The Commercial and the Public 'Public Spheres': Two Types of Political Talk-Radio and Their Constructed Publics

摘要

This article describes radio programs that include one-on-one interactions between a host and caller about current affairs. The description reveals 2 formats: talk-back and phone-in. Talk-backs are found in commercial stations; the host is the star of these long programs; and the interactions with the callers are used to establish the status of the host. Phone-ins are found in public stations; the callers are the center of these shorter programs. These formats create 2 publics, 1 of passion at the talk-backs and I of discussion at the phone-ins. Each public has its features and relations with the public sphere.