Today, you might turn on the radio in the car to listen to some music, but very few people sit around their radio in the living room for entertainment these days. But in the 1930s, that was just what people did. Radio talk show hosts amassed huge followings in the millions and were the influencers before the term even existed. Father Charles Coughlin was one such host who became extremely popular during the Great Depression for his economic and political takes.
Explore our app and discover over 50 million learning materials for free.
Lerne mit deinen Freunden und bleibe auf dem richtigen Kurs mit deinen persönlichen Lernstatistiken
Jetzt kostenlos anmeldenNie wieder prokastinieren mit unseren Lernerinnerungen.
Jetzt kostenlos anmeldenToday, you might turn on the radio in the car to listen to some music, but very few people sit around their radio in the living room for entertainment these days. But in the 1930s, that was just what people did. Radio talk show hosts amassed huge followings in the millions and were the influencers before the term even existed. Father Charles Coughlin was one such host who became extremely popular during the Great Depression for his economic and political takes.
Father Charles Coughlin was born on October 25th, 1891, to a devoutly Catholic, middle-class family in Ontario, Canada. He studied theology at St. Michael's College in Toronto before being ordained as a priest in 1916. He then took on a faculty position at Assumption College, where he remained until joining the Archdiocese of Detroit in 1923.
In 1926, the Archbishop of Detroit, Michael Gallagher, permitted Father Charles Coughlin to build a church, the Shrine of the Little Flower, in Royal Oak, Michigan. While there were few members in the parish, Father Charles Coughlin made a large, extravagant structure. He ultimately found his large audience when he began broadcasting Catholic services over the radio in 1927.
In 1931, CBS picked up his show, giving Father Charles Coughlin a national audience of approximately 40 million Americans weekly. While this deal lasted only a few years, Coughlin remained a popular talk radio host via different networks until the late 1930s.
While Father Charles Coughlin may have started his radio career with religious services for children, he quickly transitioned to sermons for adults. And while these sermons may have begun as strictly religious, Coughlin soon began inserting his economic and political takes into the show. Once the Great Depression took hold, he became even more vocal about his opinions. He was a champion of the poor and lower-middle class in the face of big business. He called for the nationalization of critical resources and the abolition of private banking.
In 1932, Father Charles Coughlin publicly backed presidential candidate Franklin Delano Roosevelt, seeing him as a fellow social reformer, against the incumbent Herbert Hoover. Coughlin believed that the Hoover administration had been in cahoots with big business and that Roosevelt and his New Deal were the answer to the nation's problems. Coughlin spoke at the Democratic National Convention and told his listeners repeatedly that it was "Roosevelt or Ruin."
The "New Deal":
A series of programs and legislation aimed at boosting the economy and providing relief to struggling Americans during the 1930s.
After President Roosevelt took office, he began distancing himself from Father Charles Coughlin. While having his listeners' support during the election was certainly helpful, Roosevelt believed that Coughlin's political and economic ideology was too radical. Feeling edged out and disappointed by the New Deal, Coughlin began an attack on Roosevelt.
In 1934, Father Charles Coughlin created the National Union for Social Justice to further his political goals. The organization called for the implementation of a living wage, the establishment of a government-owned central bank, and the protection of labor unions, among other reforms. Coughlin also established a paper called Social Justice in 1936, in which he aired his political opinions.
In 1936, Father Charles Coughlin supported the Union Party's candidate for president, William Lemke, a Congressman from North Dakota. The Union Party had formed following the assassination of Huey Long, who had been campaigning against Roosevelt under the Democratic Party. His supporters, including Coughlin, wished to rally their own followings in order to get a populist candidate in office. When the campaign proved unsuccessful, the party dissolved.
By the late 1930s, Father Charles Coughlin had taken on right-wing ideology. Believing that capitalism and democracy had failed, he promoted fascism and authoritarianism, going so far as to compliment Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. He held that communism was a genuine threat to American society.
Father Charles Coughlin's Anti-Semitism
Father Charles Coughlin was deeply anti-Semitic, but he did not openly express his prejudice in his early career. He referred to corrupt "international bankers" that had power over the government but did not explicitly state his belief that these international bankers were Jewish.
With Hitler's rise to power and the persecution of Jewish citizens, he became very open in his anti-Semitic beliefs. Following Kristallnacht, a night of violent attacks and destruction in Germany, Coughlin defended the Nazis, stating that the Jewish had persecuted Christians in the past. Once World War II broke out, he promoted a conspiracy that Jewish people were responsible and actually wanted the war.
When World War II broke out, Father Charles Coughlin promoted an isolationist ideology. Even after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, he believed that America should stay out of the war. So, once America did enter the war, Coughlin made sure to respond by using his paper, Social Justice, to spread pro-Axis propaganda.
Of course, the federal government was not happy with his anti-American activities, and in 1942, Attorney General Francis Biddle ordered a federal grand jury investigation. The U.S. Postal Services ceased the distribution of Social Justice. And now, with an excuse, the Archbishop of Detroit, Edward Mooney, banned any more publications lest Coughlin loses his position in the clergy.
Having lost both his radio show and paper, Father Charles Coughlin returned to preach at the Shrine of the Little Flower and faded out of the public eye. He retired in 1966 and died in 1979, receiving little media attention.
Father Charles Coughlin's radio show reached millions of Americans each week. For this reason, he held a significant amount of power and influence, especially during the early years of the Great Depression. The working and lower middle class saw him as a spokesperson for their needs and desires and turned to him for decisions as large as who to vote for in the presidential election.
On a broader scale, Father Charles Coughlin was among the first radio personalities and paved the way for televangelists of the future.
Charles Coughlin was a priest and popular radio talk show host during the early years of the Great Depression.
Charles Coughlin opposed the New Deal because it was not radical enough in its monetary reforms. For example, it allowed private banking to remain in place.
Charles Coughlin became a critic of the Roosevelt Administration because Roosevelt edged him out and the New Deal was not radical enough for his wishes.
Father Coughlin wanted reforms such as the implementation of a living wage, the abolition of private banking, and the protection of labor unions. In the late 1930s, Coughlin began to promote authoritarianism and fascism.
Father Charles Coughlin proposed monetary reforms during the Great Depression. He also proposed the concessions of fascism and authoritarianism in the late 1930s.
What was the name of the church Father Charles Coughlin constructed in Royal Oak, Michigan?
The Shrine of the Little Flower
How did Charles Coughlin gain fame?
his radio show
Who did Father Charles Coughlin support in the 1932 presidential election?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
What was the name of the political organization Charles Coughlin founded?
National Union for Social Justice
What party did Father Charles Coughlin support in the 1936 election?
The Union Party
Which systems did Father Charles Coughlin come to support by the late 1930s?
authoritarianism
Already have an account? Log in
Open in AppThe first learning app that truly has everything you need to ace your exams in one place
Sign up to highlight and take notes. It’s 100% free.
Save explanations to your personalised space and access them anytime, anywhere!
Sign up with Email Sign up with AppleBy signing up, you agree to the Terms and Conditions and the Privacy Policy of Vaia.
Already have an account? Log in
Already have an account? Log in
The first learning app that truly has everything you need to ace your exams in one place
Already have an account? Log in