound cuts from the interview — had been played often on Ingraham's radio show until 2005 when for no stated reason, she stopped using the segment. Later, in 2006, resumed it.

Major Issues Covered

The Laura Ingraham Show covers a wide variety of issues, summed up by Laura as "Politics, the culture and media bias." Depending on current events, Laura will discuss certain issues more in-depth.

Illegal Immigration--Laura is a staunch advocate of "securing the borders" by putting more resources into stopping illegal immigration. She has a segment called "The Illegal Immigration Sob Story" alert, in which she finds media articles she opines are gathering emotional sympathy for illegal immigrants whom, she simply feels, are breaking the law.

Islamic Jihad--The show covers the "threat of radical Islam" with Laura discussing current events and media reports about the war against terror and, specifically, what she believes is a growing faction of Islam: jihads.

US War in Iraq and Visit--Ingraham visited Iraq from February 5 to February 10, 2006, leaving the morning of February 11. The show then featured several interviews and segments with military personnel now serving in Iraq, and she added to her website a daily journal of her trip, which also featured a visit to a nearby hospital. Back in the states, Iraq is a daily topic for the staff at the Laura Ingraham Show, covering news that comes from the war both in and out of the mainstream media. As a staunch supporter of US troops everywhere, Laura highlights the "positive" stories that she often feels are intentionally left out by what she feels are anti-US victory media outlets.

Show Staff

Laura's show has three producers. Senior producer is Matt Fox from Rochester, NY. Producers are A.J. Fox from Pennsylvania and Joe Vollono from Washington D.C. All three are younger than Laura and give the show a different feel than when it was produced by producer Lee Habeeb.

The Laura Ingraham Show's Visit to Iraq

Ingraham visited Iraq from February 5 to February 10, 2006, leaving the morning of February 11. The show then featured several interviews and segments with military personnel now serving in Iraq, and she added to her website a daily journal of her trip, which also featured a visit to a nearby hospital.

Laura's Personal Life on the Show

Laura often calls the show "Reality Radio", and this is evidenced by her and her producers constant jokes, bloopers and Laura's occasional lateness on the show. Coming back from Israel, the show opened with Laura's producer introducing her on the phone, as she rushed to get into the building, urging her taxi driver to go faster.

Laura often talks about her personal life in between commentary on current events. Popular topics include tales of her yellow lab, Lucy, and her travel adventures with her producers and interns on the show.

External links

• Laura Ingraham Official Web Site.
• Laura Ingraham at NNDB.
• Station Guide for the Laura Ingraham Show.