History of Dennis Prager in Timeline

Dennis Prager is a prominent American conservative radio talk show host and writer known for his traditional values stance. He hosts "The Dennis Prager Show," a nationally syndicated radio program where he discusses political, cultural, and religious issues from a conservative perspective. He co-founded PragerU, an organization that creates videos promoting conservative viewpoints and advocating for capitalism. His work aims to influence public opinion and promote conservative ideology through various media platforms.

Sections (4)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Controversies & Scandals

1918: Max Prager Born

In 1918, Max Prager, Dennis Prager's father, was born.

1919: Hilda Friedfeld Born

In 1919, Hilda Friedfeld, Dennis Prager's mother, was born.

August 2, 1948: Dennis Prager Born

On August 2, 1948, Dennis Mark Prager was born. He is an American conservative radio talk show host and writer.

1969: Initial political work on Refuseniks

In 1969, Dennis Prager's initial political work focused on the Refuseniks, Soviet Jews who were denied permission to emigrate.

1969: Recruited by Israeli government

In 1969, while studying in England, Dennis Prager was recruited by the government of Israel to smuggle Jewish religious items into the Soviet Union and smuggle out names of Jews.

1970: Received B.A. and Became Fellow

In 1970, Dennis Prager received a B.A. in anthropology and history from Brooklyn College. He also became a fellow at the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs.

1972: Attended Columbia University

From 1970 to 1972, Dennis Prager attended Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, and took courses at the University of Leeds.

1975: Published 'The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism'

In 1975, Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin published "The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism", an introduction to Judaism intended for nonobservant Jews, which became a bestseller.

1976: Ran Brandeis-Bardin Institute

In 1976, Dennis Prager started running the Brandeis-Bardin Institute.

1976: Supported Jimmy Carter

In 1976, Dennis Prager supported Jimmy Carter in the US presidential election.

1982: Hosted Religion on the Line

In 1982, KABC (AM) in Los Angeles hired Dennis Prager to host its Sunday night religious talk show Religion on the Line.

1983: Published 'Why the Jews? The Reason for Antisemitism'

In 1983, Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin published the book "Why the Jews? The Reason for Antisemitism".

1983: Left Brandeis-Bardin Institute

In 1983, Dennis Prager left the Brandeis-Bardin Institute. He worked with Telushkin there.

1985: Launched Ultimate Issues journal

In 1985, Dennis Prager launched his own quarterly journal, Ultimate Issues.

1986: Divorced and underwent therapy

In 1986, Dennis Prager divorced and underwent a year of therapy.

1990: Wrote essay on Judaism and homosexuality

In 1990, Dennis Prager wrote an essay called "Judaism, Homosexuality and Civilization" arguing against normalizing homosexuality in the Jewish community.

1992: Remarried and became fixture on local radio

By 1992, Dennis Prager was remarried and had become a "fixture on local radio". In 1992, he also became involved with the Stephen S. Wise Temple and gave talks there and began a weekday night talk show on KABC.

1994: Show Syndicated

During the 1994-1995 television season, Multimedia Entertainment syndicated a show featuring Dennis Prager.

1994: Broadcast on WABC

In 1994, Dennis Prager broadcast for an hour each weekday via satellite on WABC, KABC's sister station in New York, before doing his KABC show locally.

1994: Criticized ADL report on antisemitism

In 1994, Dennis Prager criticized the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and its report on antisemitism in the Christian right movement.

1995: Criticized Baby Richard case decision

In 1995, Dennis Prager criticized the Illinois Supreme Court decision in the Baby Richard case. He held a "Rally for Baby Richard" with KABC, where he got support from actors Priscilla Presley, Tom Selleck, and John McCook.

1995: Changed TV show format

In 1995, Dennis Prager moved the studio audience on-stage with him where they could interact with him more directly on his syndicated show.

1995: Urged Jews to work with conservative Christians

In 1995, Dennis Prager urged conservative Jews to be open to working with conservative Christians, like the Christian Coalition. In 1995, he named Jacob Petuchowski, Eliezer Berkovits, Harold Kushner, C. S. Lewis, Richard John Neuhaus, Michael Novak, and George Gilder as the people who had influenced his theology the most.

1996: Renamed journal to The Prager Perspective

In 1996, Dennis Prager renamed his quarterly journal "Ultimate Issues" to "The Prager Perspective".

1996: Testified in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act

In 1996, Dennis Prager testified in Congress in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act. He also worked with Bob Dole's campaign in the 1996 presidential election.

1999: Published 'Happiness Is a Serious Problem'

In 1999, Dennis Prager published "Happiness Is a Serious Problem". The Encyclopedia of Judaism says that his therapy in 1986 contributed to this book.

1999: Hosted talk show on KRLA

Since 1999, Dennis Prager has hosted a nationally syndicated talk show on the socially and politically conservative Christian radio station KRLA in Los Angeles, which is part of the Salem Media Group.

2006: Criticized Keith Ellison

In 2006, Dennis Prager criticized Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, for announcing that he would use the Quran for the reenactment of his swearing in ceremony.

2009: Started PragerU

In 2009, Dennis Prager and his producer Allen Estrin started a website called PragerU, which creates videos on various topics from a conservative perspective.

2009: Opposed Affordable Care Act

In 2009, Dennis Prager joined other Salem Radio Network hosts to oppose the Affordable Care Act.

2009: Death of Hilda Prager

In 2009, Hilda (née Friedfeld), Dennis Prager's mother, passed away.

2014: Made comments on same-sex marriage and AIDS

In 2014, Dennis Prager wrote that if same-sex marriage were to be nationally legalized, then there is no plausible argument for denying polygamous relationships. He also said that the "heterosexual AIDS" crisis was something "entirely manufactured by the Left" in 2014.

2014: Death of Max Prager

In 2014, Max Prager, Dennis Prager's father, passed away.

2016: Endorsed Donald Trump

In 2016, Dennis Prager endorsed Donald Trump in the presidential election, clarifying that Trump was his "17th choice out of 17 candidates."

2017: Invited as guest conductor

In 2017, Dennis Prager was invited to be a guest conductor for the volunteer orchestra of Santa Monica, California, as part of a fundraising concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Some orchestra members protested the invitation.

2017: Videos had viewer access restricted by YouTube

In 2017, some of PragerU's videos had viewer access restricted by YouTube.

2018: Spent 40% of PragerU budget on marketing

As of 2018, PragerU spent around 40% of its annual $10 million budget on marketing.

2018: Published commentary on the Book of Exodus

In 2018, Dennis Prager published a commentary on the Book of Exodus, published by the Salem Media Group.

2019: Published commentary on the Book of Genesis

In 2019, Dennis Prager published a commentary on the Book of Genesis, published by the Salem Media Group.

April 2020: Called COVID-19 lockdowns 'the greatest mistake'

In April 2020, Dennis Prager called the COVID-19 lockdowns "the greatest mistake in the history of humanity." His views were criticized in The New York Times.

December 2020: Claimed Sweden proved lockdowns were useless

In December 2020, a fact check found false Dennis Prager's claim that Sweden's response to COVID-19 proved lockdowns were useless, as Sweden had higher rates of COVID infection and mortality than other Scandinavian countries.

November 2021: Argued about 'irrational fears' about unvaccinated people

In a November 2021 Newsmax interview, Dennis Prager argued that "irrational fears" about people not vaccinated against COVID-19 had wrongly made them "the pariahs of America as I have not seen in my lifetime," more than gay men and intravenous drug users during the AIDS crisis. He also called concerns about climate change "idiotic" and "irrational".