By Christian Polking
For nearly a decade, National Right to Life has made itself a visible
presence at the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) annual convention
and 1998 was no exception. This year the three-day convention, which began
February 1, was held in Washington, D.C., at the Washington Sheraton.
The convention is an opportunity for grassroots organizations such as NRLC
to meet and make contact with broadcasters, most of whom are pro-life.
Because this year's convention was in the city where NRLC is located, we
were able to send over a larger than usual contingent. The delegates consisted
of NRLC President Dr. Wanda Franz; Olivia Gans, director of American Victims
of Abortion; and three members of our media relations department.
Sunday was the first day of the convention, and all of us were kept very
busy by the steady flow of people stopping by the booth. Providing information
and education is a large part of NRLC's goal, and reaching broadcasters
with the pro-life message continues to pay rich dividends for unborn children.
Even religious broadcasters, who are friendly to the message of NRLC, need
to be kept abreast of the most current information about abortion, infanticide,
and euthanasia.
NRB's annual convention also afforded a great opportunity for us to spread
the word on the upcoming events in the movement. We informed the religious
broadcasters that with their help, the tireless work of the grassroots pro-lifers
who listen to their
stations had culminated in real successes.
For example, we let them know that this success was recognized by Fortune
magazine. Its recently published survey revealed that NRLC was ranked in
the top 10 most influential groups in Washington.
One of the most successful aspects of the convention for NRLC was the interest
shown in our daily radio show, Pro-Life Perspective. Already the
show can be heard on more than 250 stations nationwide, and there were many
new stations interested in running the program.
All in all, the chance to spend three days with many of the most influential
outlets in the religious broadcasting community was an invaluable opportunity
to spread pro-life news and information. However there are still many, many
outlets for us to tap into.
We need grassroots pro-life activists to help us by encouraging local radio
stations to air Pro-Life Perspective, as well as pro-life public
service announcements. After you approach them if a broadcaster in your
area is interested in receiving information on what NRLC has to offer, or
is interested in our radio show, please have them contact the media relations
department at 202-626-8833.