Ben Ferguson

Benjamin Grant Ferguson (born August 28, 1981) is an American radio host, CNN conservative political commentator, and author. His nationally syndicated radio show, The Ben Ferguson Show, formerly aired throughout the United States on Radio America and is now syndicated by ICON Radio Network, of which Ben is the founder and owner, on Sundays from 6 - 9 PM CT.^[1] He is also a regular political commentator on CNN.

Early life and education

Ben Ferguson was born to Bruce and Karen Ferguson on August 28, 1981. He has an older sister, Holly. Ferguson was homeschooled by his mother through the tenth grade. Ben has Scottish ancestry. A local talk-radio host throughout his teens, Ferguson attended Tusculum College, but later, graduated from Westminster Academy. He went on to the University of Mississippi,^[2] intending to play tennis; he became a member of Kappa Alpha Order Fraternity.^[3] He graduated from Ole Miss in 2004. Ben married Anna Bradley Ferguson in March 2010.

Political activities

Ferguson is a member of Students for Saving Social Security (S4). In July 2005, as S4's political director, Ferguson was selected by the White House to join President Bush and Ben Stein for a town hall meeting in an effort to educate the public on the issue of social security reform. Ferguson also spends several weeks a year on the road speaking at youth leadership conferences, high schools and college campuses nationwide. He has become a regular keynote speaker for several groups, including Congressional Youth Leadership and Lead America.

Ferguson is an avid critic of former Memphis Mayor W. W. Herenton. When Herenton resigned and then decided to run again for mayor not two weeks later, Ferguson entered the political scene and pulled a petition to run for Memphis City Mayor.^[4] He withdrew from the election when Herenton also withdrew.

Broadcasting career

He is the youngest nationally syndicated radio personality in the United States. In August 2007, Ferguson joined 600 WREC in Memphis as its morning radio host. He was then moved to the afternoon drive show from 4-7 PM CT.[4] On April 20, 2010, Ferguson resigned from WREC. In a statement he said, "I have left the station, effective today. I’m looking forward to a new market and a new show, in addition to my national show and my continuing appearances on such networks as CNBC, CNN and MSNBC."

Later, it was stated that Ferguson left WREC after an impasse in contract negotiations. It was then announced that Ben Ferguson would take over the 4-7 PM slot on another local radio station, KWAM. Controversial radio host Thaddeus Matthews was fired to make room for Ferguson.

On April 1, 2012, Ferguson became the regular fill-in for Mark Davis on WBAP in Texas, as Davis was involved in contract disputes with the new owners of WBAP, Cumulus Media. When a new contract could not be reached between Mark Davis and Cumulus, Ferguson became the permanent host of the 9 - 11 AM CT time slot. Ben currently lives in Dallas, Texas.[5]

Ferguson's national talk-radio show focuses on current events from a conservative point of view. The Ben Ferguson Show can be heard over ICON Radio Network weekly on Sunday evenings from 7-10 PM ET.

Ferguson hosted a local radio show in Memphis during evening drive time slot (from 4-7 PM) weekdays on WREC (600 AM) in Memphis until April 20, 2010.^[5] On May 3, 2010, KWAM 990 announced that he would be their new evening drive time host.^[6] On April 25, 2011, Ben moved to WKIM 98.9 FM, coinciding with a format change in the station to an all-talk network.^[7]

A prominent element of Ferguson's broadcast style is to immediately repeat most statements two, three, or four times for emphasis. He also appears frequently on Fox News Channel, MSNBC, CNBC, Fox Business, CNN, and CNN Headline News.

Republican National Convention appearance

Ferguson addressed the 2004 Republican National Convention. His speech was quoted in various news outlets, including the Chicago Tribune, Toronto Star and Pittsburgh Post Gazette.

Bibliography

• It's My America Too: A Leading Young Conservative Shares His Views on Politics and Other Matters of Importance, 2004, William Morrow (ISBN 0-06-059011-4)

External links

• Ferguson's Network Talk Show Website
• Talk Shows USA Announcement
• News Article on His Departure from WREC

References

1. ↑ http://www.iconradionetwork.com/
2. ↑ Local, International Journalists Intrigued with Debate and University Ole Miss (accessed April 23, 2010)
3. ↑ Newsletter KAPPA ALPHA AT OLE MISS, June 2003 (accessed April 23, 2010)
4. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
5. ↑ Dowd, James WREC-AM talk show host Ben Ferguson leaves stationThe Commercial Appeal, April 20, 2010 (accessed May 3, 2010)
6. ↑ Dowd, James Radio show host Ferguson heads to KWAM 990The Commercial Appeal, May 3, 2010 (accessed May 3, 2010)
7. ↑ Dowd, James Memphis conservative talker Ben Ferguson jumps to Citadel's WKIM-FM 98.9The Commercial Appeal, April 26, 2011 (accessed August 11, 2011)